Our Time PressThe Local Paper with the Global View

By Danielle Douglass
The Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights are areas rich in culture, community pride and history, but poor in health.  This section of central Brooklyn is home to one of the largest Black populations in New York, but recently it has also become home to the largest population of HIV and AIDS cases in all of Brooklyn.
“Central Brooklyn, specifically Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights, is considered to be the epicenter for the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Brooklyn,” said Dr. Marilyn Martin-Naar, director of the AIDS Center at Interfaith Medical Center. According to the NYC HIV/AIDS Surveillance Statistics, released in 2004, Bed-Stuy/ Crown Heights, as they are grouped together, had 351 newly diagnosed HIV cases and 353 newly diagnosed AIDS cases in 2002. Whereas the average number of new HIV and AIDS diagnoses throughout Brooklyn was 114 cases, respectively.
As frightening as these statistics are, they pale in comparison to the alarming demographic trend of the newly diagnosed; Dr. Monica Sweeney, medical director of The Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Health Center, says many of the newly diagnosed HIV patients at her clinic are between the ages of 13 and 19-years-old. The other half of Dr. Sweeney’s patients are over 50, but the common thread between all of these patients is that they are mainly Black women. Dr. Martin-Naar has also seen an increase in the number of infected women and older patients at Interfaith.
Both doctors attribute much of the rise in HIV/AIDS cases to a culture of denial operating on multiple levels. Primarily, many people still refuse to believe that they can contract the virus, trusting the superficial appearance of their partners over their better judgment or investing too much faith in their immortality. Dr. Sweeney adds, “There are people who actually distrust the statistics and don’t believe things are as bad as people are saying.”
Dr. Sweeney, who recently wrote Condom Sense: A Guide to Sexual Survival in the New Millennium, goes on to say that many parents are still in denial about their children’s sexual activity. “We have to be more honest about what is actually happening and stop thinking that giving people information makes them act irresponsibly,” says Dr. Sweeney.
At a time when many young people have redefined what constitutes sex and are increasingly contracting the virus, sex education, especially at home, is vital. Granted, the New York City Department of Education is presently revising and expanding their curriculum on HIV/ AIDS for students in grades K-12, the message of prevention needs to be echoed by more parents and the general community.
Yet, sex education is only one aspect of prevention, Dr. Sweeney acknowledges that self-esteem or the lack thereof, plays an important role in the increase of HIV diagnoses. She sees many cases of young girls having sex with older men for material things, a situation the doctor believes wouldn’t occur if these girls were “raised in an environment that could nurture their self-esteem.” Dr. Sweeney believes that as a community we need to enforce existing laws on statutory rape, instead of turning a blind eye to this common problem.   “Fourteen-year-old girls don’t have the ability to negotiate safe sex in that environment,” says Dr. Sweeney.
Teenagers are not the only at-risk group, besides Black women ages 25-32, newly infected older populations, those 50 and over, are becoming prevalent in Bed-Stuy/ Crown Heights. Dr. Martin-Naar says approximately 50% of her caseload at Interfaith is over 50, which complicates treatment since many of her patients already have diabetes, hypertension and osteoarthritis conditions that can be affected by antiviral drugs. In response, Interfaith, located on Atlantic Avenue, now has an Infectious Disease Clinic in addition to the AIDS Center. The Infectious Disease Clinic is run by specialists who provide additional care for patients confronting the complications of the disease.
The Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Center, located on Fulton St./Harriet Tubman Ave., also provides a variety of treatment and prevention programs. Besides offering rapid 20-to-40 minute testing and HIV primary-care treatment, the center also focuses on community outreach, going into housing projects and street corners to convey the importance of safe sex and getting tested.
Dr. Sweeney is also a firm believer in contact tracing and partner notification, specifically targeting HIV-infected ex-convicts, who are reentering the community. She says it is important for this infected population to receive immediate care upon their release since being on anti-viral medication decreases the risk of transmitting the disease.
Dr. Sweeney and Dr. Martin-Naar, both stressed the importance of the church getting involved in preventative methods. “[This is] a very religious community and you have to provide culturally appropriate services,” says Dr. Martin-Naar. Dr. Sweeney mentioned one such progressive church program that recently took place at St. Paul Community Baptist Church. Reverend Johnny Ray Youngblood invited Dr. Sweeney to discuss HIV and AIDS in a church program, Straight Talk for Straight Understanding, allowing her to advocate safe sex from the pulpit.
Both Dr. Sweeney and Dr. Martin-Naar acknowledge that there is not enough state and federal funding going towards preventative methods; the money available is typically focused on treatment and not prevention.
However, as a community we can still work together to create more open and honest discourse about this epidemic, whether it be in church, in school, at the beauty salons or at home. We have to take away the stigma attached to the disease so that those who already have it feel comfortable seeking treatment and begin being honest with themselves and their partners.

The National Conference of Artists New York’s Department of Communications & Education has expanded its television reach with the addition of two channels on Brooklyn Community Access TV, it was reported last month by Kwame Brathwaite, the award-winning photojournalist who is executive director and founder of  NCAny .
 NCA-New York’sÿBlack Arts & Culture USA (BACUSA) has been airing Mondays at midnight (Tuesday mornings) on Manhattan Neighborhood Network in New York for nine months now, on channel 34.  It debuted its one-hour program on Monday, March 28, on BCAT’s Channel 37 and 57.  It is now regularly scheduled   on the Brooklyn cable station on Mondays at 5 p.m.
“This initiative will allow NCAny to reach our core audience of Brooklyn artists and cultural workers”, said Brathwaite. “The largest percentage of our New York State membership resides or works in Brooklyn and this gives us the opportunity to better serve them and the community by keeping true to our mission to ‘preserve, promote and develop African-American culture and the creative forces of the artists that emanate from the African-American and African world experience’ and give them a voice and the exposure that they both need and deserve.”
BACUSA will vary in format from a full hour devoted to one artist, to a magazine format that will cover cultural events, exhibitions, gallery openings, museums and conferences that deal with visual, performing arts and wearable art.
In addition, NCAny is in the process of reorganizing its programming to better serve the growing numbers of African- Americans and Caribbean-Americans interested in the arts, either as participants, patrons and/or collectors for enjoyment or for business and investment purposes.
NCAny is one of the most active chapters of the nationwide National Conference of Artists, now celebrating 46 years of continuous operations. The organization will soon expand its membership, with a concentration on youth, in high schools, colleges and universities. Nationally, they are partnering with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) “to ensure,” says Brathwaite, “that our cultural legacy prospers.”
MNN serves an area with a population of 1.5 million, and BCAT serves a possible 2.5 million, giving NCA a possible reach of 4 million New Yorkers. In June, NCAny will add several stations nationally to their service area.
ÿNIELSEN MAKING MOVES TO COUNT BLACK, HISPANIC TV-WATCHERS
Some of our favorite television shows go off the air based on more attention being paid to someone else’s viewing habits. 
Now Nielsen Media Research, the official measurement service of the television industry for more than 40 years, is being pressured to do something about it.  Whether it will be enough to keep certain broadcasts coming back remains to be seen. 
Nielsen is considering a number of steps to better reflect the television viewing habits of blacks and Hispanics; paying these families more to measure what they watch is one of them.
The company appointed a panel last year to recommend changes after concerns were expressed about Nielsen’s new TV-viewing measurement technology (electronic meters, rather than paper diaries). Some blacks and Hispanics say the new system undercounts them and, as a result, threatens the future of their favorite shows. A task force concluded Nielsen’s new People Meter technology was superior to the old diary system, but that the company needed to do more to make sure minorities participate.  
Don’t Count Us Out (DCUO), the coalition of community leaders fighting the undercount of minority viewers by Nielsen Media Research and its Local People Meters (LPMs), in early March, took its campaign to the television ratings system to Capitol Hill. Key leaders of the coalition included former Hispanic Federation Washington Office Director Grace Lopez, Canaan Baptist Church leader Rev. Jacques Andre DeGraff, Mozell Entertainment CEO Richard Willis, Jr., and 100 Black Men Board Member William H. Burgess III.  They met with members of Congress to urge them to support recommendations – and proposed legislation  – that provide independent oversight of Nielsen which they say operates as amonopoly.ÿ  “The American people deserve a television space that reflects who they are and what they choose to watch. That can only happen if Nielsen is held accountable for counting everyone fairly and equally, regardless of race, nationality, gender or age,” said a DCUO official.
DCUO’s Hill efforts come as more and more of the television industry is becoming increasingly critical of the LPM system.ÿ Leslie Moonves, the co-president and co-chief operating officer of Viacom, Inc., the parent company of CBS and publicly questioned whether Nielsen was properly gauging black viewership; meanwhile Tribune Co., owner of several WB affiliates,ÿ voiced its criticism, claiming the LPM system is under measuring younger audiences and the fault rates are the worst they have been since Nielsen started the service.  Stay tuned.
VING’S FLING @ BLACK KOJAK: Ving Rhames brings more to the role of USA Network’s Kojak than meets the eye – real-world experience. Rhames’ wife was a homicide detective and LAPD officer. “I witnessed what she went through when she took off her uniform,” says Rhames. “And I don’t see that with any show on television.”  Rhames’s Kojak, a lieutenant in the NYPD Detective Bureau, utilizes controversial tactics to get the job done. The show airs Sundays at 10 pm.ÿ

By Aminisha Black
Gearing up for Summer
Summer is approaching and registrations for summer programs are in process.   Hopefully, youngsters will get a much-needed break from rigid curriculums and be allowed to explore their own interests and investigate new ones.
Sleep-Away Camps
There are Sleep-Away Camps with varying time periods, activities and costs to choose from.  If your child is eight years old and over, adjusts easily to new environments and could benefit from a bit of independence, sleep-away camp can be a rewarding experience for child and parent alike.  I remember my amazement at beds being made, clothes placed in hampers and other personal-care routines being done after camping without nagging from me.   Choosing the right camp for your child is a project itself.   Some of the things to be considered include, but are not limited to, age groupings, total number of participants, ratio of leaders to participants, experience and qualifications of leaders, activities offered and safety.  The camp’s reputation or widespread advertising doesn’t substitute for parental assessment.
Where to Look:
  Summer Camp, Ready or Not! – A book  for ages  9-12 written by Sandra  Belton, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter, tells the story of two African-American girls going to distinctly different camps and their experiences.  Publisher:  Simon & Schuster.
Brooklyn Public Library – Central Branch – Education and Job Information Center, 2nd floor.  Summer camp information is available on the Web.  While there,  check periodicals and browse publications for camp listings and related articles.   Call 718-230-2122 for library hours.
Day Camps
Whether preference is based on location, age, gender, hours or activities, New York City is a smorgasbord of summer day camps.  Whether your child’s interest is Art, Photography, Dance, Sports, Film or other – supervised, structured programs exist that are geared to develop the youngster’s skill in the area.   Following are a few leads to local activities.  With a little creativity, some mixing and matching, you can pull together a program of relaxation and fun for your child. 
 Bed-Stuy YMCA – 139 Monroe St. 718-783-2200 Ext. 220. Full days July 5 thru Sept. 2 – ages 3 to 14.
 Von King Park – 670 Lafayette Ave. – 718-622-2082. July 5- Aug. 19. Registration April 4th – April 30th.  PAL – 495 Gates Ave. -718-230-8477. Eight – week camp for 6-13- year- olds.
Bed-Stuy Restoration Corporation RITE Multimedia Summer Program – ages  8 – 15.  718-636-6978.
Links to CityWide Agencies
The New York City Youth Guide to Summer Fun 2005 contains day-by-day events along with a listing of ongoing places to explore.  Call DYCD/NYC Youthline at 1- 800-246-4646 or 311 to request a copy.
PASE – Partnership for After-School Education – links to programs in all NYC neighborhoods with description of programs and contact information.  This is a direct connection to year- round programs that run special programs during the summer.  
Recreation
Call NYC Parks & Recreation at 718-965-8938 for all activities in Brooklyn. 
City Parks Foundation sponsors classes in tennis, track and golf beginning the first week in July and lasting through August.  Program runs in parks in all five boroughs.  Call them at 718-699-4200 or visit their Web site at www.cityparksfoundation.org.
 American Youth Soccer Organization – 718-923-1099.   The Precinct Youth Councils sponsor summer camps and sports programs:  77th Pct. Council – 718-735-0634; 78th Pct.  – 718-636-6451; 81st Pct.  – 718-574-0400; 88th Pct. – 718-636-6511.
Swimming Pools (open June to Labor Day) – Outdoor, Wading, Indoor and Mini- pools.  Call Parks Dept. at 718-965-8938 for pool nearest you and other locations.

Beacon Programs
80 Beacons in public school buildings throughout the city, each offering unique activities.  Call 311 or visit wwwnyc.gov/dycd for listings by location.
For Teens
Omega Teen Sailing Program – Manhattan Sailing Club – 212-786-0400. Free program for teens who live full-time in NYC: completed 7th grade and at least 13 years old by June 30th.
Summer Youth Employment (SYEP)
This program provides entry-level work experience for 14-21-year-olds.  As of this writing applications were not available but expected to be available the first week of April.   Visit www.nyc.gov/dycd for eligibility and application information or call NYC at 311 or NYC Youthline at 1-800-246-4646. 

Locating summer programs can be a team project for you and your child.  Remember  to use some of the free hours of summer to spend extra time having fun with your child. 
Send comments to parentsnotebook@yahoo.com.

By Danielle Douglas

Forest City Ratner Companies’ addition of the Community Benefits Agreement to their Atlantic Yards plan has gained the Developer increased support from community leaders. At a July 19th rally at Duryea Presbyterian in Brooklyn, Rev. Al Sharpton joined Assemblyman Roger Green, Comptroller Bill Thompson and National Urban League President Marc Morial in pledging allegiance to FCRC’s proposal for the much-contested Atlantic rail yards. FCRC’s newfound supporters united with Rev. Herbert Daughtry of Downtown Brooklyn Neighborhood Alliance (DBNA), Bertha Lewis of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform (ACORN) and countless other political, religious and community leaders to discuss the benefits of the CBA.
Rev. Sharpton, who has never backed a Ratner project, threw his support behind the Developer because he believes, “this project gives the most to our community.” He went on to say that Extell, the Developer behind the UNITY alternative, has not made as much of an effort to assess the needs of the Black community or engage its leaders. Sharpton believes that opponents of the FCRC proposal need to put aside their differences and consider what the CBA has to offer. “Only one of two people will win in this process. We can’t stand by and be outside with an attitude, unemployed, [with] no affordable housing while we have two rich guys arguing, one with a commitment to our people and the other who’s going to come in with an overnight do-it-yourself  attitude,” says Sharpton.
Senator Velmanette Montgomery, one of the leading forces behind the UNITY alternative, says she is still analyzing the CBA and is particularly concerned with the enforceability of the agreement. However, the CBA does contain specific procedures, from mediation to litigation, if the Developer breeches the agreement. Montgomery, who represents the district in which development is being built, says, “I feel compelled to be guided by my constituents and their sentiment is that issues of traffic impact, environmental impact, the size of the project and taking of private property have not been fully addressed. Before we get to the benefits plan, which are 10 years out, we should be talking about the impact the development is going to have on the community.”
The community benefits agreement, which was signed on June 27th by Bruce Ratner, Mayor Bloomberg and a consortium of community leaders, seeks to provide economic and housing opportunities for members of the project’s surrounding community.
Workforce Development Component
In order to address disproportionately high unemployment rates for people of color, Brooklyn United for Innovative Local Development (BUILD), one of the authors of the CBA, is working to develop and implement the workforce terms of the agreement. As it stands the agreement requires the Developer to hire at least 35% minority and 10% female construction workers, as well as award 20% of contract dollars to minority owned construction companies. 
Many immigrant minorities have access to capital via loans from their national banks, a financing option that’s unavailable to African Americans. To aid those who may not otherwise have access to much-needed capital to bid, the Director of BUILD’s small business development, Michael West, says, “Forest City Ratner is using its financial leverage with financial institutions to make available loans, lines of credit and other resources to minority business, construction businesses and other businesses that need those capital input. Of course there’s a process that they are going to have to go through to qualify, but those resources will be available to minorities that are not tapped into banks and foreign countries where they have access to capital.”
Our Time Press questioned the broad definition of the term “minority” and wonders what percentage of the contract dollars promised to minorities will actually go to Black and Hispanic owned companies. Assemblyman Roger Green, who is working with BUILD, says the information is still forthcoming, but believes attention should be focused on getting a commitment on the construction managers of the project. Green revealed that Atlanta-based McKissack & McKissack, the oldest African American construction company in the country, would in fact be the construction managers for the first phase of the arena development.  Decisions on remaining managerial posts are yet to be made.
Among the many initiatives of the workforce component of the agreement, one of the standout long-term initiatives is the creation of a High School for Construction Management and Trades. “The school will focus on construction technology, construction management and facilities management; students who graduate from the school their senior year will receive a regents diploma and a union card,” says Green. Another attractive initiative is the Employment Linkage and Targeted Job Training, which seeks to match the participant’s level of skill with that required by employers’ business objectives.
As with every development that effects low income communities the promise of jobs remains a primary buzzword in the fight to win over residents. However, many of the jobs promised tend to be minimum wage positions with no room for career growth. Green says, “The pre-construction, construction and post-construction will all be tied to project labor agreement with prevailing wages. That’s being hammered out now; we did our part by defining the workforce development component, but organized labor now has to come to the table and essentially establish a Project Labor Agreement.”
Housing Component
ACORN is leading the development and implementation of the housing initiatives prescribed by the CBA, which calls for 50% of the 4,000 to 4,500 units to be designated affordable housing. “This project includes 2,250 units of affordable housing, starting for people who earn $13,000 on up,” says West. According to the terms of the CBA, FRCR and ACORN have committed to long-term apartment affordability and not only affordability at initial leasing.
One of the largest points of contention with FCRC’s proposal has been the Developers intention to use eminent domain to obtain 13 of the 24 acres needed for the project. The CBA briefly addresses this concern by acknowledging that the Developer will provide rental units to displaced residents, but does not make any effort to negotiate the use of the controversial measure. At the rally Assemblyman Green said the abuse of eminent domain was more of a human rights issue than a property rights concern, but he went onto say that residents in low income communities are being displaced on a daily basis because of exorbitant rents. He suggested that some Prospect Heights residents’ homes might have to be sacrificed for the greater good of the community, low-income to upper-income, as a whole. Green quoted Dr. King in saying “an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
Community Facilities
& Amenities Component
The DBNA will take the lead on this initiative, which includes the construction of a health care center and six acres of open space for community use. The Developer will also make the arena available to community groups as well as designate a number of seats for seniors and youth throughout the year.
Environment Assurances
The First Atlantic Terminal housing Committee (FATHC) will oversee this component of the agreement; establishing a Committee on Environmental Assurances to address the short and long-term environmental issues that will affect the surrounding community as a result of the intended project. Environmental issues to be address include, but are not limited to: an on-site and off-site rodent abatement program; a staging plan for construction that minimizes the effects of idling trucks; a pedestrian and vehicular traffic plan; and encouragement of all contractors to use low sulfur diesel in trucks operating at the project.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is slated to make a final decision between Extell Development Corporation and Forest City Ratner Companies before the end of the summer. The hope is that whichever group wins the bid, the promises to involve the community in the development process will be kept and consideration will be made of the effects this project will have for years to come.
For the complete Community Benefits Agreement please log on to Brooklyn United for Innovative Local Development’s (BUILD) web site http://www.buildbrooklyn.org

Deaconess Martha C. Goldman passed on to Glory March 1, 2005.  She was born June 12, 1912 in Philadelphia to Martha Knight Jeffress and James Jeffress.  Her father was the elder of many siblings who relocated from Virginia and her mother was the youngest of four siblings who had relocated from Tarboro, North Carolina.  She had only one sibling, elder sister Elizabeth (Betty).  Martha C. attended school in Philadelphia; graduating from William Penn High School. 
In 1930 she married the now late Philip H. Goldman, Sr. of Philadelphia.  They immediately relocated to New York City and set up residence in Brooklyn.  Some years later, they had two children, Philip H. Jr. and Marcia.  Philip, Sr. had a long career as a unionized window cleaner and Martha went into civil service.  Her work experience ended with more than twenty-five years at SUNY Downstate Medical College when she retired at the mandatory age of 70.  Family was always an anchor for Martha C. and she always praised her parents for their unending love and support.  Therefore, she took her parental role very seriously.  Following her parents’ example of active church life at the St. Paul Baptist Church in Philadelphia, Martha decided on Concord Baptist Church in 1942 as her church home to support her and her family’s development and growth.  She became active with the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts parent groups and served spiritedly on the Usher Board.  Our beloved was extensively involved with and provided leadership in the Nan G. Robeson Club and the Sisterhood.  She attended and taught  Sunday School  and received great inspiration from the experiences.  Most significant in her Concord annals was her consecration as a deaconess early in Rev. Gardner Taylor’s pastorate and under the chairmanship of Beulah Palmer.  Later, Martha C. served as vice chair with Anna Bell’s chairmanship.  Deaconess Goldman enjoyed the work of the Christian Education Committee because of its focus on youth.  She was an inveterate attendee of the Progressive Baptist Convention and a convener of the Women’s Day of Prayer, an annual city-wide event held at Concord Church.  After retirement and until she could no longer independently get to and fro, she fulfilled a special commitment to be present to console the bereaved at services scheduled at the church.  Outside of the church’s programs, our Deaconess was active in the Key Women of America, a community volunteer service organization.  She served in many capacities for a number of years and greatly enjoyed the camaraderie. 

 Deaconess Martha C. Goldman has given to her family, church and community.  Her warm cheerful face and ready message of encouragement made for a very special Christian soldier who will be greatly missed.  She is survived by her son, Philip and daughter, Marcia (there  is many a weary ear that has heard about “my son and daughter”), a sister-in-law, Thelma Goldman Steele, as well as many relatives still residing in Philadelphia.  She collected other devoted friends from work settings and church who consider themselves her daughters and sons.  She developed some special friendships that grew into sisterships.  Deaconess Martha C. Goldman was dearly loved and will be long remembered.