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The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s Plans for 100th Anniversary

Editor, Our Time Press
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The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s Plans for 100th Anniversary

The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, a national landmark dedicated to the preservation and public access of Black history, announced plans on Tuesday for its year-long centennial celebration.

Highlights include a suite of new public programming, an exhibition that explores its legacy of collecting and creativity, a Centennial Festival, a special edition NYPL library card, and a new Schomburg Curriculum.


The press conference at the famed Harlem institution on 135th Street and Lenox marked the beginning of Black History Month and included Schomburg Director Joy Bivins, NYPL President Tony Marx, US Representative Adriano Espaillat, New York City Council Member Dr. Yusef Salaam and NYPL trustee Aysha E. Schomburg. The celebration also included collection items from Schomburg’s iconic holdings.


The centennial celebration will span from 2025– 2026, commemorating the Schomburg Center’s two founding moments. The first is the May 1925 opening of the Division of Negro Literature, History, and Prints at NYPL’s 135th Street branch (which became the Schomburg Center in 1972), followed by the May 1926 purchase of the private collection of bibliophile Arturo Schomburg for $10,000 made possible with the support of the Carnegie Foundation.


In the 100 years since its founding, the Schomburg Center’s archive has grown to include millions of items critical to the documentation of global Black history and culture. From the papers of Maya Angelou and James Baldwin and what is believed to be the first book written by a Black man, to the unpublished last chapter of Malcolm X’s autobiography and the largest institutional holdings of work by artist Augusta Savage, the Schomburg Center makes centuries of Black history and culture accessible to anyone with just a library card.


“It is hard to overstate the significance of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. It has provided the evidence scholars and students have needed to understand Black history as global history,” said Schomburg Center Director Joy Bivins.

From These Roots: Arturo Alfonso Schomburg (1874-1938), the esteemed historian/scholar, created a monument to history for the world with books and historical items from his home at 105 Kosciuszko Street, third house from left, in Brooklyn. His home was the site of thousands of items that formed the initial Schomburg collection at the Harlem-based Schomburg for Research in Black Culture.

“Schomburg remains a beacon to those who seek to create spaces that reclaim histories that have often been neglected, marginalized, or ignored. It has also seeded generations of critical scholarship and creativity that help us better understand Black experiences through its commitment to the stewardship of the objects, from text to film, that illustrate how people of African descent have shaped our collective past and continue to impact the present.”


“Created during the Harlem Renaissance, one of the richest cultural movements in our nation’s history, the Schomburg Center is beloved by scholars and a source of inspiration and materials for everyone seeking knowledge about Black history and culture, as well as a living, breathing center of community life in New York City,” said NYPL President Anthony W. Marx.

“The Schomburg Center’s incredible collection has been essential to the creation of a century of art and literature, fortified research in Black diasporic history, and has been requested for loans in art institutions from Washington D.C. to Paris. The Center and its amazing staff stand as a spectacular gem in The New York Public Library system, and we are excited to celebrate this world-class institution together.”


“The Schomburg Center preserves for everyone the Black history and culture that are core to the DNA of New York and of our culture at large.

But as a pillar of a library system that plays an integral role in the life of the city, the Center goes far beyond preservation, sharing contemporary cultural insights, nurturing curiosity and learning, and creating universal experiences that bridge the distance between past and present—as exemplified by the program for the Centennial Festival,” said Andreas Dracopoulos, Co-President of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). “Thank you to the Schomburg Center and NYPL for keeping the beacon of knowledge burning; may it shine as brightly for the next hundred years.”


Schomburg History
What we know as the Schomburg Center began at The New York Public Library’s 135th Street Branch. Migration reshaped cities nationwide and Harlem was no different. As Harlem changed, a growing population of Black residents sought books and other material that reflected their histories and served the flourishing arts, intellectual, and cultural movement, often called the Harlem Renaissance or New Negro Movement.

A trailblazing team of librarians stationed in the 135th Street Branch Library—including NYPL pioneers Ernestine Rose and Catherine Latimer (the first Black librarian in the NYPL system)— sought to address the needs in a changing neighborhood. With this in mind, Latimer and Rose launched a campaign to collect items that documented the Black experience.

They met with a committee, which included Arturo Schomburg, James Weldon Johnson, Hubert H. Harrison and John Nail, who recommended that the rarest books be set aside as a reference library. In 1925, The Division of Negro Literature, History, and Prints opened as a special collection of the 135th Street Branch Library featuring books and items on the African diaspora.


The following year, The New York Public Library acquired the personal collection of Arturo Alfonso Schomburg. His collection included thousands of items, from prints and manuscripts to rare books and pamphlets. Schomburg saw collecting as the assembling of “vindicating evidences” that proved the global presence and contributions of people of African descent.

His lifelong passion for collecting was a direct rebuttal to a teacher’s comment that Black culture lacked major figures and noteworthy history. Today, the division has grown into the Schomburg Center, with a collection that contains more than 11 million items. Across three buildings, five distinct collecting divisions, three exhibition spaces, and two theaters, the Schomburg Center is where Black history is not only accessed, but created.

SCHOMBURG CENTENNIAL EVENTS
On May 8, 2025, Schomburg will open 100: A Century of Collections, Community, and Creativity. This exhibition explores the library’s history through the prism of place, people, and material culture. Featuring objects from each of Schomburg’s divisions, 100 will surround visitors with the sights, sounds, and objects that comprise Schomburg’s historic past.


The Schomburg Center will also kick off a new programming season to honor the research library’s legacy as the country’s leading institution for collecting, preserving, and sharing the histories and cultures of people of African descent.


Among a long lineup of other special-edition programs, the Schomburg Center Centennial Festival will take place on June 14th inside and outside the Center.

The Festival is a blend of the research library’s most anticipated events, the Schomburg Center Literary Festival and the Black Comic Book Festival, in their 7th and 13th years respectively. The Centennial Festival will include musical performances curated by Soapbox Presents and an old-school block party.


The Centennial celebrations will also recognize the incredible devotion and support of patrons past and present including Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, and James Baldwin. Explorations of collections and staff contributions will be recognized through special projects and curriculum including the groundbreaking leadership of Jean Blackwell Hutson, Chief of the Schomburg Center from 1948 to 1980.

Hutson is lauded as one of the library professionals who made the Center what it is today, beloved by patrons for being a steadfast and fierce advocate for libraries and Black History studies.


Registration and details to come can be found at schomburg.org/100.

Fulton Street

Kazembe Batts
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Fulton Street

Bed-Stuy’s Civic, Commercial, & Cultural Heart

By Jeffery Kazembe Batts
IG: @kazbatts
The “Heart of the Stuy” is a few commerce-lined blocks on Fulton St. from Franklin Ave to Marcus Garvey Blvd. Underground along the strip are three subway stations. Franklin Ave, where you can board the C or the elevated Shuttle; Nostrand Ave express A and the local C; and Kingston & Throop, a local C-train stop.

The B25 bus transverses the two-way street. Like most business corridors in NYC, corporate and franchise businesses like Chipotle, Cinnabon, Carvel, Atomic Wings, Champion Pizza, Dunkin Doughnuts, Blink Fitness, and Dollar Tree are abundant.

This strip also contains places of worship, barbershops, medical centers, banks, utility businesses, pharmacies, and cannabis stores. The following essay focuses on the Black / African-controlled establishments. These businesses are primarily food, fashion, hair care, business services, and social clubs.

Franklin Ave to Bedford Ave
Just before you get to Franklin Ave, in the shadow of the elevated Shuttle train is Hadja Marley Restaurant with “Best African Food in Brooklyn” on its awning. After selecting from steaming hot food the mostly male customers can sit down, chat, or watch the news, which is always tuned to CNN. Across Franklin B & B Beauty aesthetic-pleasing African American-owned salon is located. Moving up towards Bedford Ave Fulton St. is soon dominated by an African immigrant community.

Motorcycles line the street, with mostly young men lounging and strategizing about making money using their bikes. Enterprises include restaurants, clothing stores, barber shops, money transfer locations, and document processing enterprises crowded with patrons who mostly speak French and Arabic. The Pulaar Speaking Association has a headquarters for their West African ethnic community.


African-owned businesses that sell a mix of household goods include the Diaby African Market, the Arabian Market, and Fulton Gift Shops. Business and document services are available at Wague Business Center, BHS Sika Cash Money Transfer, and Kawral Fouta Business. Hafiz Travel Inc. stands out as a busy location with staff mainly assisting young men in processing documents while others sign into computers, using photocopiers while sipping coffee, and networking.


Restaurants serve a mixture of African and American food in several restaurants serving as meeting and hangout spots for the community. Inside the Fulton Food Court restaurant, men are crowded around the front section, sitting at tables after picking from a steaming selection of entrees at the back of the store.

More spacious and less crowded is Z Halal, which has a wide selection of meat, fish, and vegetables. Diners utilize comfortable seating, and the television delivers international news in Arabic, French, and native English. Long-time African American bakery Abu’s Bean Pie Company is near the corner just before the historic Masjid At-Taqwa where Fulton St. intersects with Bedford Ave.

Bedford Ave to Nostrand Ave
Crossing Bedford Ave, where new bike lanes are installed, the African immigrant community slowly diminishes. This block also has independent ethnic sit-down restaurants like Diwali Indian Cuisine and Le Baobab Restaurant Senegal Cuisine. In the middle of the block, a Bangladeshi community emerges. Their businesses are primarily restaurants, vegetables, and electronic stores. This additional mix of immigrants adds diversity to the Bed-Stuy community. Men in native attire occupy the wide sidewalk at the intersection of Arlington Place, sitting along benches.


Recently expanding into a nearby location, the Trinidad Roti Shop continues to offer a variety of ethnic choices for the eating desires of the community. A Haitian-owned Eclectic Wine & Liquor is a large enterprise in the middle of the block across the street. Long-term Charlie Record Shop, which used to host a pre-Labor Day Carnival on the Saturday before the parade, is no longer in business.

Nostrand Ave to Marcy Ave
Community leaders, representatives of the December 12th Movement and Men Talk organizations, are often seen engaging the community with empowering literature and giving well wishes at the busy Nostrand Ave corner. At the corner, three of the four locations are currently boarded up. Where Chock-Full-of-Nuts once stood, and, more recently, the Caribbean-owned business Fisherman’s Cove is shuttered. A closed fried chicken restaurant and newsstand occupy the corners.


The only open business on the corners of the busy intersection is a 99-cent pizza parlor selling slices for $1.25. Down the block on Nostrand Ave, going towards Atlantic Ave, people of Barbadian ancestry often gather on a side street. Going the other way towards Macon St. two new Caribbean restaurants franchise Jamaican Flavors which has another location in Bed-Stuy and also in Jamaica, Queens, has recently been joined by DJ Bird Soup Stop.


Back on Fulton St., Nigerian-owned Authentic Feets sells the latest casual wear, not just for products for your feet. Further up the block, people eat & socialize at Copacabana sports restaurant and bar. Across the street, the popular A & A Bake and Doubles Shop consistently has patrons lining up starting early in the morning.

Community favorite Billy’s Custom Print T-Shirt Inc. has shirts out on the sidewalk displaying past creations. Media-friendly Black Ink is located on the block, providing tattoo options. Adding to the ethnic mix of restaurants is the Senegalese and French Le Paris Dakar, which specializes in crepes and has another location on Nostrand Ave, near Macon St. On the corner of Marcy Ave, Tastee Patee, a Jamaican franchise restaurant, is no longer in business.


Marcy Ave to Brooklyn Ave
The historic Bed-Stuy Restoration Plaza occupies a full block, starting at New York Ave anchored by Applebee’s, a regular spot for family gatherings and sports watching at the bar, where community residents often gather.

Inside the complex are an African Museum, the Billie Holiday Theater, the Youth Arts Academy, Carver Bank, community meeting spaces, and offices for elected officials. Also, on the street level, Moshood, an African clothing store, sponsors an annual fashion show in the plaza. The elevated plaza is also the site for musical performances, movie screenings, pantry food distribution, vending markets, and political gatherings.


Within the Restoration Plaza complex, karate Master Sabu trains aspiring martial arts learners. Across the street, next to TD Bank, is the United House of Prayer for All People on one side and an open plaza controlled by the Bed-Stuy BID, which often has vendors or community-based organizations using the space.


Together these two plazas make the Marcy Ave & Fulton St. intersection one of the few open spaces within the strip where people can sit on benches or steps while reading, talking, and relaxing outside.

Another Black business at the Restoration is Nicholas Brooklyn. One of the few remaining places to buy books and cultural items along Fulton St.


The business often sponsors Kemetic and wholistic lectures and book signings regarding health and African empowerment as a condensed version that reminds long-time residents of meetings at the demolished Slave Theater that used to exist on Fulton St. near Bedford Ave.

Back across Fulton St. is the second store called Bed-Stuy Fly which offers the latest casual urban attire that encourages pride in the local community. Caribbean-owned K&S Grocery & Deli does business, while the long-time existing Gospel Den sells a mixture of Christian and cultural items such as books, cards, CDs, and art.

The Yaoain sign for the once thriving Black cream and haircare business is long gone, with nearby Caribbean-owned Next Level Fashions recently joining the “out of business” club.

Brooklyn Ave to Kingston & Throop Ave
Three 24 is a modest event space located where Tompkins Ave ends. A few doors down is Soldier Restaurant Buffet. With little seating, the mostly take-out Jamaican restaurant offers a wide selection of hot food. Across the street, Savant Studios sells an eclectic mix of original clothing and hosts community gatherings, including movie screenings. KRS Wireless Corp and A&R Postal and Multiservices are businesses on opposite sides of the street that provide electronic and mailing options.


El Jeffee African / Mexican restaurant and Ricky’s Jamaican American Restaurant offer limited seating and hot food for your palette. Also on the block is the headquarters for the Laundromat Project. A thriving social justice organization that focuses on the arts and creativity. The well-designed headquarters space hosts cultural events such as book signings and cultural events. Mundo Fashions offers products and tailoring for your attire. Garden Bar & Grill is a thriving sport and music night spot on the weekend, while Purpose, a once-popular sports bar, has recently closed.

Kingston & Throop Aves to Marcus Garvey Blvd
Above the local Kingston & Throop subway station, a concentration of African hair-braiding saloons are busy with customers. At least a dozen enterprises are in business, with many women in matching pink uniforms.

These thriving businesses employ dozens of women who speak French and various African languages while servicing the mostly English-speaking Black customers. One prominent business, Sogho Express African Hair Braiding & Beauty Salon, has expanded into an even larger second space across Fulton St. Aminata Braiding & Styling and Mbadinga’s Enterprises Fashion & Hair Accessories are two other popular hair salons that provide much-needed employment to mostly young African women by styling hair for women from all over the city.


Like Applebee’s, another corporate giant, a McDonald’s occupies the corner of Throop Ave. and is primarily used as a meeting and hangout space as much as it is for dining. Especially in the morning and in the afternoon, dozens of high school students crowd inside.

Off Fulton St., down Throop Ave, the Bichiu African Market sells Senegalese staples, and across the street, More Than Just Lobster has recently opened, increasing the number of edible options.


Next to the McDonald’s parking lot, Kebe African Fashions is an option for purchasing and tailoring fashionable African attire. Across the street, in the middle of this block, Swiingz Restaurant creates space for sports viewing and socializing. Underneath is a vast event space often used for birthday and graduation celebrations.


Heading towards the corner of Albany Ave, the short-lived Burger Hut restaurant has been transformed into the Muse Nails business. At the same time, Jami Restaurant continues to serve Jamaican food, and the Blue Café Restaurant serves Dominican & American food as a popular place for a hot breakfast or lunch.


Crossing Albany Ave and headed towards Marcus Garvey Blvd, is where the Men Talk organization has its headquarters in a community space used for parties, weddings, and church services. Community members consistently line up on Wednesdays to receive loaded bags of groceries to take home and hot meals to eat immediately. Men Talk also distributes clothing, hygiene, and medical supplies as part of its mission to support the needy.


With numerous restaurants, clothing stores, centers of worship, medical offices, social gathering places, and community-based organization headquarters, Fulton St. remains the place to go for business, culture, and networking in Bed-Stuy.

Most businesses and spaces are not Black controlled, but the spirit of being in a Black community still prevails. Although not as vibrant as commercial corridors in mid-town Manhattan, Chinatown, or 125th St., Fulton St. from Franklin Ave to Marcus Garvey Blvd. remains the “Heart of the Stuy!”

Midwood Hornets Defeat Paul Robeson Eagles in PSAL Varsity Basketball Showdown

Lyndon Taylor
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Midwood Hornets Defeat Paul Robeson Eagles in PSAL Varsity Basketball Showdown

By Lyndon Taylor
The Midwood High School Hornets delivered a statement victory in the Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL) Boys Varsity Basketball competition, defeating the Paul Robeson Eagles 58-48 in a hard-fought battle at the Paul Robeson Gym.


Led by longtime Head Coach Victor Gjecaj, Midwood controlled the game from the opening tip, aside from a brief stretch in the second quarter when Robeson tied the score at 19. However, the Hornets’ relentless defense held the Eagles scoreless for the remainder of the half, giving Midwood a crucial 26-19 lead at the break.


Robeson came out strong in the third quarter, with standout guard Shane Gordon (#2) draining a quick three-pointer to cut into the deficit. But Midwood’s aggressive 2-1-2 full-court press proved too much for the home team, forcing turnovers that the Hornets capitalized on.

By the end of the third quarter, Midwood had extended their lead to 40-36, setting up a dominant fourth quarter in which they closed out the game with a double-digit victory.


For Midwood, #11 Samhir Bakaed led the charge with 17 points, while #12 Darren Nhu added 16 to fuel the Hornets’ offense. Despite the loss, Robeson’s Shane Gordon turned in a stellar performance, leading all scorers with 20 points, while teammate Taurus Jones contributed 12.
Coach Gjecaj, who has been at the helm of Midwood’s program for 29 years, was pleased with his team’s resilience and believes this win could be a springboard for a deep playoff run.


“We came out sluggish, but they picked up the tempo at the end of the first half. We played with a greater sense of urgency in the second half and closed out the game strong,” Gjecaj said in a post-game interview with Our Time Press.


With this victory, Midwood strengthens its standing in the PSAL playoff race, while Paul Robeson will look to bounce back in their next matchup.

Trading Places

Eddie Castro
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Trading Places

By Eddie Castro
Today marks the last day for NBA teams to come up with a trading partner in hopes of a long run into the playoffs. Every year there is always a team who are just one piece away from going on a Cinderella run in the playoffs or even a Finals appearance while other teams who haven’t had much success as far as winning, they will look to entice their stars to contending in hopes of getting future draft compensation towards a rebuild. This trading deadline thus far can be summed up in two words, “Jaw Dropping.”


Late Saturday night, the landscape of the NBA witnessed one of the most shocking trades probably ever when the Dallas Mavericks agreed to trade their 25-year old Super Star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for 31-year old All-Star Anthony Davis.

The trade will now pair Doncic who many believe is a top 3 player in the NBA, with a player who knows a little bit about top 3 talk in LeBron James.

The trade sent shock waves to not only the NBA, but the entire sports community. With this trade now official, the question is, will our beloved New York teams be able to make a splash of their own when they get their turn?


Let’s start with the Brooklyn Nets. The team was able to swing a trade last month with the Lakers that brought them back a familiar face in D’Angelo Russell. Russell played some of his best basketball during his first stint with the Nets from 2017-2019.

It is uncertain if he will be a part of the team’s future plans as the Nets have been stockpiling on draft picks to perhaps entice a superstar in a blockbuster trade of their own.

Unless the team can get the right amount of draft capital for their other star Cam Johnson, the Nets will probably sit tight during trade negotiations unless a suitable trade partner comes with a trade package that is to the liking of General Manager Sean Marks.

Despite currently being on injured reserve with an ankle injury, Johnson 28, is having his best year as a pro with a career high in points (19.4).

Brooklyn will look to exercise caution with Johnson in the event he is dealt at the deadline. My prediction is Johnson will stay put at least until after the season but, look for playoff-contending teams to be aggressive in their pursuit of him, Especially a team in the market for shooting.


As for the New York Knicks, going into press, the Knicks have won their last six games scoring 110 points in the last five contests. Their starting lineup of Jalen Brunson, Karl Anthony-Towns, Mikal Bridges O.G. Anunoby and Josh Hart is without a doubt a top-five starting lineup.

Barring another blockbuster trade, I do not see Knicks management breaking apart those five players so Spike Lee and fans should look for the Knicks to address needs within their bench.


The Knicks will most likely seek another defensive guy with the ability to protect the rim and eat up minutes for when Towns gets his rest.

The team would also look for guards who can provide shooting or rebounding. Perhaps both if the team can strike a deal. In the Eastern Conference, New York currently sits in third place and just two games out for first in the Atlantic Division with a win-loss record of 33-17.


Unlike the Nets, the Knicks will look to add to the winning formula they already have in place. A few notable names that could land in New York via trade could be Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler.

The 7-foot Kessler provides another big body for New York and adds much needed depth to their bench. Mitchell Robinson is currently working his way back from off-season ankle surgery and has been in a lot of trade conversations.

He would most likely be a name that teams would want back in return especially if the Knicks get back a player like Kessler.


It would not come as a surprise for the Knicks to also add some shooting to their bench. Most likely a veteran player that would not cost them much. We are almost at the halfway point of the NBA season.

Around this time next week, we will see just how the rosters shape up for both the Knicks and Nets. If there is any breaking News to report, Our Time Press will have it here for you.

Sports Notes: (Baseball) Baseball is almost here as pitcher and catchers for both the Yankees and Mets report to their spring training complex in two weeks. (Football) Superbowl LIX is here.

This year it will feature a 2023 Super bowl rematch as the Philadelphia Eagles will try to prevent the Kansas City Chiefs from becoming the first NFL team to win three Super Bowl titles in a row. The Game is on Sunday at 6:30 P.M.

This is Just the Beginning

Editor, Our Time Press
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The View from Here
David Mark Greaves
So, judging by the first week of the new presidential administration, what we have is an oligarchic, kleptocratic, White supremacist, patriarchal kakistocracy taking control of the United States government. Wow, that was fast. Of course, it was easy since they ran the plan in the widely distributed Project 2025 agenda. So there should be no surprises here.


Actually, there was a surprise right off the bat. In all the old movies I’ve seen, killing a cop was the absolute worst thing you could do. Either the chair or the gas chamber, you were going down. On January 6th rioters attacked police guarding the Capital and caused the death of one officer and the direct suicide of four more. While maximum punishment remains true on the street, an Executive Order from the Oval Office says these are pardonable offenses.


And the rounding up of those, whether violent or not, without full citizenship has begun and will continue and escalate until further notice. A military base in Colorado is being made into a camp where those who can’t be immediately shipped out can be concentrated.


By attacking renewal energy, jobs will be killed and new ones across the country, including in Red districts will be cancelled. Removing healthcare subsidies and the attempted freezing of all grants and loans has caused chaos in people-centered programs and disrupted lives. The immediate and fierce reaction shows the new administration’s soft underbelly. They don’t care about people, and it will be their downfall.


The Oval Office occupant has been frequently called a sociopath, and his inability to have compassion and empathize is a part of his executive process. Another person’s pain is meaningless to him, and his people are now scrubbing the federal workforce of those who will not enthusiastically carry out his will. And his will is to make money.


We are being ruled by the money-addicted, who view the economy as an engine best used for their benefit. To paraphrase the legendary bank robber Willie Sutton, why do they want power? Because that’s where the money is.


And firing the 18 Inspectors General is like being able to cut the alarms so that the corruption can take place unimpeded right down the line. They’re going tie us up in paperwork and rob us blind.


This is particularly dangerous for Black folks, and it is best that we pay attention. White Male Supremacy is reestablishing itself in America. With the “freeze” put on the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department and the anti-DEI directives, White supremacists are doing what they have always done—everything they can to prevent African Americans from prospering, while at the same time making life difficult for those others who are not white, male and single-gendered.


I believe things will change for the better when the full effects of the administration’s actions begin to take hold on the MAGA base. When prices go up, and they can’t access health care or childcare, the threats to Republican politicians will switch from supporting the agenda to stopping this man.

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