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Why Black Voters Should Consider Supporting Eric Adams for Reelection

Editor, Our Time Press
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By Renee Collymore
Eric Adams stands at a pivotal moment in New York City’s history—not only as a mayor managing complex urban challenges, but as the second Black mayor in the city’s history. Historically, Black leadership in high office has often been met with outsized scrutiny and a lack of patience.

David Dinkins, the city’s first Black mayor, served only one term, and his legacy has often been overshadowed despite his measured approach to governance and the groundwork he laid for the city’s future stability.


When President Barack Obama completed two terms as President, it wasn’t just a political victory—it was a psychological and symbolic triumph for millions of Black Americans who saw, for the first time, that the highest office in the land was within reach.

It expanded the realm of possibility for what Black leadership could achieve when given the opportunity to govern without premature dismissal.


Eric Adams may not be perfect, and fair criticism of his policies is part of a healthy democracy. But in deciding whether to support him for a second term, Black voters should weigh not just individual policies but also the broader implications of continuity in Black leadership.

Denying him a full two terms without affording him the same latitude historically given to white mayors could reinforce the harmful perception that Black leaders are unequipped for long-term governance.


Reelecting Adams could serve as both a practical and symbolic investment in the visibility, credibility, and viability of Black leadership—not just for New York, but for the nation.

Social Media and the Teenage Brain:Why Parents Need to Step In

Editor, Our Time Press
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By: Dr. Tolu Olupona,
Program Director for the Department of Psychiatry
at OBH Interfaith Medical Center


Teenagers are increasingly spending more time online. They go online to watch videos, use social media, play video games, listen to podcasts, and engage in other digital activities. According to a 2021 Common Sense Media survey, a significant number of teens reported heavy media use.

Thirty percent of teens aged 13–18 said they spend over 7.5 hours on YouTube daily. Seventy-seven percent reported watching online videos daily, 62% reported daily social media use, and 49% reported watching TV.

A Gallup survey on adolescent health found that over half of teens spend at least four hours a day on social media. The most used platforms among teens include Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Discord, TikTok, and Twitter.


Social media does have benefits. Teens use these platforms to share ideas, learn from others, and communicate—just like they do with phone calls or texting. Social media also serves as a creative outlet and allows teens to connect with peers beyond their local communities.


However, despite these benefits, growing concerns remain about the impact of social media on teen mental health. A 2016 paper in the Journal of Adolescence linked excessive social media use with poor sleep quality, anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem.


Adolescence is a critical period of brain development—the second most intensive phase after early childhood. During this time, the brain regions responsible for executive functioning, impulse control, decision-making, and planning undergo major maturation.

Areas tied to social understanding and communication—such as the medial prefrontal cortex, superior temporal cortex, and parietal junction—are also rapidly developing. Research suggests that teens are especially sensitive to peer feedback online during this phase, as their ability to process emotions and self-regulate is still evolving.


It’s during this vulnerable developmental window that teens are spending long hours online engaging in social comparison, reacting to likes, and managing emotional responses to comments, all of which can heighten stress and self-consciousness.


Parents and caretakers can help by promoting safe and healthy social media habits. Screen time should be monitored—there are excellent apps to assist with this. Teens should be encouraged to limit social comparison and take screen detox days to engage in offline activities.


Of course, this is easier said than done. But the rise in adolescent mental health concerns makes it clear that intentional efforts are needed to reduce excessive screen time during this critical period.

If your teenager is struggling to cut back, even with encouragement, seeking support from a mental health professional trained in adolescent therapy can make a meaningful difference. For more information or to connect a young person with behavioral health services, please visit us online at onebrooklynhealth.org.

Staying alive?

Eddie Castro
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Staying alive?

By Eddie Castro
In what was quite the hostile environment Sunday night in Indiana, the New York Knicks needed to have a Game 7-like performance to keep their championship hopes alive after dropping the first two games at Madison Square Garden. Going into Sunday’s contest, the Knicks had a win-loss record of 0-9 in playoff games at Indiana.

After Game 2, Coach Tom Thibodeau needed to figure out a way to contain this Pacers team who are one of the best teams when it comes to fast break points. Coach Thibs elected to start Mitchell Robinson over Josh Hart to create more of a defensive balance and add more size in their front court.


In the first half, the Pacers were in the driver’s seat to deliver a knock out blow to the Knicks as New York found themselves trailing a game by 20 points. However, as Knick fans know all too well this postseason, being down by 20 isn’t such a big mountain to climb from is it? Yet again in the second half of the game, the Knicks were able to make the adjustments to overcome another double-digit comeback led by the heroics of Karl Anthony-Towns.

The Knicks outscored the Pacers 36-20 in the fourth quarter in which Towns scored 20 of them in the fourth matching Indiana’s entire output in the quarter. The Knicks became just the third team since 1998 to overcome three 20-point comebacks in a single postseason run.

The difference in the first and second halves was New York’s ability to turn it up on defense. In the first half, the Pacers shot 51 percent from the field. In the second half, the Pacers shot just 36.8 percent.

The Knicks ability to step up defensively ultimately led to them tapping in offensively shooting 50 percent from the field in the final 24 minutes of the game. This all occurred with Jalen Brunson being in foul trouble most of the second half and having one of his worst postseason games going 6-for-18 from the field.


As we go to press, there will be two outcomes to this playoff series by next week’s column. One is the Pacers were able to counter and adjust from their second half meltdown and take a commanding 3-1 series lead, or we would see both teams winning two games each on the road as the series heads back to Madison Square Garden for what will be an instant classic Game 5.

Do the Knicks have enough fight in them to crawl back and tie the series? Will Tom Thibodeau stay with Mitchell Robinson alongside Towns? We will see it all unfold in the coming days!
Sports Notes: (Baseball) The New York Mets welcome the Colorado Rockies to Citi Field to begin a three-time set tonight.

The Yankees have an off day today. The team will head to Los Angeles in hopes of getting revenge as the team begins a three-game set against the Dodgers, a rematch of last year’s World Series match up.


I Want to take time to thank everyone who took the time and tuned in to my new podcast Talk sports with Eddie Castro. Your support does not go unnoticed. Special thanks to all who work behind the scenes to ensure the Our Time Press universe gets the best sports talk show possible. Tune in or call in tonight at 5PM ET for an All-New episode.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel, add Our Time Press on Instagram account. Thank You all very much!

BOOTS ON THE GROUND

David Mark Greaves
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BOOTS ON THE GROUND

… in support of all May 29, 2025

Albany, New York—Advocates Call for End to Mass Incarceration: Yesterday, at the capital upstate, formerly incarcerated New Yorkers, advocates, and legislators rallied at the New York State capital to highlight the issue of mass incarceration in New York State and demand legislative changes. Their press conference was held on the second floor of the Historic Landmark building. Among the speakers were State Assemblymembers Latrice Walker, who was greeted with thunderous applause as she entered the rally area, Demond Meeks, and Harvey Epstein.

Representatives from a host of organizations also attended.  They included:  VOCAL-NY, Release Aging People in Prison, The Parole Preparation Project, HALT Solitary Campaign, Center for Community Alternatives (CCA), New Hour-LI, New York County Defender Services. 

According to the Prison Policy Institute, New York has an incarceration rate of 317 per 100,000 people, meaning that it locks up a higher percentage of its people than almost any democratic country on earth. “There are people in prison who are wrongfully convicted and have no avenue for relief, speakers said. There are elderly people, sick and in hospice, with no avenue for relief. There are people in prison since they were 17 and now 70, with no avenue for relief.”

One woman opined, alternating shedding tears of grief, bewilderment, and joy: how can some be imprisoned for minor crimes, and others for larger let go, or not be imprisoned at all.”  Assemblywoman Walker’s address to her constituents and supporters yesterday, is below:

Assembly member Latrice Walker

Assembly Member Latrice Walker with Kezilar Cornish, Scholar/Inventor/press event host.

Every wrongfully convicted New Yorker deserves a viable path to exoneration. Our state ranks third in the nation – behind Texas and Illinois – in the number of such convictions. People have been robbed of their livelihood, time with their families, and they’ve lost every conceivable benefit of freedom.

I sponsored the Challenging Wrongful Convictions Act in the Assembly to give people a fighting chance, including access to post-conviction discovery and an attorney in eligible cases. Being wrongfully convicted is among the greatest harms a person can experience. New York State lawmakers must do everything in our power to make them whole.

Wrongfully convicted Black people spend an average of 13.8 years in prison. Some lose year away from their children. We all know of cases in which wrongfully convicted people lose loved ones while locked up.

I’m not saying that we should open the gates and let all incarcerated people go free. What I am saying is that anyone who has an actual claim of innocence should have a mechanism to prove it in court. They deserve an opportunity to right the wrong -whether they pleaded guilty or not. We all know that 98 percent of criminal cases are disposed of through guilty pleas. An untold number of these pleas are coerced.

Some people unwittingly took deals because they didn’t have access to the evidence against them.

Despite the progress we’ve made as a state on criminal justice reforms, including bail and discovery, we still have work to do. I ask my colleagues to give innocent people a fighting chance by supporting the Challenging Wrongful Convictions Act.

Former U.S. Congressman Charles B. Rangel, dies at 94

David Mark Greaves
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Former U.S. Congressman Charles B. Rangel, dies at 94

by Herb Boyd May 26, 2025 Amsterdam News

Charles Bernard Rangel, the former congressman from Harlem, and the last remaining founder of the Congressional Black Caucus, has died at age 94. Rangel passed away on Monday, May 26, Memorial Day, surrounded by family. He was a native of Harlem, and the lone surviving member of the legendary Gang of Four. He took his reputation as the “Lion of Lenox Avenue” to the House of Representatives in 1971 after defeating the renowned Rev. Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. The apogee of his tenure in Congress was in 2007 when he became chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Read Herb Boyd’s complete obit at the Amsterdam News

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