Rally at City Hall Against Mayoral Control March 5, 2009

Build the opposition to Mayoral Control

of our Public School system!!
Come out in solidarity next Thursday!!

Event: Rally at City Hall
We will not allow the politicians and the corporations to take money away from our children to pay for their greed and corruption!

Organizers:

• The Save Our Schools Coalition
  (members of the UFT, DC-37, Custodial Staff, Parents and Students)
• People Power Coalition.

Time: 4:15pm
Day & Date: hursday March 5th, 2009

Location:
New York City Hall
260 Broadway,
New York, NY 10007

Transportation:
Take the 2 train to Park Place or the 5 Train to City Hall.

Organized by:

• The Save Our Schools Coalition
  (members of the UFT, DC-37, Custodial Staff, Parents and Students) and the
• People Power Coalition.

Contact (For more information):

• Gary Litt at gal1203@gamil.com,
• Teresa Ocasio at 917-553-4694 or lanena44@aol.com
• Larry Sachs at beachlog99@yahoo.com
• Mark Torres at 646-696-8485 or harlem120@msn.com

Flyer: Please download a flyer from the CSH Flyer Depot.

Background:

• Save Our Schools!!!
• Bailout Our Schools Not The Rich!!!!
• Ensure that NYC uses the Stimulus Money in our Public Schools!!!
• Help Parents, Students, Education Workers & our Communities craft a better system!!

Notified by A-kM

State Committeeman Larry Hirsch Petitioning Event for Drop the Rock & the Proposed Termination of the M10 Bus Route

Event: Petitioning Event for Drop the Rock & Proposed Termination of the M10 Bus Route
Sponsor: State Committeeman Larry Hirsch working with
Democratic clubs from throughout the Upper West Side

Note: Weather Permitting

Time: 1-4 p.m.(weather permitting).
Day & Date: Sunday, March 1, 2009
Location: Friends - Tables stationed at 86th, 96th, and 104 Street on Broadway.

Contact: State Committeeman Larry Hirsch at larryhirsch08@gmail.com

Message/Background:
Friends - I am proud to be working with Democratic clubs from throughout the Upper West Side to gather petition signatures urging repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws this Sunday from 1-4 p.m.(weather permitting). For the restrictions set by these laws have mandated unjust prison sentences on those convicted of even minor drug crimes, resulting in huge human and financial cost to our State. There will be tables stationed at 86th, 96th, and 104 Street on Broadway staffed by many of our community's leading activists. Please join us in this important cause. You can either let me know by emailing me at larryhirsch08@gmail.com or just stopping by.

We will also be petitioning to stop many of the drastic transit cuts proposed for our community including the elimination of the No. 10 bus. Look forward to seeing you on Sunday. - Larry

Notified by C. Dunklee, Drop the Rock Coordinator | Correctional Association

Mayoral Control of the New York City Schools

Event: Mayoral Control of the New York City Schools

Sponsors:

• The League of Women Voters of the City of New York and
• Association of the Bar of the City of New York

Time: 6 PM – 8 PM
Day & Date: Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Location:
The Association of the Bar of the City of New York
42 West 44th Street
New York, NY 10036

Register Online:
http://www.nycbar.org/EventsCalendar/show_event.php?eventid=1056

Contact:
Please call the League at 212-725-3541 if you have any questions.

Moderator:
MARCIA KRAMER, Chief Political Correspondent, WCBS-TV

Speakers:

• CHRISTOPHER D. CERF
  Deputy Chancellor, New York City Department of Education
• HON. CATHERINE T. NOLAN
  Member of Assembly, Chair, New York State Assembly's Committee on Education
• DIANE RAVITCH
  Research Professor of Education, New York University
  Author of The Great School Wars, a history of the New York City public schools
• JOE WILLIAMS
  Executive Director of Democrats for Education Reform
  Author of Cheating our Kids

Background:
The New York City school system has undergone a dramatic restructuring in the past few years. A key change has been direct mayoral control of the Department of Education. Supporters suggest that mayoral control is a necessary component in the improvement and reform of the New York City schools, while critics contend that there is a greater need for parental involvement and less centralized control. The legislation authorizing mayoral control expires this year and the State Legislature is considering its reenactment amid a nationwide debate regarding effective strategies for closing the achievement gap in urban schools. This forum will examine the issues and controversies concerning New York City's experience with mayoral control.

Drop the Rock Update

Announcements

• Drop the Rock Advocacy Day
• Drop the Rock Petition
• Drop the Rock Meeting
• Donations to Drop the Rock

Drop the Rock Advocacy Day

Day & Date: Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Deadline: Friday, February 27, 2009

Fee: $20.00 | No one will be turned away for lack of money.

• Individual Sign Up: Fill out the Participant Sign-Up Form and mail it to the Correctional Association of NY or fax it to 212-473-2807.
• Organization Sign Up: Fill out the Organization Bus Form.

Fundraising:
The cost of renting buses is our largest expense in making Advocacy Day happen, and each seat comes to about $20. We ask that you help us make this day possible, by paying $20 for your seat, or raising money to pay for your seat on the bus.

Note:
If you are interested in attending Advocacy Day, and need a letter requesting permission for your P.O., please contact Caitlin and we will be happy to send a letter on your behalf.

Background:
Now is a critical time in the movement to reform New York's incarceration policies. Please sign up today to join Drop the Rock as we urge New York's policymakers to enact repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws this year.

Contact:
Caitlin Dunklee, Drop the Rock Coordinator
Tele: 212-254-5700 x 339
Fax: 212-473-2807
Email: cdunklee@correctionalassociation.org

Web Site:

• Drop the Rock!
  www.droptherock.org
• Correctional Association of New York
  http://www.correctionalassociation.org/

Drop the Rock Petition

Sign the petition to repeal the Rockefeller Drug Laws!

Rockefeller Raffle Petition Challenge
Help Drop the Rock reach its goal of collecting 35,000 petition signatures calling for the repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws.

Please help Drop the Rock reach its goal of collecting 35,000 petition signatures calling for the repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws.

Drop the Rock has 13,000 to go, and here are 3 ways to help!

1. Gather as many petition signatures as possible and bring them to the next Drop the Rock meeting on Wednesday, January 7th at 6PM or send them to the Correctional Association. (Download petition here: 35th Year Petition.)
2. Post the electronic petition on your MySpace and Facebook pages, and add the petition link to your email signature (see below).
3. Forward this message to your friends and family, and encourage them to sign the electronic petition by clicking here:
   http://www.droptherock.org/?page_id=37

For every 50 signatures you collect for repeal, you will receive one ticket for the Rockefeller Raffle, which will be held in February. Prizes will include entertainment tickets, dinner gift certificates, and other gifts.

Drop the Rock Meeting

Meeting: Next Drop the Rock Meeting
Time: 6PM
Day & Date: Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Location:
Correctional Association
2090 Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. | Suite 200,
New York, NY 10027
Tele: 212-254-5700
Fax: 212-473-2807

Donations to Drop the Rock

One of the most effective ways for you to help repeal the Rockefeller Drug Laws is to make a donation to the Correctional Association's Drop the Rock Campaign.

Click here to donate online.

Organization Information

The Drop the Rock Coalition, coordinated by the Public Policy Project of the Correctional Association of New York, is a statewide alliance of individuals and organizations dedicated to repealing New York's Rockefeller Drug Laws.


Some articles for information on "Drop the Rock"

Report Recommends Revising New York’s Drug Laws
By: Jeremy W. Peters
NYTimes.com | February 3, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/04/nyregion/04druglaws.html?_r=2

Trying -- Again -- to Change the Drug Laws
By: David King
GothamGazette.com | February 5, 2009
http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Albany/20090205/204/2820

Rockefeller Laws: An End in Sight
Editorial
NYTimes.com | February 8, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/09/opinion/09mon3.html?_r=4&th&emc=th

Drop the Rock
Editor's Cut
By: Katrina vanden Heuvel
TheNation.com | February 19, 2009
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/edcut/410031

Information obtained from a mailing and the DropTheRock.org web site.

Forum - Stop the Budget Cuts!

Event: FORUM - STOP THE BUDGET CUTS!

Come to a discussion with a panel of NYC activists discussion how we can "Stop the Budget Cuts".

Time: 5:30pm
Day & Date: Saturday, February 28, 2009

Location:
Local 802 Union Hall
322 W 48th St.
(between 8th and 9th Avenues)

Speakers*:

• Marvin Holland: TWU 100*, founder of "Take Back Our Union" movement
• Ajamu Sankofa: Private Health Insurance Must Go Coalition*
• Doug Singsen: CUNY Student Union*
• Kit Wainer: UFT*, Teachers for a Just Contract*

Moderator:
Megan Behrent: UFT*, Teachers for a Just Contract*

More Info? Endorse?
Call 646-452-8662 or email nyciso@gmail.com

Background:
You've heard it before: Tough times are ahead, so as much as it hurts, we're all going to have to make do with less. Major cuts will have to be made to programs and services that were already underfunded to begin with.

President Obama has proposed $3.4 billion in aid to NY for education and Medicaid, but this will only soften the blow. It won't stop the cuts (it won't even affect areas outside of healthcare and education—like the proposed MTA fare hike, for instance).

But in a city like ours—the financial center of the United States—it's painfully obvious that not everyone is tightening their belts. When their stock-market gambling habit nearly left the economy in total collapse, the same politicians who said we need to do with less rushed to pass legislation giving Wall Street a $700 billion handout—no strings attached.

Where's the bailout for us? We should demand NO CUTS!

Join us for a discussion about how these budget cuts are impacting working people, and how we can turn the anger against the Paterson-Bloomberg cuts into action.

Sponsors: (List in formation)

• CUNY Grad Center Student Union,
• Independent Community of Educators,
• International Socialist Organization, New York Collective of Radical Educators,
• Solidarity,
• Take Back Our Union Movement,
• Teachers for a Just Contract, Teachers Unite

*Speakers will not necessarily appear as official representatives

Distributed by Peter Lamphere

ColorOfChange.org is also offering Inauguration Stickers.- First One Free

The ColorOfChange.org is also offering Inauguration Stickers.

These stickers commemorate the day Barack Obama and his family moved into the White House, January 20, 2009. The Sticker is meant to reflect a new chapter in our country's history. The stickers are 4x6 (approximately postcard size).

The first request for a sticker is FREE (including shipping). Additional stickers are priced at the following rates:

• $3+ donation - 5 stickers.
• $10+ donation, - 20 stickers
• $20+ donation - 50 stickers.

Shipping: 5-7 weeks.

Information obtained from the ColorOfChange.com web site.

ColorOfChange.org Petition to Hold the New York Post accountable

For those who feel they would want to respond in many ways and in many places to the New York Post's Ape Murder - Stimulus Cartoon, here is another way.

ColorOfChange.org Petition to Hold the New York Post accountable
http://colorofchange.org/nypost/?id=2245-133616

Is this what the New York Post's Ape Murder Cartoon should have portrayed?

This is an interesting response to the New York Post's Ape Murder - Stimulus Cartoon.

By Lee Camp on the Huffington Post | February 19, 2009

Found out about this little ditty via Blacks4Barack. Blacks4Barack is an interesting blog that you may want to check out and keep up with. The site has been placed in our Blog Roll.

New York Post's Ape - Stimulus Cartoon Protests - Emergency Press Conference & Personal Protests

This cartoon was on "Page Six" yesterday (Wednesday, February 18, 2009).

Cartoon by Sean Delonas/NY Post

If you do not agree with this cartoon, the following are a few suggested actions to demonstrate your disapproval.

The Community can make a difference, if it works collectively. Yes the Community Can!

EMERGENCY PRESS CONFERENCE

Event: Community Leaders and Activists hold a Mass Rally to express their outrage against the New York Post's racist cartoon depicting President Barck Obama as a Monkey being shot and killed by Police.

Time: 12:00 PM (Noon)
Day & Date: Thursday | February 19, 2009

Location:
New York Post Office Building
1211 Avenue of the Americas (6th Ave)
[Between 47th and 48th Streets]
Manhattan

Contact:
Joy Simmons, Councilman Charles Barron's Chief of Staff
718-649-9495 or 917-584-7604

Background:
On Thursday February 19th at 12:00 noon, Councilman Charles Barron, Assembly Woman Inez Barron, Othe r Elected Officials, community organizations, leaders and activists such as the Reverend Al Sharpton, Reverend Herbert Daughtry, Viola Plummer & the December 12th Movement, Charles Barron’s Chief-of-Staff Joy Nayo Simmons, Brenda Walker & Paul Washington of Operation P.O.W.E.R., James McIntosh of C.E.M.O.T.A.P (The Committee to Eliminate Media Offensive to African People), Andre T. Mitchell of MAN-UP and Hip Hop SUV (Stand up and Vote), Larry Holmes of the Bail out the People Movement, The 41st Council District Candidate Tulani Kinard, Civil Rights Attorney Joan Gibbs, The Yoruba Society of Brooklyn, and many others will hold a press conference and rally in front of the Office Building of the New York Post to express their outrage against the Feb 18th cartoon on page 12, depicting President Barack Obama as a monkey being shot and killed by Police Officers. Leaders are calling for a boycott of the New York Post. Information about a boycott planning meeting will be announced at the Rally. Councilman Charles Barron comments, “Shame on the New York Post. This racist ragsheet has hit an all time low. The cartoon is racist, threatens the life of our president, Barack Obama and offends an entire people. We are calling on the Justice Department to investigate the New York Post. Our community, city and country will not accept this.”

PERSONAL PROTESTS

This is a list of personal protests you can consider:

1. Let the post know how you feel. Call 212-930-8000 option 2 and tell them you have a news story in response to the cartoon. They will direct to the email address but you should continue to make their lives miserable.
2. Do not buy "The New York Post" off of news stands.
3. Do not buy "The New York Post" from street vendors.
4. Cancel your "New York Post" subscription if you have one.
5. Do not purchase other publications owned by Fox, i.e., "The Wall Street Journal."
6. Do not watch Fox television networks. (Channel 5 in New York City | Check your Cable Stations regarding Cable Fox News Stations]
7. Do not watch "American Idol."
8. Do not patronize "MySpace."
9. Do not go onto the New York Post owned web sites and Fox web sites after you view them to see all the companies and properties that advertise on these sites and should also be boycotted. The more hits (visits) these web sites receive, generates more advertising dollars for them.

Reported and Submitted by "too many to list" folks and CSH Members.

Dr. Ben's Hearing

Support Dr. Ben.

Come to the hearing!!

Circumstance: Dr. Ben’s Court Hearing
Time: 9:30AM
Day & Date: Thursday, February 19, 2009

Court Location:

Bronx Supreme Court
851 Grand Concourse, Room 408
(Near 161st Street)Bronx, NY

Background: Competency Hearing. The nursing home psychologist has said Dr. Ben is competent has control of his mental abilities. This will also determine his guardianship

Reported by Agnes Johnson

Third Great Harlem Debate: Should the State Return the Law License of Attorney Alton Maddox, Yes or Yes?

Event: Third Great Harlem Debate: Should the State Return the Law License of Attorney Alton Maddox, Yes or Yes?

Sponsor: CEMOTAP
Moderator: Dr James C. McIntosh
Admission: Free
Time: 3:00 PM
Date & Date: Sunday, February 15, 2009

Location:
Salem United Methodist Church
211 West 129th Street
Village of Harlem, New York

Headliner: Dr. Joy DeGruy (FKA) Leary

Participants:

• Larry Hamm
• Pam Africa
• Professor Leonard Jeffries
• Jack Felder
• Reverend Joe Bragg
• Betty Dopson
• Attorney Roger Wareham
• Broadcaster Gil Noble

Background:
The Third Great Harlem Debate headlining Dr. Joy DeGruy (FKA) Leary will feature a critical examination of the roles that the New York State governor, the Attorney general, and the New York Bar Association have played in the denial of the return of the law license of Atty. Alton Maddox. The debate will have the unusual format of both sides agreeing that the time for Maddox's return to the courtroom is long overdue. That agreement is reflected in the title of the debate, Should the State Return the Law License of Attorney Alton Maddox, Yes or Yes?"

Dr. McIntosh, the moderator of the debate says the speakers "will provide personal insight into the underlying reason for Maddox's ,historic 20 year suspension"

Although Maddox has reportedly, satisfied all of the written conditions in the suspension order, he still remains suspended with no hint of a resolution date. Dr. Joy DeGruy, social scientist, has included in her research studies of society's historic role in the destruction of the lives and careers of Black men and women who were thought to be dangers to entrenched systems of Black exploitation. She will integrate the debaters information with her personal analysis and provide a way forward for the community to assert itself into a winning posture to restore Atty. Maddox to his earned position in his community.

Contact: Dr James C. McIntosh at 347 531-8936 for additional information

From: Press Release | February 7, 2009 | Molefi A.A. Tayari

Dr. Ben Receives a Congressional Award at Co-op City Black History Event.

With 400 to 500 people in attendance, Dr. Yosef A. Ben-Jochannan (known lovingly as Dr. Ben), received a Congressional Award from
Congressman Joseph Crowley (Democrat - US House Representative NY 7th District) at the 7th Congressional District Honors Black History Month 2009 Event on Monday, February 9, 2009 at Co-op City in the Bronx. The civil rights leader Congressman Emanuel Cleaver II served as the keynote speaker. Dr. Ben was recognized for his many contributions.

Brother Onaje Allan Gumbs suggested the Award for Dr. Ben during a phone call to Congressman Joseph Crowley. Paul Dominique, who works in Congressman Crowley's office was also helpful in facilitating Dr. Ben's Award. Mr. Dominique accompanied Dr. Ben to parts of Africa on 2 trips.

Brother Gumbs drove Dr. Ben from the nursing home in which he now resides to the Award ceremony in Co-op City and sat with him the entire evening.

Reported by Agnes Johnson

Selling-Out our Black Planet | Re: Apollo Amateur Night in NYC

Submitted by Agnes Johnson
[Originally Posted December 14th, 2008 on Black Planet]

I don't know whether to scream or cry but I certainly will not make accommodations and accept what I witnessed at Apollo Amateur Night this past Wednesday. That evening's show made the reality of Harlem's sale ever more painful.

What do you sell after you have sold the land, sold the culture, sold the history? Now do you sell the children and their options for their future? We are now selling the very stage and platform that was made for US to rise from. I know the memory of the Apollo hasn't been erased yet because it is still used in the promo for the theater but it was a lie that night. All the great black talent toughed it out before an audience that knew Black Greatness since they all lived in a society that repeatedly gave no value to their talent and their history. It was not about cronyism. It was not about filling the theatre with your family members. If you had the talent you were recognized.

On December Wednesday 2008, I sat in an audience, very small but mostly of white Europeans and Asian faces and a few black. Most of the black faces in the audience were the ushers. I had come to support a young brother who came to do Spoken Word as a conscious hip hop performer. As the show began, it had the feeling of an auction block. Something seemed so out of place. The audience had to first be guided through how to be an audience but not just any audience, an audience of the Apollo. Okay, this is what you must do when you give away your culture. Then the show began.

A young black girl took the stage and you know being 1st up has its pressures. She proved that she belonged on that stage. Then a second melanin sister took the stage and she sang. I mean she "SANG". And finally comes a little white girl and she did an imitation of Alicia Keys with very little talent. The choice then for the winners of the Youth was among these 3 girls. The audience was to choose. Guess who won and went on to the next level and guess who went home? What also is part of the picture is the fact that the 3rd little girl had the front of the house packed with her family from Westchester. I was transported back to 1950.

I know the Apollo has to deal with the audience that comes in but what I was thinking was what must be going on in the heads of the two black girls who had the talent but couldn't make it past the white audience. Here they could not feel the embrace of their community, a validation of their talent because that had been sold. Imagine if our great performers of the past had to transport their families to the Apollo to propel them to a win.

The show continued and as Black Men took to the stage it became unbearable to sit still while White Men booed them. Yes, the audience had been educated that they can do that here now. As the young man, we came to support, took to the stage, he touched the stump of the tree and began. A group of white boys began to boo. The young man stayed on course with his words in testiment to the poetry of Tupac and the glow of Stevie. A white man near us with his arm around a Black girl started to boo, but had his head buried down low as if to shield himself from exposure. At that point I had to jump up and say "Hell No". My love of my people in and out of Harlem could not just sit and let Europeans come into Harlem and be so audacious and I could not let the Apollo forget what the Apollo stood for.

I did stop the show and I did stand and scream in the aisle that "This is not the Apollo, this is America 1950." "We have been sold out for the price of a ticket". The Black security and ushers who worked for the theater did surround me and remove me from the theater but I wanted to go willingly because I had enough. The managers told me this is a different day. Things are a-changin they said while on the stage the MC told the crowd I was just some drunk lady from the neighborhood. If WE don't keep the Apollo and hold it to our hearts then this is what you get. Some of the young who spoke to me said many of them don't know the history and so that is why. But I don't buy it. If the Japanese and Scandinavians come knowing what the Apollo stands for then WE have to stop holding on to our ignorance like it is a badge of protection.

The Apollo must recognize what is happening and must make plans for addressing this. When the chips are down do we Sell Out? Our elders taught us to be community in times of strife. Harmony.. What came back to me from the MC to many of the uneducated workers "I got mine, you get yours...change is a comin". I saw who was losing there. Who pays if we accommodate or sleep now? Are we like a crackhead mother who has run out of chips so she puts her baby on the table? So until the Apollo theater can address this, I call on all Black and Brown talent to withhold your talent from that stage. Walk away and do not ask for recognition from an audience that cannot connect with your talent but can find their feet to stand for an imitation of you. Tell the Apollo to reclaim itself.

NYS Mayoral Control Hearings (Manhattan) 2/6/09: S.E.E.D.S. Testimony

Submitted by A-kM

The attached testimony was placed into the record (along with my transcripted extemporaneous presentation). As in the Queens hearings, Bloomberg's mayoral control "support" and/or "tweak" forces were out in large numbers and Klein, Wolcott & Co. spoke and responded for the first 2.5 hours. A significant part of Bloombergs forces are Black Charter School Parents & students. This was just like during the term limit hearings. At most, they represent about 5% of the Black & Latina/o public school student population. Campaign for Better Schools, Geoff Canada and Hazel Dukes, had "Democracy Academy" youth in tow, as they gave long and strong support to "keeping" or to "tweaking". However, one especially critical thinking Democ. Acad. student countered his schoolmates with convincing testimony in opposition to mayoral control. Yesterday the supporters of MC were about 95% of the vocal, organized presence. Many in opposition were later arriving and never got in. Those of us in opposition to MC must have a much larger / stronger showing in the hearings in the Bronx (3/13, Lehman College) and Brooklyn (3/20, NYC Tech); and beyond. Therefore our day-to-day ORGANIZING must improve.

There are huge numbers of our students and Black and Latina/o parents whose interests and voices must be placed "on centerstage". We have work to do with parents, students and legislators.

We have two "seminars" on opposition to mayoral control in Albany in 1 week, Saturday, 2/14. We need both "newer" and veteran activist parents and students joining us on that lobbying effort. More importantly, as we build / expand our two coalitions in opposition to Mayoral Control to 100 groups, we must also engage and recruit prospective parents, students, and community folk to join us in getting organized.

Download Testimony Here!

Welcome to the Coalition to Save Harlem Temporary Blog Site!

Hello Village of Harlem!

This is the temporary web stop for the Coalition to Save Harlem (CSH) until our web site is completed.

We hope you will come by to get information about the Community and CSH.