North Bronx Racial Justice Group Hold Rally To Remember Breonna Taylor

By DAVID GREENE

A “Justice for Breonna Taylor Rally” was scheduled to be held in the Riverdale section of the Bronx on Tuesday, Sept. 29, but was postponed at the last minute due to expected rainfall. The rally was due to take place at the Bell Tower Park at West 239th Street and Riverdale Avenue in tribute to Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician. Taylor was shot and killed by police in Louisville, Kentucky when they executed a search warrant on her home earlier this year, on March 13. One police officer was charged with firing recklessly into her apartment, but no

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The New York City Department of Sanitation has announced that registration is now open for those interested in working as Emergency Snow Laborers for the upcoming winter season. Emergency Snow Laborers are per-diem workers who shovel snow and clear ice from bus stops, crosswalks, fire hydrants and step streets around the five boroughs after heavy snowfalls. Snow Laborers earn $15 per hour to start, and $22.50 per hour after 40 hours are worked in a week. To better allow for social distancing and COVID-related protocols, those interested in becoming a Snow Laborer must register for a 15-minute application appointment

By SÍLE MOLONEY

At noon on Wednesday, Oct. 14, NYC Census 2020 and partners hosted an emergency virtual press conference to raise awareness about the shortened timeline for the completion of the census which now ends Oct. 15, and to mobilize the community in a final sprint to respond and encourage their neighbors, friends, and family to do so also. On Friday, Sept. 24, U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh had ordered the Census Bureau to keep conducting the census count until Oct. 31 but a subsequent Supreme Court ruling allowed the Trump administration to end the 2020 Census on Oct. 15.

By SÍLE MOLONEY

In a stern exhortation on Wednesday, Oct. 14, Council Member Fernando Cabrera warned of the consequences of the departures of Chief of Patrol, Fausto Pichardo, and Chief of Transportation, Nilda Irizarry Hofmann, from the NYPD. On Tuesday, Oct. 13, The NY Daily News announced, according to unnamed sources, that Fausto would be retiring following weeks of friction with New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. In a press release, Cabrera said, “There are now no Latinos in the upper levels of NYPD leadership, and I have requested a meeting with Commissioner Shea regarding this matter. This is extremely

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) announced on Friday, Oct. 9 the completion of bus priority lanes and related infrastructure on 149th Street in the Bronx. The 2.7 miles of bus lanes along the highly-trafficked 149th Street corridor are now equipped with transit signal priority (TSP) technology. In addition, new enforcement cameras will also help ensure that only buses and other essential vehicles utilize priority sections of the roadway. The corridor is home to four popular bus routes (Bx2, Bx4, Bx17, and Bx19) and runs through some of the busiest destinations in

By SÍLE MOLONEY

On Tuesday, Oct. 13, Police Commissioner Dermot Shea announced a new partnership with Arva Rice, president and CEO of the New York Urban League; Jennifer Jones Austin, CEO and executive director of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies; and Wes Moore, CEO of Robin Hood, “to engage communities and people who live, work and serve throughout the city in the department’s ongoing effort to ensure public safety that is fair, responsive to, and considerate of all New Yorkers.” In partnership with the mayor’s office, the NYPD announced a department-wide undertaking to transform New York City policing to be safer

By SÍLE MOLONEY

On Tuesday, Oct. 13, NYC Health + Hospitals reminded New Yorkers to schedule screening mammograms and other breast cancer screenings as the system observes Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Health experts urge New Yorkers not to delay critical health screenings due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which could lead to a later diagnosis of serious diseases, such as cancer. To ensure everyone’s safety and reduce any potential exposure or transmission of COVID-19, NYC Health + Hospitals has re-engineered patient care spaces, including ambulatory care clinics and radiology suites throughout the health system; while also implementing enhanced cleaning protocols according to the

By NORA THOMAS & SÍLE MOLONEY

Norwood News, in partnership with WFUV radio and BronxNet Television, presents a five-part series on national issues affecting voters in the lead up to the 2020 presidential election, seen through the local lens of Bronx neighborhood communities. Part 2 looks at crime and criminal justice. New York State and City officials have drawn a lot of criticism from President Donald Trump this election cycle. In a Sept. 2 memo to the Department of Justice, drafted to review federal funding for certain state and local governments, Trump said New York City officials were “permitting anarchy, violence, and destruction,” in

By DAVID GREENE

About twenty-five demonstrators, protesting a Christopher Columbus statue in Belmont, were met by fifty angry counter-demonstrators, one openly carrying a baseball bat and another an axe handle, as fifty police officers barely kept the groups separated during several, violent confrontations in the Bronx last month. It was literally “high noon” on Saturday, Sept. 19, outside the D’Auria-Murphy Triangle park, located at the intersection of Crescent Avenue and Arthur Avenue in Belmont, when a planned rally and “teach in” were scheduled to be held in the park next to the statue of Christopher Columbus. Upon arrival at the