Assemblyman Vito Lopez's scandal stoking Hasidic sects' feud - NYPOST.com

Vito Lopez scandal stoking Hasidic sects' feud

By SARAH RYLEY

Last Updated: 12:42 PM, October 17, 2010

Posted: 1:30 AM, October 17, 2010

The battle between two Satmar Hasidic sects is about to reach biblical proportions.

The scandal engulfing Assemblyman Vito Lopez -- the most powerful ally of Rabbi Zalman Teitelbaum's faction -- has created a window of opportunity for the faction led by older brother Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum to capture the highly coveted Williamsburg congregation the sibling rivals have fought over for a decade.

At stake is a $372 million real-estate empire.

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE RIVAL HASIDIC SECTS

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REAL ESTATE AFFECTED BY THE FEUD

Operatives within the Aaroni faction -- which controls the Satmar congregation in Kiryas Joel in upstate Orange County -- told The Post that within weeks they plan to crash the Brooklyn congregation's main synagogue on Rodney Street, two Zali schools and a matzo bakery.

The bitter feud between the brothers dates to 1999, when their ailing father signed over the Williamsburg congregation to Zalman. Secular courts have refused to settle the fight, saying it's a religious matter.

When the two factions last clashed on Rodney Street, in 2005, riot police were called in.

Abe Weinberger, a board member of the Zali congregation, warned that the Aaroni plot is "only going to end up in riots."

But Aaroni official Moishe Indig said the time is ripe for another takeover attempt.

"Vito Lopez is going down; we're going up," he said, explaining that the embattled Brooklyn Democratic boss can't use his influence to prop up the Zalis anymore.

"I don't think that, in today's date, anybody will take his call."

Since Lopez became mired in scandal involving the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council, a social-service empire he controls, the Aaronies have seen a remarkable turn in their political fortune.

Their candidate for district leader, Lincoln Restler, who campaigned on toppling Lopez, narrowly defeated the Zali-backed candidate on primary day.

Since the Aaronies proved they could sway elections, Gary Schlesinger, chairman of the Aaronies' nonprofit arm, UJ Care, said big-time politicians like Andrew Cuomo have visited them.

UJ Care and the Central Jewish Council received only $50,000 last year in comparison to the rival Zali-allied United Jewish Organization, which got $575,000.

And last week, a state Supreme Court judge suspended proceedings on a case over the Broadway Triangle development project in Williamsburg, pending city and federal investigations into Lopez and his affiliated nonprofits.

Broadway Triangle would have meant 160 units of affordable housing for the UJO. The Aaroni faction had joined the lawsuit to stop it.

The Zalis have also tried to block an affordable-housing project that would benefit the Aaronies -- Rose Plaza, with 226 affordable units for UJ Care, proposed by Aaroni Vice President Isaac Rosenberg.

A City Council member said David Neiderman, who heads the UJO, pressured elected officials to vote for the Broadway Triangle but against Rose Plaza and has tried to dissuade them from funding UJ Care.

"He did not want me to befriend UJ Care, he [Neiderman] talked about them all the time," the councilmember said.

Neiderman responded that public funding was "competitive" and that he opposed the Rose Plaza project on its merits.

Assemblyman Vito Lopez's scandal stoking Hasidic sects' feud - NYPOST.com.

Is It Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard or 7th Avenue? - Question - NYTimes.com

How Official Is Official?
By MICHAEL POLLAK
Published: October 15, 2010
Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times

Q. Frederick Douglass Academy is on Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard at 149th Street. Yet the city’s Department of Education lists the address as 2581 Seventh Avenue. Why the old name?

A. Not every agency is on the same wavelength regarding the avenue north of Central Park that is named for the former Harlem congressman. To the Education Department, 2581 Seventh Avenue is the official mailing address, said a spokeswoman. The Postal Service agreed: 2581 Seventh Avenue is its standardized address for the school. But to the Department of City Planning, Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard is the correct name.

Mail will be delivered whichever name a letter writer uses because the post office keeps a record of widely used “alias” names for streets, said Darlene Reid-DeMeo, a spokeswoman for the United States Postal Service. “Unless the street is renamed officially by the city, the address will remain as the original address in our database,” she said. She theorized that Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard was an honorary name only. But it isn’t; it’s official, according to the Planning Department, which keeps the ultimate authority, the city’s official street maps. The Powell honor dates from 1974. The same official change is true for two other avenues north of Central Park: Frederick Douglass Boulevard, formerly Eighth Avenue; and Malcolm X Boulevard, formerly Lenox Avenue. A department spokeswoman said the City Council had enacted the changes, making them not just honorary but legal.

The original names, however, may be in the same landmark space in the minds of longtime New Yorkers as Sixth Avenue and the Triborough Bridge. And the commercial center of Harlem, officially Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, is still 125th Street to many Harlemites.

“The names were approved as map changes,” said Jacob Morris, director of the Harlem Historical Society. So why the discrepancy? “Official inertia,” he suggested.

Is It Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard or 7th Avenue? - Question - NYTimes.com.

Supplier recalls frozen vegetables due to glass fragments - CNN.com

Supplier recalls frozen vegetables due to glass fragments
By the CNN Wire Staff
STORY HIGHLIGHTS

* The products are sold by Wal-Mart and Kroger
* Packages may contain glass fragments
* Consumers can return them to place of purchase for a full refund

(CNN) -- Packages containing frozen vegetables sold nationally by Wal-Mart and at Kroger stores in the Southeast may contain glass fragments, the supplier said Friday in announcing a voluntary recall.

While there have been no reports of injuries, the Pictsweet Co. of Bells, Tennessee, is advising the public not to eat the recalled store-brand vegetables because of the potential for harm.

Consumers should return them to the place of purchase for a full refund, Pictsweet said.

The voluntary recall covers the following items:

-- Kroger 12-ounce Green Peas (UPC 11110 89736). Production Codes of 1440BU, 1440BV, 1440BW, and 1600BD.

-- Kroger 12-ounce Peas and Carrots (UPC 11110 89741). Production Codes of 1960BD and 1960BE.

-- Great Value 12-ounce Steamable Sweet Peas (UPC 78742 08369). Best by dates of July 20, 2012; July 21, 2012.

-- Great Value 12-ounce Steamable Mixed Vegetables (UPC 78742 08026). Best by date of July 15, 2012.

Consumers with questions may contact Pictsweet toll-free at 1-800-367-7412, extension 417, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central Daylight Time, Monday through Friday.



Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/10/16/veggie.recall/index.html?npt=NP1

Click Here to Print

Supplier recalls frozen vegetables due to glass fragments - CNN.com.

Anatomy of a Roach Attack - NYTimes.com

October 12, 2010, 4:28 pm
Anatomy of a Roach Attack
By THE NEW YORK TIMES

It is among the worst nightmares of diners and restaurateurs: a roach on the table. When it happens, there are screams. And so there were at Jean Georges on Monday night. But then a finely honed roach-removal-and-memory-erasing plan went into effect. Free Champagne was involved. City Room pal Sam Sifton, over at Diner’s Journal, recounts the incident in all its creepy, crawly detail. Go read it.

Anatomy of a Roach Attack - NYTimes.com.

two important events coming up

Folks, we want you to know about two important events coming up.
 
#1. Cornel West / Carl Dix Dialogue on October 29th at CCNY - find information below or go to www.revolutionbooksnyc.org. There is an planning meeting on Wednesday, the 13th at City College, (137th Street and Amsterdam Ave.), 7pm in room 6-144, NAC building (sixth floor, room 144). Dozens of volunteers are working to make sure this important exchange is heard. Join us!

#2. October 22- The National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality, Repression, and the Criminalization of a Generation is just around the corner, 10 days away. The outrageous "Stop and Frisk" policy being carried out by the NYPD needs to be exposed and resisted in a major and ongoing way. We are organizing a bear witness/speak-out rally from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. on October 22 at Saint Nicholas Park, 135th and Amsterdam Ave. Hundreds of high school students go through that park at that time. At 4 p.m. we will hop on the train and go to the O22 demonstration being held at Union Square at 4:30.  Speak out! Be a part of making all this happen in the most powerful way that it can.

Check this statement from Carl Dix http://www.revcom.us/a/214/Carl_Dix-O22-en.html. For more information on "Stop and Frisk" check http://www.revcom.us/a/212/stop_n_frisk-en.html.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

October 29, Friday, 7pm 

IN THE AGE OF OBAMA, part 2 
Police Terror, Incarceration, No Jobs, Miseducation: 
What Future for Our Youth? 
A Dialogue Between CORNEL WEST and CARL DIX

A Benefit Evening for Revolution Books and the Prisoners Revolutionary Literature Fund 
Location: HarlemStage, Aaron Davis Hall, 135th & Convent

TICKETS: $20 General Admission, 
$100 Premium
For more info and buy tickets

C-4 Explosives Found in Historic New York Cemetery

Alarm Prompts Probe That Includes Mysterious Messages, Including One Chalked on Sidewalk

By RICHARD ESPOSITO

Oct. 11, 2010

About 12 pounds of powerful C-4 plastic explosives were found in an historic Manhattan graveyard, triggering a massive police response into whether the explosives were discarded or had been buried for some other purpose.

Police say an employee doing gardening work dug up a garbage bag containing military-grade explosives at a historic Manhattan cemetery last fall but left it at the site. It remained there until a volunteer told authorities about it on Monday.

(ABC News)

New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said today the explosives had originally been found in the New York City Marble Cemetery in May 2009 by a caretaker who dug down about a foot and discovered a bag containing eight blocks of the explosive compound. The caretaker left the explosives under a tree, Kelly said.

The cache of military or commercial grade explosives was rediscovered Sunday by a volunteer who placed the material in a trash can. The volunteer called police today when acquaintances suggested the material could be dangerous.

The call triggered an investigation into two messages that police feared could have been related to the find.

There was no danger from the material exploding, experts said. C-4 is a highly stable compound which requires a booster in order to detonate. Neither fire nor even a gunshot can cause the material to explode.

Feds probing Brooklyn housing plan backed by Assembly Vito Lopezt, sources say - NYPOST.com

Feds eye Lopez low-rise plan as Hasid favor

By JOSEPH GOLDSTEIN and SARAH RYLEY

Last Updated: 12:03 PM, October 10, 2010

Posted: 1:41 AM, October 10, 2010

The feds want to know why Assemblyman and Brooklyn Democratic boss Vito Lopez doesn't like tall buildings.

Sources say federal prosecutors are investigating whether a Lopez-backed proposal for new low-income, low-rise apartments was a political favor to Hasidic Jews, who prefer living close to ground level because they don't ride elevators on the Sabbath.

The Brooklyn US Attorney's Office is weighing whether to make a case that the project is discriminatory, intended for religious Jews while leaving blacks and Hispanics out in the cold.

Prosecutor Michael Goldberger, who heads the office's civil-rights bureau, recently inspected the site, a swath of mostly vacant and industrial lots on the Bedford-Stuyvesant/Williamsburg border called the Broadway Triangle, sources said.

The feds' interest comes after a state judge threatened to put the $50 million, 159-unit housing proposal on ice over questions as to whether the city's decision to build Hasidic-friendly housing was "preordained," despite the city's claim that it considered proposals for taller buildings.

Lopez's nonprofit housing empire, the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council, partnered with United Jewish Organizations to pitch a housing deal for the Broadway Triangle, city land that Williamsburg's Hasidim had long coveted.

The two politically connected nonprofits asked for more than $38 million in taxpayer funds to build two seven-story buildings.

Without giving other groups a chance to apply, the city quietly offered the partnership public land valued at $19 million for a mere $13 -- a buck for each vacant lot -- if they could secure state funding. The city Planning Commission also rezoned the area so no buildings could exceed eight stories.

"We're not opposed to the first eight floors' being configured to accommodate the needs of Hasidic families, but why can't we build up to 20 stories and accommodate others?" said lawyer Martin Needelman, of Brooklyn Legal Services, which has sued in state court to block the project.

The Planning Commission ruled that slightly taller buildings would "far exceed the existing neighborhood context and would be inappropriate for this area" -- despite the fact that 22-story residential high-rises already stand four blocks away.

Angela Battaglia, Lopez's girlfriend and the housing director for Ridgewood Bushwick, sits on the commission. She recused herself from the vote.

The judge reviewing the project disagreed with the commission, saying taller buildings "would not insult the architectural integrity of the neighborhood." Judge Emily Jane Goodman in May further said it was "vexing" that the city would not want larger buildings given the "critical shortage of housing."

The city denied the plan was influenced by favoritism.

US attorney spokesman Robert Nardoza declined to confirm or deny any federal investigation.

Additional reporting by Brad Hamilton

Feds probing Brooklyn housing plan backed by Assembly Vito Lopezt, sources say - NYPOST.com.

Letters - Why Is the Seat Next to Me Empty? - NYTimes.com

Why Is the Seat Next to Me Empty?

To the Editor:

John Edgar Wideman’s Oct. 7 Op-Ed essay, “The Seat Not Taken,” is for me a bittersweet reminder of the distance we have come and the long journey still ahead.

He could not have described more accurately my own experience riding the Acela and the regional Amtrak trains in the Northeast Corridor — the luxury of the double seat to myself and the clear realization that my skin color blocks entry to that empty seat.

Yet when I look back to a train trip from Washington, D.C., to Mississippi in the early 1940s, going home with my mother to visit the grandparents on their farm, I am reminded of my excitement falling when, after crossing the Potomac River, the train stopped so that we coloreds could be ushered together into a single, segregated car.

Decades later, I recrossed the Potomac from a Virginia hotel to attend the inauguration of Barack Obama. This trip was for me a powerful symbol of our national progress, just as the vacant seat is a powerful emblem, for those of us conscious of the meaning of its emptiness, of how far we have still to go.

Maurice G. Eldridge
Swarthmore, Pa., Oct. 8, 2010

The writer is vice president, college and community relations, for Swarthmore College.

•

To the Editor:

It was with great interest that I read about John Edgar Wideman’s experiment in which he concludes that train passengers avoid sitting next to him because he is black.

I conducted a similar experiment on the Blue Line train in Los Angeles. The only difference is that I am white and the train passengers were largely black and Hispanic. For 12 years I took this train through North Long Beach and South Central Los Angeles, ending in downtown L.A., where I was a teacher.

Like the professor, I frequently had a free seat next to me. Not always, but often enough to be disquieting. On occasion I would ask my students, who were black, if they would sit by me if they met me on the train. Yes, they would sit by me, but perhaps not if it was a white person they didn’t know. They couldn’t explain why.

Neither can I, but it tells me we have work to do.

Tracey Young
Long Beach, Calif., Oct. 7, 2010

•

To the Editor:

I chuckled as I read John Edgar Wideman’s essay.

Not because it’s funny; it is not. I laughed because of how I know it’s true. I travel on crowded Northeast corridor trains regularly, and long ago I found that the quickest way to find an empty seat is to scan the car I’ve entered for a person with dark skin.

I’ve long been a fan of Mr. Wideman’s memoirs, short stories and novels. From now on I’ll be looking for him on the train.

James Goodman
New York, Oct. 7, 2010

•

To the Editor:

I was moved by “The Seat Not Taken,” but also bemused. I don’t deny John Edgar Wideman’s observations and in fact have also felt shunned on the commuter train — yet instead of being an African-American professor, I am a little old white lady from a nice Boston suburb.

Surely both of us look respectable, so what is the reason?

He believes that in his case it’s color, and perhaps in mine it’s “ageism” or the new crime of “obesity” (I’m a bit plump). Or maybe we both simply look as if we’d rather read in peace, without seatmates, who increasingly come with beeping and buzzing and flickering gadgets.

Whatever the reason, I mostly decide, like Professor Wideman, to enjoy my solitary splendor. Still, I wanted him to know he’s not alone in being left alone.

Lucy Phillips
Dover, Mass., Oct. 7, 2010

•

To the Editor:

John Edgar Wideman attributes the often-empty train seat next to him to his race. But the answer may be more complex and perhaps less sinister.

I recall, several decades back, seeing a study of where people sit on public buses. My recollection is that people tend to sit next to those who most resemble themselves, by sex (most important), age and, lastly, demographics.

Race is a factor, but only one of many.

Richard Stern
Cincinnati, Oct. 7, 2010

•

To the Editor:

I hope that John Edgar Wideman realizes that given The Times’s wide circulation among Acela riders to Boston, the dubious privilege of having two seats to himself on the train will come to an end with the publication of his essay.

I can just imagine the rush of “educated, affluent, sophisticated and enlightened citizens,” to use his phrase, to sit in the empty seat next to Professor Wideman the next time he rides the train.

This is especially true since most of the riders will be going to Boston, and they can now hope that the man sitting next to them will get off at Providence, leaving them two seats to themselves.

Win-win, as they say.

Eileen Pollock
New York, Oct. 7, 2010

•

To the Editor:

John Edgar Wideman speaks the truth. It happens every morning on my commuter train. And almost every morning, seeing the African-American male sitting alone in the crowded car, I take the seat next to him.

In response to Mr. Wideman’s article, you must have received a lot of letters from people who say they do the same thing. What else is a decent person to do?

But if that is so, why do African-Americans continue to sit alone? Maybe we white Northeastern liberals talk a better game than we sit.

Todd Collins
Merion Station, Pa., Oct. 8, 2010

Letters - Why Is the Seat Next to Me Empty? - NYTimes.com.

With Parking Tickets, New Yorkers Are Guilty Until Proven Innocent

With Parking Tickets, New Yorkers Are Guilty Until Proven Innocent

By Emily Jane Goodman

For many people the main experience they have with courts involves contesting or paying motor vehicle infractions, whether moving or parking. A judge attending a party of non-lawyers can always expect other guests to tell him or her about jury service or the terrible things that happened in traffic court.

With parking tickets, one issue revolves around the ability to plead "not guilty." New Yorkers can fight parking tickets, but until the final decision is rendered, they will be presumed guilty of letting the meter run out, parking on the wrong side of the street on alternative side parking days or having incorrectly interpreted the often confusing signs that mark streets in many of the city's businesses district.

For more, go here.

October 07, 2010 08:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time 

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Hosts a Private Reception Saluting Iconic African-American Women

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Morgan Stanley Smith Barney today announced that it will host a private reception saluting iconic African-American Women at the Studio Museum in Harlem on Tuesday, October 12, 2010.

“It is a privilege to once again join forces with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, and I am deeply grateful and humbled by their unwavering support of INSPIRED, a project committed to honoring extraordinary women of color who have triumphed over adversity and challenge to become some of the world's greatest leaders, entertainers and philanthropists”

The event marks Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s support of INSPIRED: Iconic Images of African-American Women, a book profiling thirty extraordinary women. By exploring their personal inspirations, the goal of INSPIRED is to convey both visually and through poignant first person narratives these women’s extraordinary paths to survival and triumph.

“We’re pleased to be hosting this gathering to honor these bold and courageous trailblazers and history makers,” said Andy Saperstein, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Head of Wealth Management in the U.S. “Their stories of strength and endurance serve as an inspiration for us all.”

The event will be co-hosted by Mr. Saperstein, as well as Crystal McCrary Anthony and Nathan Hale Williams, authors of INSPIRED: Iconic Images of African American Women and Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator, The Studio Museum in Harlem.

"It is a privilege to once again join forces with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, and I am deeply grateful and humbled by their unwavering support of INSPIRED, a project committed to honoring extraordinary women of color who have triumphed over adversity and challenge to become some of the world's greatest leaders, entertainers and philanthropists," said Ms. Anthony.

The event will take place on Tuesday, October 12, 2010 at 6:00 p.m. at The Studio Museum in Harlem, 144 West 125^th St., New York, NY 10027. Reservations are required for security access and limited seating is available. Please R.S.V.P. to MSSB.NBD.Events@morganstanley.com or (914) 225-8305.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, a global leader in wealth management, provides access to a wide range of products and services to individuals, businesses and institutions, including brokerage and investment advisory services, financial and wealth planning, credit and lending, cash management, annuities and insurance, retirement and trust services. For further information about Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, please visit www.morganstanleysmithbarney.com.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a leading global financial services firm providing a wide range of investment banking, securities, investment management and wealth management services. The Firm's employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals from more than 1,200 offices in 42 countries. For further information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.

c2010 Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Member SIPC

Contacts

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Media Relations:
Tricia Nestfield, 914-225-6369

Permalink: http://www.businesswire.com/news/topix/20101007005269/en/Morgan-Stanley-Smith-Barney-Hosts-Private-Reception

Cake Man Raven Is Shut Down

By THE NEW YORK TIMES

Librado Romero/The New York Times Cake Man Raven showing the mayor how to ice, November 2009.

Cake Man Raven, the celebrated and well-connected Brooklyn baker who has blanketed much of the city in red velvet cake from his shop in Fort Greene, was shut down by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene this week for sanitary violations that it said included the presence of flies, lack of a hand-washing station near the food preparation area and toilet room, and the supervisor of operations’ lack of a food protection certificate.

Raven, born Raven Patrick De’Sean Dennis III, is no stranger to legal difficulty, having been shut down briefly by the health department in 2008 and been hit with a default judgment in a lawsuit filed by workers who said he underpaid them. Current employees told the Local, the Times blog about Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, that they have been unable to wash up lately because the Cake Man had not paid his water bill. Read the full story on The Local.

Op-Ed Contributor - The Seat Not Taken - NYTimes.com

The Seat Not Taken

Enlarge This Image

Brian Croni

By JOHN EDGAR WIDEMAN

AT least twice a week I ride Amtrak’s high-speed Acela train from my home in New York City to my teaching job in Providence, R.I. The route passes through a region of the country populated by, statistics tell us, a significant segment of its most educated, affluent, sophisticated and enlightened citizens.

Over the last four years, excluding summers, I have conducted a casual sociological experiment in which I am both participant and observer. It’s a survey I began not because I had some specific point to prove by gathering data to support it, but because I couldn’t avoid becoming aware of an obvious, disquieting truth.

Almost invariably, after I have hustled aboard early and occupied one half of a vacant double seat in the usually crowded quiet car, the empty place next to me will remain empty for the entire trip.

I’m a man of color, one of the few on the train and often the only one in the quiet car, and I’ve concluded that color explains a lot about my experience. Unless the car is nearly full, color will determine, even if it doesn’t exactly clarify, why 9 times out of 10 people will shun a free seat if it means sitting beside me.

Giving them and myself the benefit of the doubt, I can rule out excessive body odor or bad breath; a hateful, intimidating scowl; hip-hop clothing; or a hideous deformity as possible objections to my person. Considering also the cost of an Acela ticket, the fact that I display no visible indications of religious preference and, finally, the numerous external signs of middle-class membership I share with the majority of the passengers, color appears to be a sufficient reason for the behavior I have recorded.

Of course, I’m not registering a complaint about the privilege, conferred upon me by color, to enjoy the luxury of an extra seat to myself. I relish the opportunity to spread out, savor the privacy and quiet and work or gaze at the scenic New England woods and coast. It’s a particularly appealing perk if I compare the train to air travel or any other mode of transportation, besides walking or bicycling, for negotiating the mercilessly congested Northeast Corridor. Still, in the year 2010, with an African-descended, brown president in the White House and a nation confidently asserting its passage into a postracial era, it strikes me as odd to ride beside a vacant seat, just about every time I embark on a three-hour journey each way, from home to work and back.

I admit I look forward to the moment when other passengers, searching for a good seat, or any seat at all on the busiest days, stop anxiously prowling the quiet-car aisle, the moment when they have all settled elsewhere, including the ones who willfully blinded themselves to the open seat beside me or were unconvinced of its availability when they passed by. I savor that precise moment when the train sighs and begins to glide away from Penn or Providence Station, and I’m able to say to myself, with relative assurance, that the vacant place beside me is free, free at last, or at least free until the next station. I can relax, prop open my briefcase or rest papers, snacks or my arm in the unoccupied seat.

But the very pleasing moment of anticipation casts a shadow, because I can’t accept the bounty of an extra seat without remembering why it’s empty, without wondering if its emptiness isn’t something quite sad. And quite dangerous, also, if left unexamined. Posters in the train, the station, the subway warn: if you see something, say something.

John Edgar Wideman is a professor of Africana studies and literary arts at Brown and the author, most recently, of “Briefs.”

Op-Ed Contributor - The Seat Not Taken - NYTimes.com.

The Harlem School of the Arts

From: The Harlem School of the Arts

 communications@harlemschoolofthearts.org

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CLASS SPOTLIGHT African Dance for Parents and Children Saturdays 9-10 am African Dance for Parents and Children gives families the opportunity to exercise and perform together. Students will acquire an understanding of the drums, rhythm and music of a variety of African dances. African Dance caps off with a performance in the Spring dance recital. About HSA The Harlem School of the Arts offers children and adults the freedom to find and develop the artist, student, and citizen within themselves in an environment that emphasizes rigorous training, stimulates creativity and builds self-confidence. Stay in touch. 645 St. Nicholas Avenue New York NY 10030 212.926.4100 harlemschoolofthearts.org Greetings! Here is this week's Spotlight! First Tuesdays of each month are devoted to Dance. Fall registration extended to October 16, 2010. Register Now! Two convenient ways you can register: 1) By telephone. Just call 212.926.4100 x304. 2) By fax. Download the registration form from our website and fax it to      212.491.6913. The Dance Department's 9 faculty members are on site to teach its more than 15 courses to children and adults. Adults may also purchase five-class cards to sample Pilates, Yoga and Salsa & Merengue.  If you want to know more about HSA's dance department, visit www.harlemschoolofthearts.org/dance.php or call Niki Spruill, Dance Program Associate at 212.926.4100 x321. New Classes Added this Fall* This fall, we introduce three new courses of study, Musical Theater Dance, Music Video Dance and Yoga Flow.  Musical Theater Dance (Friday 5:00-6:00 pm, ages 13 and up). Many classically trained performers run into a wall when auditioning. Broadway shows don't just want dancers, they want dancers who can sing. Likewise, casting directors aren't just looking for actors, they are looking for actors who can dance. This class will prepare students for the audition process, including attire, attitude, and techniques. As the weeks progress, students will learn scenes from different shows that can be used for musical theater auditions. Musical Theater Dance is taught by Keisa Parrish. Music Video Dance (Tuesday 5-6 pm, ages 13 and up). This class replicates the dance moves seen in music videos by the performing artist of today. The instructor will present a popluar music video to the class, and then teach the same dance steps performed in the video. Students will be taught intermediate warm-up exercises, stretching techniques, as well as strength building calisthenics. Music Video Dance is taught by Keith Lewis. Yoga Flow (Vinyassa) (Monday 5-6 pm, 18 and up) Originating in ancient India, Yoga typically means 'union' between the mind, body and spirit. It involves the practice of physical postures and poses, along with breath. The ultimate aim of practicing Yoga is to create a balance between the body and the mind and to attain self-enlightenment. Yoga is good for increasing flexibility and balance, relieving stress and relaxing. Yoga Flow is taught by Keisa Parrish. For information on our regular course offerings, click here for the 2010-2011 Course Catalog. *subject to enrollment. "Dancing makes me fearless"; Getting to Know Faculty Member Charlotte Johnson The Harlem School of the Arts is pleased to welcome Charlotte Johnson to the dance faculty. Miss Johnson will be teaching Ballet I, II and III. A 2006 graduate of The Julliard School, where she appeared in works by Paul Taylor and José Limón, Miss Johnson also apprenticed with the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company.  She was featured in both the 2008 Puma commercial and print campaigns. Most recently she appeared in Tim Williams' music video of "Feel Good," which was directed by Robert Adam Mayer and featured Bjorn. Charlotte Johnson is a native of Florida. Her uncle, himself a dancer, discovered her talent at the age of seven. She attended the rigorous Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School, where her combination of academic classes and dance training would often extend well into the evening - a routine familiar to our HSA Prep students. In addition, she would often teach beginner ballet and juggle part-time jobs to help offset the cost of her training. During summer breaks she traveled to New York for apprentice programs at both The Alvin Ailey American Dance School and The Dance Theatre of Harlem. Overcoming financial adversity and a serious injury sustained during a dance class, she was accepted on scholarship to The Juilliard School. Charlotte Johnson was on her way to realizing her childhood dreams! Her personal story, as well as her impressive talent, will inspire students at The Harlem School of the Arts. As she said in an interview with her hometown paper, the St. Petersburg Times, "If you really want it, you gotta do it!" HSA'S ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE NAI-NI CHEN PRESENTS The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company presents Moon Festival in Harlem.  The Moon Festival (held in Mid-Autumn in Asia) is "one of the most important holidays on the calendar, a day rich in myth and history.  For most Asian cultures, the full moon is often associated with family, unity, art and immortality." When:    Friday, October 15 @ 8 pm                Saturday, October 16 @ 8 pm                Sunday, October 17 @ 7 pm Cost:      $15 General Admission                $10 Children (12 and under) and Seniors Where:   The Harlem School of the Arts                645 Saint Nicholas Avenue                New York, New York 10030 Info:       800.650.0246                www.nainichen.org MORE FROM NAI-NI CHEN DANCE COMPANY Long-time HSA Artist-in-Residence Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company now offers modern dance classes to the public and students. Elements of Chinese Dance is taught by master teachers and company members Min Zhou and Wei Yao, Monday through Friday from 10 am to 11:30 am for the public and Tuesdays at 4:30 pm to registered HSA students. For more information visit http://nainichen.org/HSAResidency/HSAChineseDance.php

The Associated Press: High court won't hear appeal from 9/11 families

High court won't hear appeal from 9/11 families

(AP) – 22 hours ago

WASHINGTON — The relatives of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks have lost their bid to get the Supreme Court to rule that New York City must provide a proper burial for material taken from the World Trade Center site because it could contain the ashes of victims.

The justices on Monday said they would not hear an appeal from the families of some of those killed when the 110-story twin towers collapsed nine years ago.

Lower federal courts had dismissed the families' lawsuit against the city, saying it acted responsibly in moving 1.6 million tons of materials from the site in Lower Manhattan to a landfill on Staten Island and then sifting through the material for human remains.

No remains have been found for roughly 1,100 of the 2,752 people killed on Sept. 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center. The families have said the landfill is not a proper burial site for their loved ones. They also argue that 223,000 tons of the material was never sifted for remains.

The Associated Press: High court won't hear appeal from 9/11 families.

New Sugar Hill Building to Combine Children's Museum and Affordable Housing - DNAinfo.com

New Sugar Hill Building to Combine Children's Museum and Affordable Housing
October 2, 2010 4:57pm Updated October 4, 2010

New Sugar Hill Building to Combine Museum and Affordable Housing

By Yepoka Yeebo

DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

MANHATTAN — A Harlem artist, superstar architect and affordable housing group have joined forces to create a new museum and housing project in Harlem.

Artist Faith Ringgold and Broadway Housing Communities have joined forces to create 124 affordable housing units and a Children's Museum of of Art and Storytelling overlooking the Harlem River on 155th street in Sugar Hill.

The building, perched on Coogan’s Bluff and slated to open in 2012, is described as a stack of gray-purple cubes, and will be home to the 18,000-square-foot museum, which will include performance space, a shop, cafe, media center and library.

"I grew up in Sugar Hill in the 1930s and 1940s, it was full of fabulous people," said Ringgold in an interview with DNAinfo.

"To have a children's museum in the same place is a privilege and an honor," said Ringgold, 80, who still owns the apartment she grew up in, down the block from the site of the museum.

"Children make art, see art and experience art," she said. "Children everywhere in the world are wonderful artists."

The artist, who is known for her painted story quilts, has pieces on display at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art. She said she wanted to allow Harlem's children to explore their artistic sides while they "still have it in abundance."

British superstar architect David Adjaye designed the avant garde building. He was picked, according to Ringgold, because he understood the motivation behind a children's museum and affordable housing.

The British architect is known for closed, usually gray façades that hide the abundance of light and space within. He opened his New York office in 2007, and has since designed the Denver Museum of Art.

Broadway Housing bought the land on the northern boundary of Sugar Hill in January 2008, thanks to "generous philanthropic support," the group said.

The group still has a hearing before the City Council for approval on the plans on Oct. 13, and organizers hope to break ground by the end of the month.


Read more: http://www.dnainfo.com/20101002/harlem/new-sugar-hill-building-combine-childrens-museum-affordable-housing#ixzz11QGBy5MI

New Sugar Hill Building to Combine Children's Museum and Affordable Housing - DNAinfo.com.

Join Dewar's at their Free Private Scotch Whisky Tasting Event in New York City

Join Dewar's at their Free Private Scotch Whisky Tasting Event in New York City

When:	9/7/10 at 7:00pm EDT to 10/9/10 at 9:00pm EDT
Where:	Milk Studios 450 West 15th Street
Phone:	(212) 645-2952
Tags:	events eats deals
Source:	Discover Dewars

If you'd like to learn more about Scotch Whisky, then this is your event. Join Dewar's for a free evening of incredible tastings, as you go through some of the company's fine drinks.

• To partake in this fine evening. please select a date here

Harlem School of the Arts - Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company

Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company

Buy Tickets

Friday October 15, 2010 at 8:00pm

Harlem School of the Arts

645 St. Nicholas Ave.
New York, New York 10030

 Get Directions

Infusing the contemporary dance world with Chinese American heritage, the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company combines eastern and western traditions into a beautifully balanced program.

Buy Tickets

 

CNN ousts Rick Sanchez over Jon Stewart rant

CNN ousts Rick Sanchez over Jon Stewart rant
On heels of comments about Jews, 'The Daily Show' anchor

Staff report

Oct 1, 2010, 06:07 PM ET

Updated: Oct 1, 2010, 06:47 PM ET
CNN issued a statement Friday announcing that anchor Rick Sanchez has been let go from the network after giving a radio interview in which he insinuated Jon Stewart was a bigot and CNN was "run by Jews."

“Rick Sanchez is no longer with the company," the statement read. "We thank Rick for his years of service and we wish him well.“

Sanchez let loose on "The Daily Show's" Stewart while appearing on the " Stand Up! with Pete Dominick" SiriusXM radio show Friday morning.

Sanchez, who is Cuban American, said there's racism in the media "not just [from] the right," but also "elite, Northeast establishment liberals" that "deep down, when they look at a guy like me, they see a guy automatically who belongs in the second tier, and not the top tier."

He pointed to a personal experience with an unnamed CEO exec calling him "more as John Quinones," referring to the Hispanic ABC News reporter.

A rep for Stewart had no comment.

An insider says he may discuss this on "The Daily Show" on Monday.


Links referenced within this article

Jon Stewart was a bigot
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3ifd62d5f2cdeae60ef4ac83284881725f


Find this article at:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3ifd62d5f2cdeae60e2956a83083233230

CNN ousts Rick Sanchez over Jon Stewart rant.

Behind the Music - WHCR

• 

• September 30, 2010, 12:56 PM ET

Bloomberg, Murdoch Push for More Skilled Immigrants in U.S.

European Pressphoto Agency

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, left, speaks with News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch during their testimony on immigration policy before the House Judiciary Committee.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and News Corp. Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch are urging Congress to overhaul immigration laws to make it easier for skilled workers to come to the U.S.

Both men are part of a group of business leaders and mayors called Partnership for a New American Economy that seeks to overhaul the immigration system. Bloomberg and Murdoch testified Thursday before the House Judiciary Committee.

Bloomberg said there are about one million high-skill positions in the U.S. that are unfilled because companies can’t find the right workers. “Allowing companies to far more easily fill those jobs would be perhaps the best economic stimulus package Congress could create,” he said.

Murdoch, noting he is an immigrant himself, called current U.S. policy “self-defeating” because the country now attracts successful students from around the world, educates them at top tier universities, and then requires many of them to leave for opportunities in other countries. (News Corp. is a global media company which owns The Wall Street Journal.)

Both men acknowledged lawmakers have been deadlocked for years on immigration, and dismissed suggestions that all of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the country now should be deported.

“It is nonsense,” said Murdoch. “Not only is it impractical, it is cost prohibitive,” he added, noting a study put the cost of such deportations at $285 billion.

Lawmakers are not expected to take any action on immigration before the November election.

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