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WHAT’S GOING ON

Victoria Horsford
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 HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Things will get better. Mankind still has hope which we must keep alive, the Trump Presidency notwithstanding. He remains the most unpopular president since polls were extant. His popularity with his base is eroding.   One Internet news item on 12/25 indicated that diplomacy, aka talks, would take a front seat in dealing with North Korea.  Next year is also midterm elections, and the Trump effect produces wonders at the polling sites.

Cory Johnson

The year 2018 is a reelection year for New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo. Perhaps New York City residents may experience détente between the governor and NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio. Andrew knows how to get out the vote!

Alas, the next NYC Council Speaker will not be a man of color.   Reliable rumors say that Councilman Corey Johnson has the necessary votes.

HARLEM, USA

The Studio Museum of Harlem, one of America’s “jewel in the crown” of culture, celebrates its 50th Anniversary next year.   Its board plans not only a face-lift but a new building at its present site, located at 144 West 125th Street.   The Studio Museum of Harlem will break ground in late fall 2018, designed by the internationally renown Sir David Adjaye, creator of the Smithsonian Museum of African-American History and Culture in Washington, DC.

Ray McGuire

The new Studio Museum of Harlem project is a Herculean project for SMH Director Thelma Golden, SMH Chair Raymond McGuire and the SMH Trustees. The new building comes with 82,000 SF, with 5 floors plus a roof terrace and two subground-floor levels and a $175 million capital campaign.    The Studio Museum of Harlem operations will relocate to the Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. State Office Building.   The SMH artists-in-residence and curatorial programs will continue during construction at venues around Harlem and NYC.

The Studio Museum of Harlem Trustees ideally are looking at 30% participation in building construction by local general contractors who should contact African-American firm McKissack & McKissack, Harlem Office of Community Employment, located at 63-65 West 125th Street, 3rd Floor, New York, New York 10027; phone: 646-386-7277; E-mail: communityemployment@mskissack.com

The Arts Horizons LeRoy Neiman Art Center in Harlem, located at 2785 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, is closing on 12/31. Loss of that space is devastating to both fine artists and art lovers alike. The Neiman Art Center is a local treasure utilized for art classes and exhibitions along the north-of-145th Street corridor. Arts Horizons plans to keep the concept alive with an initiative, call LeRoy Neiman Art Center Without Walls. [Visit neimancenter.org]

MEDIA MATTERS

Cheryl Wills

Cheryl Wills, one of the first ladies of NY Cable TV, adds another feather in her career cap.   NY1 News staffer who was a senior reporter, anchor, host of a Sunday public affairs show (“Cheryl Wills in Focus”), will host a new NY1 show nightly called “Cheryl Wills Live” at 10. Wills also authored two books, “Die Free: A Heroic Family Tale” and “The Emancipation of Grandpa Sandy Wills”.

The ShadowLeague.com, a website specialist in sports news related to people of color, has launched POWER PLAYERS section, which focuses on women of color in sports.   ShadowLeague has profiled the following: Gold-Onwude, native New Yorker, TV journalist at Turner Sports; “Rosalyn Gold- Onwude’s Passion for Hoops Drives Her Ascension” and “Taylor Rooks Inspires as She Elevates in the Sports Media Game”. She is a SportsNet News reporter and TV host. Visit the site and learn about the upwardly mobile media stars.

ARTS/CULTURE

The Uptown Dance Academy hosts its 22nd Annual Black Nutcracker Gala Benefit on January 11 at City College’s Aaron Davis Hall, located at 160 Convent Avenue, Harlem, USA. Show time is 10-11 am and 6-7 pm.   Gala honorees are Geoffrey Eaton and Pat Stevenson. [Call 917.202.1601]

Colson Whitehead

The 14th National Black Writers Conference, held at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, convenes on March 22-25. The 2018 conference theme is “GATHERING AT THE WATERS: Healing, Legacy and Activism in Black Literature”. The NBWC welcomes theme-related papers which must be submitted by January 15; E-mail: writers@mec.cuny.edu.   The 2018 NBWC writers/honorees are Colson Whitehead, Kwame Dawes, David Levering Lewis, Susan Taylor, Steven Barnes, Tanannarive Due and Eugene Redmond. [Visit CenterforBlackLiterature.org]

How close is Oscar for African-American films in the 2018 race. The NY Times film critic Ms. Manohla Dargis rated GET OUT, directed by African-American Jordan Peele, a riff on America and its race culture, in her Top 10. She relegated I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO, a portrait of James Baldwin, and MUDBOUND, to honorable mention status. Mr. A.O. Scott put GET OUT and I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO in his Top 10. MUDBOUND, directed by African-American Dee Rees, got Scott’s honorable mention. Film is set in post-WWII rural Mississippi when two men, an African-American and a white, return home from the war. Overlooked by the Golden Globes, this film garnered excellent reviews.

NEWSMAKERS

Don Hogan Charles

RIP: Don Hogan Charles, 79, died on December 15. Charles was the first Black photographer hired by the New York Times in 1964.   He covered civil rights, celebrities, fashion denizens for the NYT until 2007.   Charles captured Malcolm X with a rifle looking out of his Queens home. Many next generation Black photogs at the NYT spoke of Charles as a mentor during their initiation at the paper.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY

February 14, 2018 is the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial.   Born into slavery, Douglass became an abolitionist, social reformer, writer and statesman, and prominent American historian. The Douglass Bicentennial will be observed across the nation throughout 2018. His great-great-grandson Lloyd Weaver is New York-based. [Visit douglassbicentennial.org]

December 18, 2017 was the Ossie Davis Centennial.   His family plans year-long celebrations to commemorate his life as an author, activist, actor. [Visit ossieandruby.com]

The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture hosts its 6th Annual Black Comic Book Festival on January 12-13 at 10 am. Festival program is a mix of panel discussions, a cosplay show, film screenings of subjects like diversity, social justice, Black comics in digital spaces and Black masculinity in comic books. A magnet for comic book readers, creators, bloggers, nerds, independent publishers of all ages, the festival will be held at the Schomburg Center, located at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard.   [Visit schomburgcenter.org/calendar

A Harlem-based management consultant, Victoria is reachable at Victoria.horsford@gmail.com.

View From Here

David Mark Greaves
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View From Here

2018 is going to be a fateful year for the United States of America. There are powerful forces working together to take us down a path away from the U. S. Constitution, a thorn in the side for dictators around the world and wanna-bees here at home, and toward a place we’d never thought we’d enter.

This midterm election vote is the most crucial in our lifetime, dictating the future for our children, our country and the planet. And it will be fought tooth-and-nail, which in this day and age means Big Data algorithms tailored to push buttons the recipient himself didn’t even know were there, Internet “bots” starting conversations on social media, and the time-honored voter suppression tactics being used by Republicans, all aided and abetted by Russian operators looking to keep the American president, their “useful idiot”, as Vladimir Lenin might have called him, and Vladimir Putin certainly does, in power.

As the Senate election in Alabama has demonstrated, an aroused voting public can reset the course of the nation, restoring the system of checks and balances on the executive branch. Therefore, what should be at the top of our mind as we head into 2018? Voter suppression and the understanding that there is nothing the Russians want more than to re-empower the Republican Party heading into the midterm elections and there is nothing the Republicans want more than to win and they will stop at nothing, even obstructing justice themselves.

We have seen how viciously and with what coordination the Republicans have begun to attack the FBI and the special counsel, while bowing and scraping for Donald Trump, showering him with such praise and love and with Vice President Mike Pence leaving so many “greatest honor to serve” wet hickeys on Trump’s ass, as would make a less self-deserving soul blush, It is fair to wonder why there has been much public hand-wringing but no action taken to protect the integrity of the entire voting process. Could it be that the GOP are not interested in finding miscreant code that might have been placed by Republican manufacturers and if there is tampering by the Russians, wouldn’t it be for the Republican candidates?

Unfortunately this crazily unpatriotic scenario is not impossible based on where the bar for morals and ethics has been placed by the president or his aiders and abettors in congress. Their collective thirst for power enables a collusion ultimately between the Russian criminal oligarchs and their American plutocrat compatriots ensuring the weakening of the electorate and the democracy, giving both the oligarchs and the plutocrats the power and money they crave, the future of the country or the planet be damned.
And yet, even with the plutocrat-designed Electoral College, the congressional gerrymandering and active voter suppression, we have seen they can all be beaten and this is why they are so afraid and dangerous. This is why dictators like Vladimir Putin and Idi Amin or wanna-bees like Donald Trump hate democracies and will do anything to subvert them.

The American mainland used to be isolated from international warfare. But cyberwarfare takes place in every home and on every phone. Cyber-generals take prisoners without their knowledge and enlists fifth columnists unaware of the assistance they give. And now that they have seen in Alabama what the Black community can do, we’ll have the Russians on one side with their documented targeting of the Black community and the ever-constant Republican voter suppression machine on the other, and they both will be coming for us even stronger than in 2016.

In this war of weaponized social media, we have to fill ours with positive information and political organizing, while maintaining a thoughtful awareness when an emotional button is being pushed by a source not personally known.

And frankly, now that their game has been outed, I think the Russians will be surprised by the people skills and technical sophistication of the opponents they’re coming after.
If every individual uses their digital and personal interaction to get out the message to vote and resist, then when Trump’s day of reckoning comes, either at the polls or by special counsel, tens of millions of people will either be on voting lines or in the American “street” rising up in support of the rule of law and against a dictator.

Interfaith Medical Center Celebrates 5th Annual Winter Wonderland

Editor, Our Time Press
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Interfaith Medical Center Celebrates 5th Annual Winter Wonderland

On Friday, December 15th, Interfaith Medical Center celebrated the holiday season with their 5th Annual Winter Wonderland Celebration. Children from surrounding schools and day care centers participated. Each child took a commemorative picture with Santa and received a gift.

And on Tuesday, December 19th, Interfaith Medical Center celebrated their 5th Annual Secret Santa. 245 families received one-hundred-dollar American Express gift cards. “Winter Wonderland and Secret Santa have become holiday traditions for Interfaith,” said LaRay Brown, President and CEO of Interfaith Medical Center. “For many families, it’s not easy to provide gifts for their children, and what should be a joyous time can become stressful. Thanks to our sponsors and the Interfaith Auxiliary, we’re able to release some of that burden and bring joy to youngsters in our community during this season of giving.”

“Families were chosen from our clinics, community schools and organizations,” said Sharonnie Perry, Director of Community and Government Relations. “These events started when IMC was in bankruptcy. This was a way to show our appreciation to the community for their support.”

Children, Poor, Middle-Class SCROOGED!

Editor, Our Time Press
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Children, Poor, Middle-Class SCROOGED!

Who profits? People like Trump’s economic advisor Gary Cohn who’s current net worth is reportedly at $285 million. After getting an offer to lead Trump’s
National Economic Council, the former Goldman Sachs executive abruptly left
the investment bank. Cohn wrote the tax plan along with U.S. Treasury Secretary
Steven Mnuchin, another Goldman Sachs multi-millionaire, and Speaker Paul Ryan. The tax plan also will even further enrich members of the Trump cabinet, including U.S. Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos.

Paul Krugman of The New York Times says that Trump’s tax plan is “the biggest tax scam in history,” hurting ordinary Americans just to help the rich get richer.
This could kick 13 million Americans off their health insurance, raise taxes on middle-class families and gut Medicare and Social Security – all to pay for a tax cut for the super-wealthy.

“A Disaster for Millions of American Families”

Washington, DC – This morning, in response to the Senate vote to pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the Chair of the Patriotic Millionaires Morris Pearl, former Managing Director at BlackRock, Inc., issued the following statement:

“Today’s vote is a disgusting example of what happens when the rich and powerful control all the levers of government. This bill is nothing less than the ultra-wealthy rewriting the rules of the tax system in their favor, irreparably hurting poor and middleclass families in the process. It will be a disaster for millions of American families, but because its supporters in the Senate, House, and White House were able to save themselves millions, they don’t care. Each and every Senator who just voted for this bill must share in the blame, as millions of their constituents now face higher taxes and the loss of health care.”

Kwanzaa Holiday Celebrations

Editor, Our Time Press
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Kwanzaa Holiday Celebrations

New York City is an incredible place to be during the holiday season. You are blessed to be a part of it. Treat it like a tourist and do all the things you never have time for during the year. Have yourself a “Staycation” and discover all of the delights that abound you. Most of them are free.

If you haven’t celebrated Kwanzaa yet, give it a shot. You won’t be disappointed. Keep your costs down, save up for that college education or upkeep home your family needs. Show your friends and family how much you love them through your actions. There is no need to keep making Wal-Mart rich.

Kwanzaa is for everyone!

WRITE YOUR OWN PLAY/MOVIE

Film your own family “oeuvre” on your telephone. It may seem corny today, but when you look back at it 20 years from now, you will weep with joy.

CAROLING

Have the family learn a few seasonal songs and sing them outside of your neighbors’ door. Start as soon as they open the door. Give them a memento such as fruit or figs when you have finished the song. You can also ask them to join you as you go to the next neighbor. By the end of the evening, you might have a heavenly chorus.

CHOP DOWN YOUR OWN CHRISTMAS TREE

If you have a car, you can drive a few miles out of the city and select your tree from a tree farm. OR on Christmas Eve, after all of the tree vendors have closed, you can rescue the trees that did not get a new home. Many times, they are a tad straggly, so you might have to take two or three of them and bind them together. Be sure to make the decorations out of popcorn, cranberries and all things homemade in order to stay in the motif. Wrap your presents in newspapers or paper brown packages tied up in string.

THE STATEN ISLAND FERRY

Take the Staten Island Ferry round-trip. Time it so that you can see the sun go down and the lights coming up as you return to NYC.

THE CHINATOWN ARCADE

Chinatown Fair Family Fun, 8 Mott St., NYC, open on Christmas from 11:00am-Midnight, 212-964-1001. The fortune-telling chicken is no longer there but the arcade games are. They are priced from $1.00 to $1.50. You could give each person $10.00 to spend as they like. Perhaps make a game of it, the one who makes their money last the longest, gets a prize.

THE HAYDEN PLANETARIUM

200 Central Park West, corner of 79th St., NYC. Closed Christmas Day but open Christmas Eve.

This is where the astrophysicist, Neil de Grasse Tyson, everybody’s favorite “genius”, weaves his magic.

There is a suggested donation which is okay for those who can afford it. The museum wants to be inclusive, therefore, you can give what you can. I think $1 for each adult and 25 cents for each child is about right. The museum has a line on the city budget, they are not dependent upon donations, and they certainly don’t want you to stay away if the price of admission is too dear.

MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

79th St. & Central Park West. Closed Christmas Day but open Christmas Eve, 212-769-5100.

Pay what you will. There is a suggested donation. My suggested donation is that you pay $1.00 for each adult and 25 cents for each child.

KWANZAA AT THE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY–ONE DAY ONLY!

79th St. & Central Park West. December 30, 2017, from noon-5:00PM. This event is free with your admission ticket, which means that it is included with your 25-cent donation. There will be vendors at this event and I’m sure the museum would be delighted to see your disposable funds go to the individual artisans. It is located in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. The day will have a live musical performance, a history of the Seven Kwanzaa Principles, local artisans vending their Afrocentric wares and a spirit of unity.

MOVIE PARTY IN YOUR HOME

You can show an appropriate kid flick in your home for all the neighborhood children and give the grown-ups a break to go wrap their presents and make surprises at their home. P.S.–If your home is already decorated in Kwanzaa style, it might engender conversation about the holiday and attract others to it. Meanwhile, if you have netflix, it should only cost you a couple of bowls of popcorn (preferably hot with olive oil and garlic) to do a mitzvah for your neighbor.

STUDIO MUSEUM IN HARLEM

144 West 125th St., NYC 10027; 212-864-4500

FREE ON SUNDAYS, NOON- 6:00PM

Featuring: FICTIONS, an exhibition of 19 emerging artists-in-residence.

THEIR OWN HARLEM: including the works of the great masters such as Jacob Lawrence and others and their visions of Harlem.

THE JOURNEY: the work of Derrick Adams.

THE MUSEUM OF JEWISH HERITAGE

36 Battery Place, New York City, 646-437-4202

FREE EVERY WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY FROM 4:00-8:00PM

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIANS

1 Bowling Green, NYC 10004, 212-514-3700, open every day except Christmas. 10:00AM-5:00PM–FREE EVERY DAY

BROOKLYN CHILDREN’S MUSEUM

145 Brooklyn Ave., Brooklyn, NY 718-735-4400

FREE ON THURSDAYS FROM 2:00PM-6:00PM

HAMILTON GRANGE NATIONAL MEMORIAL (HAMILTON MANSION)

409 West 141st Street, NYC 10031, 646-548-2310

FREE WEDNESDAYS-SUNDAYS FROM 9:00AM-5:00PM

 

 

 

 

 

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