civil rights

UPDATE District 11 City Council Candidate Danielle Guggenheim Responds to Eric Dinowitz on Medicare Advantage

By SÍLE MOLONEY
City Council candidate in the upcoming District 11 Democratic primary election, Danielle Herbert Guggenheim, a self-described single mother and Black and Caribbean American who has served 25 years with the City’s Board of Education, has responded to a letter to the editor published in The Riverdale Press on April 25 titled, “Closing the door on Medicare Advantage,” by incumbent Councilman Eric Dinowitz. 

Norwood: Bengali Muslim Community Celebrates End of Ramadhan

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson joined the Bronx Muslim community on Thursday, March 14, in the Rotunda of Bronx Borough Hall for her annual Bronx Iftar Dinner Dialogue to mark the holy month of Ramadan, a time for fasting, prayer, and acts of kindness, which this year started on March 12 and concludes on April 9.

Op-Ed: Our Moral Moment

By SILVIA BLUMENFELD
These days, friends here in The Bronx, and all across the country, are telling me that they have stopped listening to the news. I can’t say the same, but in a way, I really do get the reason for that phenomenon.

Bronx Man & NJ Man Get Three Years Each for Running $65 Million+ Illicit Money Transfer Scheme

By SÍLE MOLONEY
A Bronx man and his partner have each been sentenced to three years in prison for running an unlicensed money transfer business responsible for illicitly transferring more than $65 million between the United States and countries in the Middle East, including Yemen, Turkey, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan, federal officials announced on Wednesday, April 23. 

20 Alleged “800 YGz” Gang Members Charged with Murder and 14 Shootings in The Bronx

By ARIEL PACHECO
Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch announced Thursday, April 17, that 20 alleged members of the “800 YGz” gang have been charged with a conspiracy of violence, including a murder and 14 non-fatal shootings that they said turned the West Farms neighborhood in The Bronx into a shooting gallery.

UPDATE Bedford Park: “Alien” Arrested by ICE Agents as Council Seeks to Block Rikers Island ICE Office

By SÍLE MOLONEY & M. QUIÑONES
As Bronxites remain on edge amid news of ongoing deportations, including those of some on working visas, ICE officials now confirm that an “alien” with a criminal record was arrested at gunpoint in the Bedford Park section of The Bronx on Tuesday afternoon, April 15. When asked, an NYPD spokesperson said the department had no arrest on file for the location in question.

Rivera Reacts to CDPAP Injunction Ruling for Recipients & Caregivers

By SÍLE MOLONEY
State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33) shared his reaction on Friday, April 11, to news announced April 10 of a preliminary injunction agreement which delays a controversial transition deadline for the CDPAP homecare program by NYS Department of Health (DOH) to May 15 for consumers, and to June 6 for caregivers.

Salamanca Secures Spot on Democratic Ballot for Election as Bronx BP

By SÍLE MOLONEY
City Council Member Rafael Salamanca Jr. (C.D. 17) announced on Wednesday, April 2, that he has submitted over 11,000 petition signatures to NYC Board of Elections to officially qualify for the ballot in the upcoming Democratic primary race for Bronx borough president which takes place in June 2025.

UPDATE Court Extends Temporary Stop on State Homecare Program Transition as Advocates Hold Rally

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Advocates for older and disabled New Yorkers and their caregivers reacted on Friday, April 4, to a same day federal court ruling which has extended a temporary halt to a controversial, 3-month transition by NYS Department of Health (DOH) of its home care program to a new single, statewide financial intermediary (FI), in place of around 600 individual FIs. The deadline by which program participants (consumers and workers) were due to transition to the new FI was April 1, with the transition having started in early January, but there is at least some evidence that suggests it was not going as smoothly as anticipated.