Op-Ed: From Dr. King’s Dream to Parole Justice

By Dr. DEBORAH JENKINS

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Those are perhaps the most famous words uttered by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., whose birthday we celebrated this week. They are also the words that run through my mind when I think about the withering injustice of mass incarceration. 160 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, we still are not free. In many ways, we have made progress, but

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Bronx CB7 Mourns Passing of Former Members Bronx CB7 extends its most sincere condolences to the families of both Carmen Miranda, former CB7 Education Committee chair, and Jeffrey Hunter, former member of the Veterans Committee, on their recent passing. “We are heartbroken over the loss of two of our board members,” the board said in a joint statement. “The community has lost dedicated advocates and true community leaders. Carmen Miranda was a mother and activist who was invested in making sure the youth in our community had a voice; and Jeffrey Hunter was not only a Veteran but someone who continuously gave back to our community, and [was] a staunch

By SILE MOLONEY

The FDNY confirmed no injuries were reported following a call received of a gas odor in the Morris Heights section of The Bronx. An FDNY official said the department responded to a caller who reported a gas odor on Jan. 13, at 11.46 a.m. at 1800 Cedar Avenue, where they found no injuries. The FDNY official said the department requested a utility company to follow-up. Norwood News has contacted Con Ed to check if they responded to the incident and will update this story upon receipt of feedback. Con Ed later confirmed that, according to their records, the

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) shared its plans for the holiday weekend, which officials say may include snow/winter precipitation. As reported, some extreme weather is also forecast. DSNY officials said the forecast is still changing a bit, but the department is monitoring it closely and preparing for potential snow. Spreaders and plows, they said, are ready to be deployed, if necessary. Regarding collection of trash, recycling, compost and trees, this will be ongoing on Friday and Saturday. The department plans to transition to snow operation Sunday, and continue that work Monday. Residents are reminded that Monday is

By SÍLE MOLONEY

A New York State alert issued in respect of a “Missing Vulnerable Adult,” and which related to a 25-year-old, White male who was last seen wearing a grey sweatshirt, grey sweats, and blue sneakers, has been cancelled. The alert was issued in respect of Jeremy Ramos, 25, from The Bronx at 6:02 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 14, but was later cancelled.

Bronx Townhall Addresses Complexity of COVID-19 Business Regulations

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

Amid the ongoing pandemic, the Bronx has been labelled the hardest hit borough. From a health perspective, though the number of actual deaths was not the highest in the City at 4,884 people, the borough’s COVID-19 death rate per head of population is the City’s highest, so far, at 0.34 percent. Staten Island’s COVID-19 death rate is 0.26 percent, Manhattan’s 0.20 percent, Brooklyn’s 0.30 percent, and Queens 0.33 percent. But the borough’s economy has suffered badly too. Last summer, as reported, State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli released a report and accompanying statement, substantiating the similarly harsh impact on its economy. “More

By DAVID GREENE

This week, amid the latest omicron variant wave, we asked readers about their recent experience of either getting tested on-site for COVID-19 or of waiting for free, home test kits. “I went to get tested because my granddaughter was COVID positive. I waited 48 hours before visiting the LevelUp Urgent Care on East 204th Street and lucky me I wasn’t cold, because it was a warm day. I was in line from 6 a.m. until 10 a.m., but because I was negative, it didn’t mess up my plans. Some folks came with entire families and at 5:45 [a.m.] there were already twenty

By SÍLE MOLONEY & DAVID GREENE

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson announced on Wednesday, Jan. 12, that, in partnership with Congress Member Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), who represents parts of the Bronx and Northern Manhattan, Bronx Council Member Pierina Sanchez (C.D. 14), Bronx State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33), Bronx Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81) and Bronx Assembly Member Yudelka Tapia (A.D. 86), she will be hosting a COVID-19 home testing kit distribution event in the Kingsbridge neighborhood of The Bronx, on Wednesday. The event is part of a series of upcoming distribution events that take place this week organized by The Office of The

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The Office of Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez released the following statement on Sunday, Jan. 9, confirming that the congresswoman, who represents congressional district 14, covering parts of The Bronx and Queens, had tested positive for COVID-19. “Representative Ocasio-Cortez has received a positive test result for COVID-19. She is experiencing symptoms and recovering at home,” the statement read. It continued, “The Congresswoman received her booster shot this Fall, and encourages everyone to get their booster and follow all CDC guidance.” For information on what to do if you're exposed to COVID, test positive or want to schedule a test or