By Akosua K. Albritton There was a quiet changing of the guard for Brooklyn Community Board No. 8 (CB8) on May 9, 2019 at the spacious St. Teresa of Avila RC Church. Mrs. Nizjoni Granville explained that she would not run for the Chairperson’s seat;...

Louise Dente, host of Cultural Caravan Productions, picked up stakes in Queens on Sunday, January 20, 2019 to present panel discussions at Restoration Plaza in Brooklyn. The program was entitled Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration and Panel Discussion Topic: 400 Years Later (1619...

It is a lovely thing to find your passion, cultivate it and see where it takes you. For some professionals, the passion leads them down one particular course which has them honing greater adeptness in that area while others have multiple interests that are...

Intermittently covering the proceedings of four Brooklyn Community Boards each year is an opportunity to learn about different community concerns and plans. It is also an opportunity to observe the distinct “personalities” of each Community Board. Yes, these 52-member bodies have distinctive ways in...

The New York metropolitan region is one business magnet that draws people from across the globe hoping to improve their standard of living. Through a mix of business savvy, a viable business model and financing, men and women are intent on actualizing their dreams....

Two items – one of interest, one of urgency—were  among those discussed at the November 14thmeeting of Community Board No. 2 (CB2). Chaired by Irene Janne, the meeting was held at the lovely and lively Ingersoll Community Center on Myrtle Avenue, where Shirley McCrae,...

Does the beast in you come out when you run out of bologna and a friend offers you a bowl of savory rice and beans? Do you find walking up three flights of stairs leaves you heaving? It may be time to join Brooklyn...

There’s no sweeter accomplishment than the one that comes from consistent effort and concentration on realizing a particular goal. Then when one looks to the right, left and back to see others collaborating with you, one knows the mission will be accomplished. Albert Vann...

“NYCHA is in a crisis. Therefore, up-to-the-minute stats on each building is required. We don’t have the day-to-day Comstats. It will take new people, new management systems and data-driven work to help struggling New Yorkers. Let’s go building by building and fix the greatest...

In the midst of fast-paced urban Brooklyn, there exists lush, quiet oases. These oases were once building lots where Italianate rowhouses or federal-style mansions stood. Now, they are community gardens where, in the main, neighbors come together to grow food. Other community gardens grow...

After a two-month summer recess, Brooklyn Community Board No.3 (BK CB3) came to order on September 10, 2018 for the general board meeting. It was held in Restoration Plaza’s The Billie Holiday Theatre. This reporter arrived at the beginning of the public hearing on Comunilife...

For their steadfast business acumen and community service, funeral homeowners Frank and Doris Bell posthumously received the gift of a street co-naming ceremony on Saturday, September 1, 2018. Public Advocate Letitia James, who is running for New York State Attorney General, said, “Honor the...

On August 15, 2018, a memorial service was held for William R. Howard (July 23, 1943 – August 5, 2018) at Lawrence H. Woodward Funeral Home. Mr. Howard tended toward a serious countenance but had a heart of gold. Howard was an accomplished businessman,...

Is it one’s imagination or, as the reggae band Third World crooned, “You’re playing us too close.” Are people of color being pushed into a box to satisfy Euro-Americans? AfroPunk Solution Sessions hosts Bridget Todd and Yves Jeffocat believe this to be true. They...

A mix of younger and mature adults, men and women, Caribbean, African-American and Euro-American people were present for the July 28, 2018 Get Civic-Minded monthly meeting held at MS 61. These meetings give St. Assemblywoman Diana Richardson (43 A.D.) the opportunity to not only...

The pace at which new construction and housing rehabilitation is occurring in Brooklyn is literally unsettling for many people. Three- and four-story walk-ups are being reconstructed to stand six-stories and taller. Soon, housing costs will be out of reach for households with incomes below...

The incidents of African-American women being brutalized or slain is increasing to a point that the rallying cry of “Say Her Name!” can be heard from coast to coast in the United States. The causes of the deaths are questionable. Friday, July 13, 2018,...

A place called “home” or “my neighborhood” is comforting to those living there. There in the neighborhood people go to the same schools, shop in the same stores and run in the same playgrounds. However, there are institutions that can disrupt “home” and “my...

With a spacious banquet hall and several carpeted nooks above it, John Wesley United Methodist Church at 260 Quincy Street in historic Bedford-Stuyvesant was the setting for a day of communication, inspiration and healing for women and men. Dubbed “The Mother Wit Conference 2018,”...

The 40-year War on Drugs was examined during the May 24, 2018 BRIC-TV #BHEARD Town Hall. Dubbed “Whose War on Drugs?”, Brian Vines moderated a panel consisting of: Eric Gonzalez, Brooklyn District Attorney; Kassandra Frederique, NYS Director for the Drug Policy Alliance; Chino Hardin, Field...