Dinowitz, Bailey Invite Public to Open Discussion on Recent Police Reform Bills

By Síle Moloney

An informal discussion on the recent package of policing reforms, including the repeal of Civil Rights Law Section 50-a (which was used to block the disclosure of disciplinary records), as well as the next steps to be taken going forward with regard to this topic will be held on Thursday, Jun. 18, 2020 from 6:30pm to 7:30pm. Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and State Sen. Jamaal T. Bailey, Chair of the State Senate Codes Committee, author of the CRL 50-a Repeal Bill, and leading advocate in the legislature on policing and criminal justice reforms will be available to answer questions from

By JASON GONZALEZ

Renowned author and Pulitzer Prize winner, William Faulkner, once said, “Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion against injustice and lying and greed. If people all over the world…would do this, it would change the earth.” The murder on Memorial Day in Minneapolis, Minnesota of George Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed Black man, has given rise to worldwide outcry. The uproar has manifested into protests that have spanned the globe, and has civilians from all races, religions, and sexual orientations calling for police reform and the termination of systemic racism. As unrest permeates

By SÍLE MOLONEY

A solidarity event in support of the Black Lives Matter movement took place at Jacobi Medical Center on Jun. 9, 2020. About 35 hospital staff members stood outside the hospital displaying signs of support. Others spoke about the racial inequities that exist within the health care system and decried budget cuts to health care while the City pays out millions in law settlements relating to police misconduct. Kelly Cabrera, a registered nurse working in emergency medicine addressed those gathered saying, “Racism is a public health emergency. We’re here as health care workers in one of the areas that

By Síle Moloney

Impassioned and resolute, Bronx City Councilman Andy King laid out the implications of being Black in America from a physical, emotional and economic standpoint when he addressed a crowd at a Unity and Solidarity food and face mask distribution event on Jun. 9, 2020. Joined by former NYPD officer and Brooklyn Borough President, Eric Adams, and 32 BJ Union President Kyle Bragg, King appealed to Black elected leaders to seize the moment and stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter protestors to effect lasting change. The event was held outside King’s District 12 office on East Gun Hill

By Síle Moloney

In response to the uprisings across the globe demanding justice for Black lives, New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture has created a Black liberation reading list. The 95 titles on the list represent books that the Center and the public regularly turn to as activists, students, archivists, and curators, with a particular focus on books by Black authors and those whose papers the center stewards. For 95 years, the Schomburg Center has preserved, protected, and fostered a greater understanding of the Black experience through its collections, exhibitions, programs, and scholarship. Most of the #Schomburg95 books

By Síle Moloney

Jonnel Doris, Commissioner of the Department of Small Business Services (pictured in the featured photo), Mark Gjonaj, Council Member and Chair of the Committee on Small Business, Lisa Sorin, President of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, Justin Lerner, Executive Director of the White Plains Road BID, will tour the Bronx on Friday, Jun. 12, to distribute face coverings to small business owners to support the health and safety of businesses as they re-open. This comes on the heels of a recent announcement about the new resources available to small businesses in preparation for Re-Opening Phase One. The event

By Síle Moloney

A peaceful Black Lives Matter protest took place in Riverdale on Saturday, Jun. 6, 2020 as part of the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement sweeping the country following the death of George Floyd on March 25, 2020. Approximately 200 protesters, made up of different races, and including members of Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition started the day in Ewen Park and later proceeded through the Riverdale neighborhood to Van Cortlandt Park, gathering by the tortoise and hare statue where they sat, stood, and knelt down at various moments during the event. Opec Vistle captured the protestors marching

By Síle Moloney

Monday, Jun. 8 marked Phase One of the City’s reopening plan, part of the New York Forward initiative, as a bit more life was seen in and around Bainbridge Avenue in the Norwood area of the Bronx. Some people were returning to work for the first time since early March when the COVID-19 pandemic hit hard, and a statewide PAUSE order was implemented to curb the spread of the coronavirus. People were seen standing in line, in the morning sunshine, at Chase bank on BainBridge Avenue, adhering to social distancing guidelines, and almost everyone was wearing a mask, an

By Síle Moloney

On Thursday, Jun. 4, 2020, at approximately 6:30 p.m., in the vicinity of Brook Avenue and East 149th Street, officers conducted a car stop in relation to an “open container in a vehicle” violation (alcohol-related). The car in question was occupied by two males and one female. Following an investigation, police recovered a number of items from the vehicle including lighter fluid, two hammers, spray paint, a laser pointer, a helmet, a sledge hammer and fireworks. Alexander Hogan, a 25-year-old male, Garrett Gebhardt, a 21-year-old male and Jacqueline Oglesby, a 25-year-old female were arrested and charged with criminal possession of