Home Blog Page 60

36th Annual Symposium Postponed – Why?

Editor, Our Time Press
-
0
36th Annual Symposium Postponed – Why?

By Segun Shabaka
The 36th annual NAKO Symposium on Community, Culture and Struggle will be postponed due to the noncooperation of the principal of Public School 287. No adequate reason was given for the refusal to allow the use of the school’s auditorium after several months of numerous attempts to contact her in person, by email as well as by phone.


Too many of these new jack, recent arrivals to principalship are individuals who don’t understand the turbulent history and struggles of the 1960s and 70s that made it possible for them to be in the positions they occupy.

They act like gangster overseers running ‘massa’s’ plantations. Some even think and act like they are ‘massa.’ Part of those struggles were to open up these community schools for community use; ‘bringing the community to the schools and the schools to the community.’

Those that fought in those struggles for ‘Community Control’ understood the lack of institutional space available to our oppressed community and marginalized neighborhoods coming out of the Holocaust of Enslavement.

Not much has changed. Unlike many other communities, Africans in America still do not own or control in any significant way the space we occupy. Thus, our labor today is much like the old plantation system, it goes towards enriching and empowering others to our own demise.


The Symposium has served as the intellectual component of the International African Arts Festival (IAAFestival) which will celebrate its 54th year July Fourth weekend. The exact dates of the IAAFestival are Friday, JULY 4, thru Sunday, JULY 6, 2025. For information and to support the IAAFestival go to www.iaafestival.org.


The symposium has brought together major Black thinkers from across the world to share their ideas and solutions around the myriad issues facing the world African community. Scholars, intellectuals, activists, leaders and experts from various fields discuss vital issues that affect the African American and African diaspora communities using the 7 areas of culture as defined by Kawaida Philosophy which was developed by Dr. Maulana Karenga (History; Religion/Spirituality and Ethics; Social Organization; Political Organization; Economic Organization; Creative Production {art, music, literature, film}; and Ethos- psychology or Collective Consciousness). In these times of mass uncertainty, suppression and racism Black people need to be dialoguing more than ever.


The Symposium has been tentatively rescheduled for September of 2025, and will take place at Brooklyn’s Restoration Plaza. The exact date and location will be announced within the next few weeks. For further information contact: nakoinfogroup@yahoo.com or 718-789-3264.

Congo & Rwanda Sign Peace Deal

Kazembe Batts
-
0
Congo & Rwanda Sign Peace Deal

By Jeffery Kazembe Batts
IG: @Kazbatts
On Friday, June 27, 2025, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo signed a U.S.-facilitated peace agreement to end the fighting between the two African nations and stimulate regional economic cooperation. President Trump sat and was flanked by VP Vance, Secretary of State Marc Rubio, Congolese Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, and Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe, as they all stood at the White House ceremony.

After referencing his recent peacebuilding skills in India & Pakistan, Israel & Iran, Serbia & Kosovo, Trump proclaimed, “in the months ahead my administration will continue to work closely with all the parties in this deal and ensure the agreements are fully taken care of, and your gonna do what’s in the agreement. We’ll say – you better do what’s in the agreement. If somebody fails to do that, BAD things happen!”


Earlier this year, Rwanda-backed rebels M23 seized the regional capital, Goma, the city of Bukavu, and two airports. This troop movement created new urgency, and Qatar sent envoys to both capitals to urge de-escalation.

Congo President Tshisekedi and Rwanda President Paul Kagame then met in Doha and established a working committee, supported by the Trump administration.

Before the White House signing inside the State Department, Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted the foreign ministers of the DRC and Rwanda in advance of a planned July visit to Washington by the two nations’ respective heads of state.


With dozens of different armed groups, especially M23 in Congo, postdoctoral researcher at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, Dr. Samuel Igba explains that “over the years, there is a disconnect between the high-level peacebuilding, such as the Qatar & African Union-led processes, and the grassroots peacebuilding on the ground.”


Queens Representative Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement “I welcome today’s announcement of a peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda, which includes a prohibition of hostilities in eastern Congo and an agreement between both parties to facilitate full humanitarian access and the return of refugees and internally displaced persons.

For too long, Congolese civilians in the east have been subjected to displacement, extreme violence, sexual abuse, and intimidation by armed groups. This brutality must end immediately.’’


Exploited by many for generations, the Congo Basin is rich in vital minerals such as cobalt, copper, diamonds, gold, tantalum, and tin, which are necessary for various industries, including electric vehicles. 70% of the world’s cobalt is mined in this part of Africa. Millions have died in what some consider the world’s most deadly conflict area since World War 2.

According to reporter Hariana Veras, the only accredited African-based reporter to the White House who participated in the ceremony, President Tshisekedi is “very thankful for Trump’s involvement and the Congolese people are now hopeful.”

To many, the Trump administration and the U.S. government’s overt focus on assisting in peacebuilding and economic integration in the “heart of Africa” is a welcome, serious, yet curious development in world affairs.

Free Agent Frenzy 2025

Eddie Castro
-
0
Free Agent Frenzy 2025

By Eddie Castro
For our beloved New York teams, the 2024-25 NBA season has come to an end. The NBA Draft has come and gone. The Nets elected to keep all their five first-round picks they selected. Unfortunately for the Knicks, they did not have a first-round pick and traded away their 50th overall pick in the second round.

Both teams will now shift their attention to NBA free agency which officially begins on July 6th at noon. Negotiations with free agents are allowed to begin on June 30.


For the Brooklyn Nets, the team is in the middle of a rebuild. Many people were surprised that General Manager Sean Marks decided to keep all of his picks instead of dealing a few of the picks in hopes of landing a superstar player.

The priority for Brooklyn’s rebuild is to develop their home-grown players. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are out as far as making a splash in free agency.

The Nets have more cap room than any team in the league this summer, so it is expected the team will be in conversations when it comes to the coveted free agents on the market. Nets fans can expect players such as Jonathan Kuminga and Quentin Grimes to be in the mix for Brooklyn. Although Kuminga missed some time during the season due to injury, when he is healthy, he is simply instant offense.

Still at just 22-years old, Kuminga can finally receive a fresh start and a opportunity to prove himself. Perhaps that place can be Brooklyn. Grimes is a familiar name to New Yorkers as he spent some time with the New York Knicks. After a short stint with Dallas, Grimes was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in which he had a career season. In 28 games played, he averaged 21.9 points per game.

Aside from Cam Johnson and Cam Thomas, it would not hurt Brooklyn to acquire a player who can shoot the ball. Shooting is one of the many team needs and both players can fulfill that. Speaking of Cam Thomas, Brooklyn would like to retain him as well.

Thomas is a restricted free agent which means any team that attempts to sign him, Brooklyn has the right to match any offer. Thomas has arguably been the team’s best player the past two seasons.


As far as the Knicks go. unfortunately they are not as cap-savvy as Brooklyn is. The team traded away their lone pick in this year’s draft which had Spike Lee pulling his hair out once again. There was some noise about Kevin Durant, but we all seen what transpired with that.

It was quite the Blockbuster when we heard the news that Karl Anthony-Towns was traded to the Knicks just before the beginning of this past season.

Maybe General Manager Leon Rose has another move up his sleeve? As I reported on the most recent episode of Talk Sports with Eddie, the Knicks had many issues as far as why they eventually fell to the Indiana Pacers.

One was defense, two was the lack of another consistent scoring option to compliment Jalen Brunson and three was lack of depth. I would not expect the Knicks to go after a high-level free agent but, they could use some shooting.

One player that can check that box off for them is Gary Trent Jr. Trent Jr can be quite the fit in New York whether you start him or have him come off the bench. He’s an elite shooter at 39% for his career. He is less of a liability on defense and he’s just 26-years old.

Al Hortford and Malcolm Brogdon can also be other options the Knicks can look at. It should be a very exciting summer for both teams. Will be see our New York teams in the middle of the free agent madness? We shall see.

Sports Notes: Talk sports with Eddie will return with a All-New episode on Thursday July 10th. In the meantime, please continue to watch previous episodes on the Our Time Press YouTube channel. Please like and subscribe to the page and most importantly thank you!

Bed-Stuy Has Brooklyn’s Highest Voter Turnout

Editor, Our Time Press
-
0
Bed-Stuy Has Brooklyn’s Highest Voter Turnout

THE VOTES ARE IN AND THE WINNER IS…

Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old upstart lawmaker, declared victory Tuesday night in the Democratic mayoral primary, racking up a seemingly insurmountable lead that prompted former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to concede.


A democratic socialist, Mamdani waged an energetic campaign, attracting new and left-leaning young voters. His platform focused on making the city more affordable, including free bus service and child care, and raising $10 billion in revenue by taxing businesses and wealthy New Yorkers.


Mamdani, a member of the New York State Assembly from Queens, closed a double-digit deficit in the polls in the weeks leading up to the primary.
“I will be your Democratic nominee for the mayor of New York City,” Mamdani told supporters hours after the polls closed.


Cuomo resigned from his gubernatorial post in 2021 after he was accused of sexually harassing at least 11 women. He has repeatedly denied the allegations.
“Tonight is his night,” he told supporters. “He deserved it. He won.”


With 96.05% of the scanners reporting, Mamdani was the first choice of 43.51% of the votes to Cuomo’s 36.42%. City Comptroller Brad Lander had 11.31% followed by City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams with 4.12%.


“He touched young people and inspired them and moved them and got them to come out and vote, and he really ran a highly impactful campaign,” Cuomo added. “I called him, I congratulated him. I applaud him sincerely for his effort.”


Some political observers said the results were stunning.
“This is the biggest upset in modern New York City history,” Trip Yang, a Democratic strategist, told The New York Times.
The official outcome of the primary election will be decided next Tuesday by the ranked-choice count, but experts saw almost no chance for Cuomo to catch Mamdani.


Mayor Eric Adams is running for re-election as an independent. It remains to be seen whether Cuomo, 67, will also run as an independent in the November general election.
“I wanted to look at the numbers and the ranked-choice voting to decide about what to do in the future, because I’m also on an independent line,” Cuomo told The Times. “And that’s the decision.”


Curtis Sliwa will be the Republican candidate for mayor in the general election.
About 1 million New Yorkers cast their ballots in the primary with Brooklyn boasting the highest number of votes among the boroughs with more than 358,000. Mamdani won Brooklyn by 17 percentage points.


The New York Times published a breakdown by neighborhood. It showed that just over 4,300 people voted in Brownsville, leaning toward Cuomo by 40 percentage points.
Bedford-Stuyvesant had the highest voter turnout of any neighborhood in Brooklyn with about 32,000 voters. Mamdani won that neighborhood by 43 percentage points.


Brooklyn Democratic Party Chair Rodneyse Hermelyn endorsed Cuomo in March. She released a statement early Wednesday aimed at unifying Brooklyn Dems around Mamdani.


“Zohran Mamdani campaigned on making our city more affordable,” the statement read. “The people have spoken and as the clear winner of the Democratic primary, I support Mamdani in the general election…Brooklyn stands firmly behind Zohran Mamdani as we head into November. Let’s unite as Democrats for a brighter future for our city.” (Source: NYS Assemblywoman Latrice Walker’s newsletter)

Record Voter Turnout Produces Stunning Upsetand Decisive Wins

Mary Alice Miller
-
0

By Mary Alice Miller
Queens Assembly member Zohran Mamdani became the presumptive Democratic nominee for the November General Election. “In the words of Nelson Mandela, it always seems impossible until it is done,” said Mamdani during his election night remarks. “My friends, we have done it.”


Mamdani received 432,305 votes (43.5%) in preliminary election results, over second-place Andrew Cuomo, who garnered 361,840 votes (36.4%). The next round of rank-choice votes may place Mamdani over the 51% needed to win, with second-rank votes from Brad Lander, who cross-endorsed Mamdani.


Thirty-three-year-old Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist, was given a 1% chance of winning when he began his campaign eight months ago. But his campaign mirrored that of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who beat 10-term incumbent Joe Crowley with a ground game that reached out to young voters and those disillusioned with the electoral process.


Mamdani campaigned on free city buses, city-owned grocery stores, and higher taxes on the wealthy. Born in Uganda, Mamdani became a citizen in 2018. If elected in November, Mamdani would become the first Muslim mayor in city history.


The Democratic establishment rallied around Cuomo, perhaps due to their relationship with him during his 10 years as governor. Those endorsements, Cuomo’s hubris, his name recognition and the record millions in support from super PACs netted Cuomo a paltry second place in first rank votes.


Perhaps the nail in the coffin was during a rare debate appearance when Cuomo could not name one time he had visited a mosque during his years as HUD secretary, New York State Attorney General, and Governor. The increasing diversity of New York City is not impressed by candidates who cater to some demographic groups to the exclusion of others.


New York City voters might not have heard the last from Cuomo. He has positioned himself to run in the November General Election as an independent, along with Mayor Eric Adams. With the majority of NYC voters registered as Democrats, both men will have to make a compelling case to overcome voter party loyalty.


It’s no surprise that Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine won the most first rank votes over City Council member Justin Brannan, 428,283 (48.1%) over 298,690 (33.5%). Most voters may not have known one candidate over another, but Levine’s campaign worked hard to build his name recognition in the outer boroughs.

Those voters familiar with the candidates remember Levine’s work in the city council and that in 1994 he founded Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union, a cooperatively-owned financial institution serving low-income families in the Washington Heights section of Northern Manhattan.


New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams won a resounding re-election victory with 630,095 votes (71.3%). Williams is known throughout the city for his advocacy. And voters were offended when, during a debate, challenger Jenifer Rajkumar questioned his sleeping habits as if she is privy to what goes on in the Williams household.


Brooklyn showed how it is done when voters re-elected Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso with a decisive 241,149 votes (77.1%). Reynoso has used the power of his office to reach all neighborhoods in Brooklyn while making special efforts to provide opportunities to communities in need.


Central Brooklyn City Council race results were mixed.
Boom! Crystal Hudson won re-election to her council seat with a staggering 32,560 votes (84.7%). Council member Chi Osse returns to the council with 22,368 votes (78.4%). And Mercedes Narcisse was re-elected with 12,768 votes (82.9%). These percentages speak to how well these incumbents serve their constituents.


The outlier was Council member Darlene Mealy, who got 6,603 first rank votes (43.2%). Her top three challengers, Lawman Lynch, Jammel Thompson, and Bianca Cunningham received combined almost as many votes as Mealy. It will be interesting to see how many rounds it will take for Mealy to win re-election.


Ultimately, the voters were the winners.
The first weekend of Early Voting for the Mayoral Primary saw a record turnout of 66,000, dwarfing the first weekend of Mayoral Primary Early Voting four years ago by 36,000.
Those numbers continued to grow. By the end of Day Nine of 2025 Primary Early Voting, turnout was a cumulative 384,338. As usual, Brooklyn showed everyone how it is done by leading the city in turnout.


Unofficial election night results include first-choice votes from early voting, election day, and any valid mail ballots canvassed, but do not include affidavit ballots.


The first preliminary Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) results will be released on Tuesday after election day (July 1). Updated RCV will then be posted every Tuesday until all ballots are counted and the election is certified.

1...596061...1,292Page 60 of 1,292