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Book Review: “Begin Again, James Baldwin’s America and its Urgent Lessons for Our Own,” by Eddie S. Glaude Jr.

By JIM FAIRBANKS
  Glaude’s title of “Begin Again” [Crown Publishing, 2020] calls us to renewed action for racial justice. He gives hopeful examples of past Black rights gained, such as the civil rights laws during Reconstruction after the Civil War, and during the Black Power movement of the 1960s. Yet, he writes that each effort was followed by White backlash Baldwin calls the “After Times.”   We are again living in the “After Times” now! This book is not a hopeful story of change; this is a sobering book. Glaude Jr. quotes American sociologist, socialist, historian, and Pan-African civil rights activist, W.E.B.


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World-Renowned, Award-Winning Musicians to Perform for South Bronx Elementary Students  

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Zeta South Bronx Elementary School K-2nd grade students and staff are in for a treat on Monday, Feb. 13, when the South Bronx school will host a special musical performance by Liang Wang, principal oboist for the New York Philharmonic, and Junko Ichikawa, an award-winning pianist.   According to representatives of Zeta South Bronx Elementary School, located at 425 Westchester Avenue, part of the charter school’s whole-child education approach and its commitment to reversing the quality gap, includes providing students with a robust specialty curriculum and programming through which students can explore and discover their own unique interests and passions.


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Olinville: Housing Lottery for Units at 3836-3838 Carpenter Avenue Closes Feb. 27

By SÍLE MOLONEY
An ongoing affordable housing lottery, as reported by YIMBY, for units at 3836-3838 Carpenter Avenue, comprising a pair of four-story residential buildings in the Olinville section of The Bronx, will close on Feb. 27, according to City officials. Designed by Badaly Architects, and developed by Aglin Zefi, the structure is made up of 20 residential units.    Available on NYC Housing Connect, the online portal of NYC Department of Housing, Preservation & Development (HPD), are six units for residents earning 130 percent of the area median income (AMI), ranging in eligible income from $69,429 to $187,330.   The apartments feature


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Teen Critical after Stabbing in Kingsbridge Heights

By DAVID GREENE
  Parents making their routine trip to pick up their kids from school in Kingsbridge Heights were horrified recently to learn that a 16-year-old male youth had been stabbed. Police said the teen remains in critical condition as police search for the suspect who reportedly plunged a knife into the victim.   According to an NYPD official, the incident was reported at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 31, on Jerome Avenue, between West 195th Street and West Kingsbridge Road on the border of Kingsbridge Heights and Fordham Manor.   The NYPD official told Norwood News, “A 16-year-old male was stabbed in the stomach


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NYPD Attribute January Decline in Crime to “Enhanced Public Safety Investment”

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Though a number of serious crimes were reported on in January in the Northwest Bronx and across the borough, NYPD officials said that for the month of January, the number of overall shooting incidents and murders in New York City declined, compared to January 2022, a drop they attribute to what was called the department’s “enhanced public safety investment” across each borough, in every neighborhood.   Department officials said major crimes in the subway system have dropped precipitously, and arrests for overall index crimes stand at a 24-year high for any January in the modern era (when the department starting


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Inquiring Photographer: Thoughts on Proposed Bipartisan African American History Act

By DAVID GREENE
This week, in recognition of Black History Month, we asked readers their thoughts on the proposed bipartisan African American History Act bill, introduced to Congress once again by Democratic co-sponsors, U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) and U.S. Sen. Corey Booker (NJ) as reported, and which, if passed, would invest $10 million over the next 5 years to promote and support education programs dedicated to African American history.   “I think they should sign this legislation with the hope that all Black and brown communities will also have their stories told. Truth be told, as a Puerto Rican-American, our story has


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Throggs Neck: Man in White Vehicle Sought for Attempted Luring of Child

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The NYPD is asking for the public’s assistance locating the vehicle and individual seen in the attached video, the latter sought in connection to the attempted luring of a child on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023. Video courtesy of the NYPD   The NYPD is asking for the public’s assistance locating the individual and vehicle seen in the attached video and photos in the context of the attempted luring of a child that occurred in Throggs Neck.   It was reported to police that on Wednesday, Feb. 1, at around 5.45 p.m., the victim, a 14-year-old girl, was walking in the


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Bedford Park: Building Permits Filed with DOB for 6-Story Residential Building at 3002 Perry Avenue

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Building applications have been filed with NYC Department of Buildings (DOB) for a new, 6-story, residential building at 3002 Perry Avenue in the Bedford Park section of The Bronx, reported by YIMBY.   Located between Mosholu Parkway South and East 201st Street, the lot is near the Bedford Park Boulevard subway station, serviced by the B and D trains. Joel Friedman is listed as the owner behind the applications, according to YIMBY.   The proposed 60-foot-tall development will yield 13,295 square feet designated for residential space, and the building will yield 24 residential units, most likely rentals based on the


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Fordham Manor: Search for 15-Year-Old Missing Girl

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The NYPD is seeking the public’s help locating a 15-year-old girl reported missing from Fordham Manor.   It was reported to police that Ramiyah Halsey of 2650 Briggs Avenue was last seen on Monday, Feb. 6, at around 7 a.m., leaving her home.   The teen is described as female, is 5 feet, 7 inches tall, weighs 130 pounds, and has brown eyes, and brown hair. She was last seen wearing a multi-colored jacket, blue jeans, and gray and white sneakers.   Anyone with information regarding this missing person is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS


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