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November Is Native American Heritage Month

Editor, Our Time Press
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November 1

7:00p: Community Education Forum & Booksigning: Teaching Who We Are, For Our Children’s Future.  Dr. Molefi Kete Asante is keynote speaker. Location: Sistas’ Place, 456 Nostrand Ave. @ Jefferson Ave. Dr. Asante will sign his African American History: A Journey of Liberation, a high school text used in more than 400 schools throughout North America. Hosts: December 12th Movement and Freedom Party. Information: 718-398-1766.

 

November 1-2

9a-3p: Project Safe Surrender: The Court and Defense Attorneys Will Be Available to Resolve Any Outstanding Summonses and Warrants including: Consumption of Alcohol in Public; Riding a Bicycle on the Sidewalk; Failure to Have a Dog License; Unlawful Possession of Marijuana; Failure to Comply with a Posted Sign in the Park. Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, 212 Tompkins Ave., BK. Information: 718-250-3888, 718-388-3900, www.projectsafesurrender.org.

 

November 2

6:00p-9:00p: *** OPENING RECEPTION for THE GAMES WE PLAYED Exhibition at The House of Art Gallery. ***

HOA owner and exhibition curator Richard Beavers says, “Marbles, Double Dutch, ring-o-livio, hide-n-seek, scrabble, and stickball were our passions. We learned strategy, competition, cooperation and unity in our childhood community and family households. Our HOA artists offer their favorite childhood games in their artwork, but I wonder if those magical childhood moments can be resurrected in this push-button world of non-holistic interaction.” Special feature: Live Scrabble game in action. RSVP required: 347-663-8195. Website: http://hoagallery.com.

 

7:30p: “Party with a Purpose” – The Freedom Dance Committee invites one and all to eat, drink and dance THE 5TH ANNUAL FREEDOM DANCE takes place at Harlem’s historic National Black Theatre. This year’s Freedom Dance celebrates exiled Black Liberation Fighter – Assata Shakur. 2031 Fifth Avenue @ 126th St. in Harlem. More info: FreedomDancing5@gmail.com. Tickets: 917-415-5653

 

November 3

3:00p-5:00p: HOUSE of ART GALLERY: THE GAMES WE PLAYED Artists + Curator Talk. Curated by HOA gallery director, Richard Beavers, the event provides an opportunity for the community to connect with the exhibition’s artists. All are welcomed to join the discussion.  Exhibition artists (attendance not confirmed) include: Guy Stanley Philoche, Jamel Shabazz, Dan Ericson, Charlotta Janssen, Leroy Campbell.  RSVP mandatory. To request an individual showing please contact Kai Lawson at kai@hoagallery.com. 347 663-819

 

4:00pm- Opening Reception: Noisy in the Next Room, Danny Simmons’ solo exhibition of new work at Restoration’s Skylight Gallery speaks to the heart and soul of human existence, providing a dramatic and compelling bridge between the past and now, we are asked to imagine a future where hope and revival are commonplace. His paintings operate on multiple levels of perception, employing commonplace practices of repetition and erasure, urging you to abandon the notion of up and down. 1368 Fulton Street. 718-636-6949.

 

4:00p: Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium Celebrates 14th anniversary with A Tribute to Baba Jitu Weusi, Restoration, 1368 Fulton St., BK Tickets: available at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/455255 or call: 800.838.3006, ext. 1

 

November 5 – GENERAL ELECTION DAY!!! Central Brooklyn residents of color are pushing for your vote and/or support: Ken Thompson is running for DA; Freedom Party candidate Michael Gray is running for NYC Mayor; Eric Adams is seeking the Brooklyn Borough President’s office; Robert Cornegy for the 36th Council seat; Laurie Cumbo, 35th Council seat. Since she has no Republican opponent, Tish James is guaranteed to become the first black woman to hold citywide office as Public Advocate. Laurie Cumbo, with no opponent, is certain for the 35th Council seat. w

 

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/election/letitia-james-wins-democratic-runoff-public-advocate-article-1.1473507#ixzz2jE4a5rAp

 

November 7

The 2013 Stars of New York Dance Honors Danny Simmons!

 

November 8,

Karen L. Smith, sister of the late Barbara Boyd-Smith returns home to Brooklyn to showcase her hot new jazz-influenced musical, “3 Divas 3” on stage at Stuyvesant Heights Christian Church located 69 MacDonough Street (near Tompkins Ave). Reservations and tickets may be made by calling (718) 5019416 or (215) 2198769.

 

November 9-10

2013 Black Farmers and Urban Gardeners Conference

“Power and Sovereignty”, Boys & Girls High School, 1700 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY.  The Black Farmers and Urban Gardeners Conference connects growers, eaters and organizations across the country to nurture the health and well-being of Black America and the environment as a whole. Attendees explore issues of race, class, health and food through panel discussions, workshops, films and conversations.  Resources are exchanged. Keynoters are:  Monica White, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Environmental Justice in the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and the Department of Community and Environmental Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison & President of the Board of Directors of the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network; and Ben Burkett, President, National Family Farm Coalition. www.blackfarmersconf.org/

 

November 3

2:00p: Pre-Black Solidarity Day  Celebration: Speakers Michael Hooper,  Inez Barron, Bob Law, Salim Adofo, Cultural Presentations, Martial Arts  & Performances by Capoeira Angola,  Harlem Poet Laureate, George Edward Tait, The Afrikan Community Drummers, Children of the International Sankofa Academy, Empress Idama, Brother Wakili, Afrikan Vendors Market. Ft. Greene Senior Citizens Center, 966 Fulton St. For information contact Michael Hooper 718-773-0246. Free

 

November 17

BEPAA Presents a Master Class: An Afternoon with Tom Burrell, author of “Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority”, John Henrik Clarke House, 286 Convent Avenue, New York, NY. Admission is Free. Call 347-907-0629

 

December 7

7:30p: Camille A. Brown’s Mr. TOLERANCE, Kumble Theatre. DeKalb Ave. and Flatbush.  $15 Students, Seniors.

 

December 13

9p-3a: HATTIE CARTHAN COMMUNITY GARDEN: “CHRISTMAS DANCE” – 423 Nostrand Avenue.  Contact: Greg Matthews: 347-932-7157.  Reggie: 347-285-9774. Melvin: 347-792-0898.

Ongoing:

Thru November 24

Woodie King Jr’s New Federal Theatre kicks off its 44th season with the first play of “The Ed Bullins Project” – – In The Wine Time, directed by Mansoor Najee-ullah on Oct. 25th at Castillo Theater (543 West 42nd Street), continuing through November 24th. In The Wine Time will feature Richard Brundage, Angelique Chapman, Khadim Diop, Matthew Faroul, Lindsay Finnie, Harrison Lee, Catherine Peoples, Shirlene Victoria Quigley, Sandra Reaves-Phillips Kim Sullivan, Eddie Wardel, and Eboni Witcher. Tickets: www.newfederaltheatre.com or call 212-353-1176.

 

Thru December 15: Housewarming: Notions of Home from the Center of the Universe at  BRIC Arts | Media House. This inaugural exhibition will act as a celebratory “housewarming” of BRIC’s new 40,000-square-foot multidisciplinary arts and media complex located at 647 Fulton Street in the Downtown Brooklyn Cultural District. The exhibition explores the concept of “home” from a number of broad vantage points. Eight of the 12 artists featured in the exhibition will present works commissioned by BRIC. Njideka Akunyili, Esperanza Mayobre, Keisha Scarville and Rafael Vargas Suarez are among the featured artists in the exhibition curated by Elizabeth Ferrer, curator and BRIC’s Director of Contemporary Art. Call for hours. Admission to BRIC’s gallery is free.  Call for hours (718) 855-7882.

 

Thru January 3, 2014: Noisy in the Next Room, Danny Simmons’ solo exhibition of new work at Restoration’s Skylight Gallery speaks to the heart and soul of human existence, providing a dramatic and compelling bridge between the past and now, we are asked to imagine a future where hope and revival are commonplace. His paintings operate on multiple levels of perception, employing commonplace practices of repetition and erasure, urging you to abandon the notion of up and down. The exhibit kicks off the 2013-2014 season of The Skylight Gallery. Hours: Wednesday – Friday, 11am- 6pm, Saturday, 1pm – 6pm. For information, call 718-636-6949.

 

Thru January 11 (opening night: Nov. 2): The Games We Played, a nostalgic revisit through art to the street and board games played by young people and families back in the day,  is an art exhibition at House of Art. While some games occupied the entire sidewalk, other games took up the whole street. There were also classic games played indoors when households still had family game night. This exhibition will showcase a diverse group of emerging-to-established artists with a multitude of genres featuring Guy Stanley Philoche, Jamel Shabazz, Dan Ericson, Charlotta Janssen, Leroy Campbell and others. 408 Marcus Garvey Blvd.

Thru January 14: Schomburg Collects WPA Artists 1935 – 1943. The exhibition highlights the work of visual, literary and performing black artists. It presents founder Arturo Schomburg’s commitment to establish and preserve a black art collection as well as the artists’ responses to America’s racial climate.  Schomburg Collects will feature works by Hale Woodruff, Augusta Savage, Beauford Delaney, James Van Der Zee, Richard Wright, Bob Blackburn, Addison Scurlock, Zora Neale Hurston. Call for hours. 515 Malcolm X. Blvd. @ 135th St. (212) 491-2200.

Thru March 9, 2014: Wangechi Mutu: A Fantastic Journey, Brooklyn Museum’s first museum survey of more than fifty works of the internationally renowned Nairobi-born, Brooklyn-based artist. Her first-ever animated video is shown as part of the artwork of collages, sketchbook samples, sculpture, a site-specific wall piece and immersive installations. 200 Eastern Parkway, call for hours and entry fees: 718-638-5000.

Native Americans of Manahatta – The Lenape

Once upon a time, Manhattan was a remote offshoot of North America with dense forests full of wildlife, open fields overgrown with rich grass, and bountiful harbors teeming with oysters, lobsters, and fish.

According to Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898, tribes of Lenape Indians set up camp on this bountiful land, which they called Lenapehoking or, “where the Lenapes dwell,” more than sixty-five hundred years ago. They moved about frequently in groups of roughly 200 people at a time, hunting deer and wild turkeys, fishing, and foraging for nuts and berries.

Some fifty-five hundred years later, they had established more static communities thanks, in large part, to agricultural advancements. When Europeans arrived in 1524, approximately 15,000 Lenape Indians of various tribes lived in what is now New York City.

 

The Lenapes lived peacefully—in 1670, Daniel Denton scornfully wrote, “it is a great fight when seven or eight is slain.” The women of the matrilineal societies farmed beans, maize, squash, melons, and tobacco, cooked, raised the children, and tended to the communal longhouses while the men hunted and fished. Land ownership was a nonexistent concept in Lenapehoking. Mr. Burrows and Mr. Wallace tell us in their book that, “if the land ‘belonged’ to anyone, it belonged to the inhabitants collectively” and they “had no authority to dispose of it by sale, gift, or bequest.” Nevertheless, as legend goes, the Dutch bought “Manahatta” from the Lenapes for 60 guilders (often quoted as $24) in 1626.

-Excerpted from Tribes of New York by Mark Riffee

Note: Families and Parents, Visit: The National Museum of the American Indian in the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom HouseOne Bowling Green. New York, NY 10004. Phone: 212-514-3700

Retrieving Parent Power

Aminisha Black
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While the media gives readers and viewers news flashes daily, it’s rare that we get more than a name, location and date of the incidents.  The Children’s Defense Fund’s statistics are gathered and presented in a way that arouses attention and a call to action.  Visit www.childrensdefense.org to access statistics on children state by state.

A few of the  “Moments in America for Black Children” from Children’s Defense Fund’s research show the following  as of July 2011: Every 4 seconds a public school student is suspended;  every 57 seconds a public school student is corporally punished; every minute a child is arrested;  every 3 and a half minutes a child is abused or neglected;  every 4 and a half minutes a baby is born to a teen mother; every 15 minutes a child is arrested for a drug offense; every 15 minutes a child is arrested for a violent offense; every 6 hours a child or teen is killed by a firearm;  every 22 and a half hours a child dies of abuse or neglect;  every 2 days a child or teen commits suicide.

While we’ve formed the habit of being mere consumers of the news, it’s time for a change.   Our children’s survival depends on us, as does their reaching their full potential.  Let’s face it, reading stats like the above or hearing or reading the headlines of daily newspapers is frightening and when we’re not connected to support systems, the silent, unexpressed fear  becomes the enemy that drives frightened parents to further deprive their child of the nurturing that’s so needed.  Where does it end?

We have a tremendous opportunity to create change provided we’re willing to identify and confront our own fears – those we had as children and as adults.  Since we live in a world of “looking good”, it may take some work to find children or adults who can be counted on to tell the truth but it’s well worth the effort.   The psychiatric industry‘s success lies in their ability to have patients tell the truth about the painful situations in their lives.  Parents and caretakers have the same opportunity to clear and protect their children.  Why we don’t know that? Because we live in an economy that survives, and even thrives, on humans being needy.

From infancy, let’s retrace the neediness stages in human development.  Parents are asked to be absolutely truthful in answering   the questions.   Psychologists studying developmental stages of human beings have given indicators for human needs and development.  From birth to 24 months, the child needs to receive consistent care from consistent caregivers, needs to know that responses are made when he or she cries.  The practice of African women tying their infants on their backs satisfied that need while maintaining their freedom of movement.

If children learn to trust their environment they will explore, seeking new experiences.  If they don’t, they will be plagued by self-doubt and will fear new and different things.  Interruptions in consistent care could come if the infant was admitted to the hospital or if the mother returns to work early after birth or frequent changes in babysitters.  Please note that if the child experienced any of those things, the emotional impact could be the source of behavioral issues at an older age.  Therefore, clearing emotional waste is an important exercise at any age.

Toddlers are learning to function independent of adults.  They can now walk and talk, meaning more physical and mental autonomy.  Having learned trust during the first year, the child is ready to demonstrate will.  Parents of two-year-olds are familiar with the word “no”, which is said often.  The task for the toddler is to explore the environment on his or her own.  Parents must let the child explore and try new things in the environment and at the same time protect the child from harm.  Parents who are overly protective prevent their children from gaining confidence.  Children of parents who exercise no control, often get hurt. Both extremes may cause insecurity where the child fears independent action may lead to doubt and shame.  During this age, the groundwork is laid for independent thought and actions in later years.

The message to parents is:  “ You are more than a diaper-changer – you have the opportunity to change the world.” If you are willing to take it on contact:  parentsnotebook@yahoo.com.

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The Brooklyn Way

Eddie Castro
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By Eddie Castro

The wait is over, and here comes another exciting season of basketball in the Borough of Brooklyn. Year one is in the books and with year two the buzz around the Brooklyn Nets is championship. Nets owner Mikhail Prokorov did some George Steinbrenner-like spending during the off-season after his team lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Chicago Bulls last year in a hard-fought seven-game series. When Prokorov acquired the team a few years ago, he said that his ultimate goal is to make the Brooklyn Nets world champions. This is now year four, and with the team expecting to pay nearly $85 million dollars in luxury tax, he (Prokorov) intends to keep his promise to Brooklyn fans.

The Nets made arguably the biggest blockbuster trade during the off-season acquiring longtime Celtic Paul Pierce, as well as Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry. Pierce and Garnett have gone on record stating the big reason why they came to Brooklyn is to win a championship. Pierce and Garnett alone creates one of the most talented lineups in the NBA today. With Brook Lopez at center, Deron Williams at point guard and Joe Johnson at shooting guard they form a formidable unit. All players have made one or more All-Star game appearances in their career. The team also bulked up their bench by re-signing Andray Blatche and Reggie Evans, while adding scorers like Andrei Kirilenko, Shaun Livingston and Alan Anderson. Those players alone can be a starting lineup for an NBA team and they will be a part of the Nets bench this year. There is also a new coach at the helm. After 19 years as a player in the NBA, former point guard Jason Kidd will trade his jersey and sneakers for a suit as he was named the Nets head coach shortly after announcing his retirement.

The Nets seem to have created more of a buzz of late in New York than their over-the-bridge rivals the Knicks. Paul Pierce, who has had his share of moments against the Knicks in his career, has never been shy about his feelings towards the Knicks. “I don’t like those guys and I’m pretty sure they don’t like me,” Pierce said upon his arrival in Brooklyn. He also may have added some fuel to the fire in the borough rivalry saying, “I think my hatred has grown and a little more for them now that I’m a Net, I think it’s time for this team to take over the city”. The two teams will hook up four times this year, two times each in the opposing teams’ home court. Before that happens, the Nets will be at their first home game this Saturday against the 2-time defending champion Miami Heat. Brooklyn will be one of many teams in the Eastern Conference this year that will try to prevent LeBron James and the Heat from 3-peating this year. This should be a very exciting season!

 

Sports Notes: (Football) Don’t look now but the Giants are on a 2-game winning streak after an 0-6 start (granted it was against two other horrible teams). With the Redskins and Cowboys both losing this past Sunday, amazingly the G-men are only 2 games back behind first place. The team has a bye week this Sunday and will rest up and welcome the Oakland Raiders to town on November 10. The Jets will try to shake off a 49-9 beatdown by the Cincinnati Bengals last Sunday. It sure won’t get any easier for Gang Green as they host one of the best quarterbacks in football, Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints. (Basketball) The Brooklyn Nets get their first crack at the Miami Heat at the Barclays Center on Saturday night. The Knicks head to Chicago to play Derrick Rose and the Bulls tonight. On behalf of myself and everyone here at Our Time Press, we want to wish everybody a safe and Happy Halloween.

The Mandelas’ Wine Toast: From Their “House” To Ours

Bernice Elizabeth Green
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An elegant, warm VIP reception for Dr. Makaziwe Mandela, daughter of global icon and South Africa’s former president Nelson Mandela, and Tukwini Mandela, his granddaughter, was hosted by Edmun Braithwaite, Joyce Turner and Michael Lambert, representing the 375-plus member Bedford-Stuyvesant Business Improvement District (BID), Gateway in between Bedford-Stuyvesant and Business last Friday, Oct. 18 at Restoration Corporation.

Photo credit: Walter Taylor

The women, who previously visited New York last winter to introduce their House of Mandela Wines, were presented the award that was to have been presented at last month’s stellar Toast of Brooklyn.

“There is a lot of synergy between wine and our family. But when you look at how the vine grows, the vine doesn’t grow in a straight line. It twists and turns, representing the twists and turns of life. Life is not a straight line. What we are proud of is that out of adversity we helped create a wonderful experience.”

House of Mandela wines promotes Fair Trade and worker education, health and empowerment.  They also are hoping to build their country’s fine-wine industry for black South Africans.

Once the business is profitable, they plan to donate from 5 to 15 percent of the proceeds to charitable efforts related to education, health, agriculture and alternative energy in South Africa.

“The history of the wine industry in South Africa is really white male-dominated. Very few blacks have entered the industry, and very few women,” Makaziwe Mandela has said.  South Africa’s wine industry is valued at more than $3 billion and employs about 450,000 South African workers.  Unfortunately, fewer than 2 percent of the exported wines were made by black South Africans, said Selena Cuffe, president of Mandela’s U.S. importer, Heritage Link Brands.

Photo credit: Walter Taylor

The concept for the House of Mandela company is rooted in the Mandela family history.  They are using their family totem symbol, the bee, on their product as a way to tell the story of their family through the House of Mandela.  Of note, it is reported that when Nelson Mandela was released from prison and returned to his ancestral home, he was followed from the airport by a swarm of bees, as a welcoming. They revealed to reception guests — which included Councilman Al Vann, Restoration CEO & President Colvin Grannum, Congressman Hakim Jeffries, Assemblywoman Annette Robinson, Councilwoman Letitia James, presumptive District 36 Councilman Robert Cornegy – that the House of Mandela product was also a way of sharing some of the values “inherited from the ancestors” that shaped the life of their great patriarch and his family.

The labels on the Thembu wines are inspired by the dashiki shirts that Mandela preferred as a leader.

“Our intention is to showcase the best of what South Africa has to offer and, in a sense, of what Africa has to offer,” Dr. Makaziwe said.  “Africa is not just about poverty, not just about wars, not just a dark continent—it is a very bright, warm continent that can produce the best of what the world wants.”

 

Retired Congressman Major R. Owens Passes

Editor, Our Time Press
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Effective Champion of Education, Health and Peace

Brooklyn, NY – Hon. Major R. Owens, a former member of the United States House of Representatives, passed away on Monday, October 21, 2013 at the NYU/Langone Medical Center.  Mr. Owens had been in declining health for several months and the cause of death is believed to be cardiac arrest due to complications from renal failure and diabetes.  His wife, Maria, was at his side when he died.

Photo Credit: Lem Peterkin

A librarian by training and the first professional librarian ever elected to Congress, Major Owens served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2007.  He was an active member of the Congressional Black Caucus and a member of the Education Committee during his entire tenure.  He served as a New York State Senator from 1975 to 1982 after spending six years as Commissioner of the New York City Community Development Agency under Mayor John V. Lindsay.

Congressman Owens is survived by his wife, Maria A. Owens, as well as his wife from a previous marriage, Ethel W. Owens, and five children from the two marriages — Chris, Geoffrey, Millard, Carlos and Cecilia – along with eight grandchildren.  Mr. Owens is also survived by four siblings – Ezekiel Owens, Jr., Edna Owens, Mack Owens and Bobby Owens.

Cards may be sent to The Owens Family, 135 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY  11238.

The family is requesting that all calls be made to (518) 556-1052 and e-mails be sent to family@remembermajor.com.  In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Central Brooklyn Martin Luther King Commission, a 501(c-3) nonprofit organization.

 

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