New York Amsterdam News September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

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Vol. 117 No. 36 | September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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REMEMBERING THE GODFATHER OF SOCA HOW GRANVILLE STRAKER BUILT MORE THAN A RECORD LABEL (See story on page 6)

New York’s Opportunity to Boost Community Ownership Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

New York City’s racial equity plan finally arrives as officials hope it helps closes historical gaps

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Mayor Zohran Mamdani announces the appointment of nationally recognized organizer and racial justice strategist Afua Atta-Mensah as Chief Equity Officer and Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Equity & Racial Justice (MOERJ). 170 E 121st, Manhattan. Thursday, January 15, 2026. (Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff The city finally released its legally-mandated racial equity plan on Sept. 1, which will directly shape how the preliminary and executive budgets invest in Black New Yorkers to eliminate disparities and wealth gaps historically created by systemic racism. This follows a court ruling last week against the city over violating the charter by delaying the inaugural report, which advocates expected a year-and-a-half ago. Mayor Zohran Mamdani successfully promised a preliminary plan within his first 100 days, delivering in the 11th hour this past April. To oversee the report, he enlisted former Urban Justice Center organizer Afua Atta-Mensah to serve as the city’s chief equity officer and commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Equity & Racial Justice (MOEJ). But the court ruling found Mamdani broke the law despite making good on his word — the preliminary plan was mandated by Jan. 16 so it could dictate this year’s budget. To be clear, the report specifically exists as a direct blueprint for how the city disburses money across agencies to address racial disparities. While the executive budget passed nearly four months ago, the racial equity plan will play a major role in dictating the often overlooked “November Plan,” which occurs in the middle of each fiscal year.

“Whether it means narrowing disparities in unemployment, reducing Black maternal mortality or making sure every child has access to a great public education, this is what it looks like to govern with equity in mind.” —New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani A plan for Black New Yorkers Better outcomes for Black New Yorkers were featured prominently in the 400plus page final plan, addressing issues like healthcare, education and social services. It also acknowledged racism in the city’s history, particularly with Wall Street’s involvement in the transatlantic slave trade. The first-of-its-kind report examined 45 agencies in total. “These commitments are specific, measurable, and public, and New Yorkers should hold us accountable for delivering on them,” said Mamdani in a statement.

“Whether it means narrowing disparities in unemployment, reducing Black maternal mortality or making sure every child has access to a great public education, this is what it looks like to govern with equity in mind.” In a press call shortly before the plan’s public release, Atta-Mensah and deputy mayor Julie Su broke down the city’s eight broad racial equity goals ranging from health and transportation to education and justice system contact. They mentioned specifics like preventing Black pregnanSee RACIAL EQUITY on page 36

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 3

Fresh Air Fund is calling more kids in NYC to get outside By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff New York City has skyscrapers, sidewalks, and pavement –– but it also has parks, shorelines, and hiking trails, and the Fresh Air Fund wants people to know that it offers young New Yorkers the chance to swim, hike, camp, and explore city green spaces –– free of charge. “We don’t want kids to think the only way to experience the outdoors is to get on a bus and travel two hours north, and come to one of our camps,” said Lisa Gitelson, CEO of the Fresh Air Fund. “We still want kids to do that, but during the school year, we’re exposing kids to the outdoors of New York City. The nonprofit hosts free outdoor activities in summer and leadership programs throughout the school year for low-income kids. Gitelson noted that many city children don’t get regular chances to enjoy outdoor locations. “We know that there is inequitable access presently, and to address this, we run several programs… and all of these incorporate the outdoors.” But there’s a history behind it all. The Fund began in 1877 during a tuberculosis outbreak, when a church in Pennsylvania arranged for city children to stay on farms because fresh air was believed to improve their health. “So, they started a program where kids from the city were sent to visit farms in

Young girl learns archery at Fresh Air Fund. (Courtesy of Fresh Air Fund)

rural Pennsylvania with the idea that getting fresh air would be healthy for them,” Gitelson said. That original idea has expanded to a program that now operates six sleepaway

camps: five at the more than 2,000-acre Sharpe Reservation in Fishkill, NY, and Camp Junior in Harriman State Park. Fresh Air Fund campers swim, hike, make art, visit a farm, and take overnight trips. Gitel-

son said every camper receives daily swim lessons and free-swim time. According to the organization’s 2024 report, “The Fresh Air Fund: A Force of Nature,” research shows that spending time in nature helps improve cognitive skills, social and emotional well-being, and mental health. It warns that children with limited access to the outdoors may face disadvantages. “There’s a significant amount of information out there about depression, anxiety, mental health, if you don’t have regular access and exposure to the outdoors,” Gitelson said. The Fresh Air Fund’s summer camp is open to kids ages 8 to 15 who live and go to school in the five boroughs and who qualify by income. 16- and 17-year-olds can apply to take part in the Fund’s leadership-oriented counselor-in-training program. Gitelson said eligibility is easiest to understand this way: “If your family receives food assistance, you’re eligible for our programs.” Gitelson said the Fresh Air Fund doesn’t have long-term data results, but general surveys of young people and parents before and after they attended one of their camps found that kids noticed they had a better appreciation for nature, improved leadership skills, a greater willingness to try new things, and an increased ability to make friends and build community. School-year registration for the Fresh Air Fund is now open online at freshair.org, and summer registration begins Dec. 1.

NYC’s consumer protection agency teams up with Manhattan D.A. to fight white collar crime By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff The city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection commissioner Samuel A.A. Levine and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg are hoping a newly formed partnership between them will provide protections for the working class against white collar criminal behavior. On Aug. 20, they announced a memorandum of understanding [MOU] to pool information and data towards both worker and consumer protection investigations. This agreement arises as blue collar workers feel the squeeze, both during deposit and withdrawal of their funds. “The top-line message is that if you are experiencing an issue, just report it to government and we will get it to the right place,” said Bragg in a phone interview. “If it’s an administrative matter or a civil matter, we will send it to DCWP and if it’s something that warrants criminal inquiry, they will send it to us. So we want to take the onus off the public.”

NYPD works with district attorneys’ offices. Bragg and Levine believe the partnership will create “one door” to the proper agency and prevent New Yorkers from getting the runaround when seeking support regarding wage theft or fraud. The DCWP, formerly the Department of Consumer Affairs, is often the first point of contact for worker and consumer complaints. The agency has crusaded against “junk fees” since Mayor Zohran Mamdani appointed Levine this year, as well as bolster delivery worker protections. While the mayor’s focus on affordability largely centers around how much people are paying, there is also the matter of people getting paid. Levine pointed specifically to how aggressive federal immigration enforcement enables some employers (left) Mayor Zohran Mamdani and DCWP commissioner Samuel A.A. Levine. (Ed Reed/ to silence non-citizen employees from Mayoral Photography Office) (right) Manhattan D.A. Alvin Bragg. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) speaking out against labor violations. Investigations into consumer and result. “People in New York work famously worker affairs often happen in silos. The MOU cuts through this siloed ap- hard,” said Levine. “They deserve to get Levine, who previously served in FTC’s proach and allows confidential infor- paid for it. Both the D.A. and I observed Bureau of Consumer Protection, says it mation about predatory white-collar when we were talking in the context of is a frequent issue plaguing all levels of practices to move between city enforce- signing this MOU is how many immigrant government, and the public suffers as a ment and prosecutors, not unlike how the See WHITE COLLAR CRIME on page 25

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National

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Who represents Black Florida? The answer just got complicated By JOSEPH WILLIAMS Word in Black Florida politics has always had its share of strange reflections. But after primary elections in the Sunshine State this month, Black voters looking into the state’s political mirror may struggle to recognize what they see. A Black Republican who enthusiastically carries President Donald Trump’s MAGA banner — but who has a complicated personal history — could become the first Black governor of this bright-red state. Meanwhile, an influential white Democratic congresswoman, displaced after Florida lawmakers erased her district, won the party’s nomination to run in a heavily Black district, one that has sent Black representatives to Washington for more than three decades. And a Black progressive state legislator whose Senate campaign was dismissed as underfunded — and whose wardrobe was mocked by the wife of her vastly better-funded opponent — pulled off one of the biggest Democratic upsets of the 2026 primary season. Welcome to Florida in 2026, where race, representation and political power seem to have been reflected in a funhouse mirror: everything is recognizable, but almost nothing looks quite the way you expect. Donalds and Black Voters Start with Rep. Byron Donalds, who has served two terms in Congress and mostly distinguished himself as a staunch Trump supporter. The 47-year-old congressman from Naples easily won the Republican nomination for governor on Aug. 18, taking nearly 48% of the vote in a crowded field. If he wins in November, Donalds would smash Florida’s biggest color barrier — a milestone in a state where Black people make up roughly 17% of the population. But Donalds isn’t exactly running an Obama-style, hope-and-change, history-making campaign. He is one of President Donald Trump’s most loyal allies, backed by the president and firmly aligned with the MAGA movement. That presents an unusual contradiction for Black Floridians: the man who could cross one of the state’s most durable color lines represents a political movement that most Black

(L to R) Rep. Byron Donalds, Fla. State Rep. Angie Nixon, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. (Wikimedia Commons; Florida State House photo)

voters have consistently rejected. The divide isn’t subtle. Nationally, 83% of Black voters rejected Trump and backed former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024, according to Pew Research Center, while a relatively paltry 15% voted for the president. A 2024 Florida State University analysis found that 7 in 10 of Black registered voters in Florida were Democrats, compared with just 5% who were Republicans. Donalds’ history-making potential, in other words, doesn’t automatically translate into racial solidarity. MAGA, With Baggage Then there is his history. As his profile has risen, old episodes have trailed his campaign like tin cans tied to the back of a wedding limousine. Originally from New York City, Donalds was arrested for marijuana possession as an 18-year-old college student. He completed a diversion program, and the charge was dismissed. But earlier this year, Donalds acknowledged that the story was more complicated than the version he had previously told: he was a small-time marijuana dealer, not just a user. Three years later, Donalds was arrested on a felony charge stemming from what he has described as a scheme involving a bad check. He pleaded no contest, served probation, and the case was later expunged. Donalds has presented those years as part of a redemption story. But his position on the campaign trail raises questions about inconsistencies.

In Congress, Donalds has backed legislation that would crack down on young offenders in Washington, D.C. That has prompted questions about whether a Donalds administration in Tallahassee would offer a second chance to other young Black men caught making the kinds of mistakes he made. If Donalds represents one complicated version of Black political power statewide, the Democratic primary in South Florida offers another. Gerrymander Fallout Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz — a longtime congress member, the former Democratic National Committee chair and one of Florida’s best-known Democrats — found herself politically homeless after Republicans redrew the state’s congressional map. Democratic Congressional candidate Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) speaks with voter Sandra Woodburn as she campaigns outside of the Kings Point Clubhouse polling station in Tamarac, Florida. Wasserman Schultz is running in Florida’s 20th Congressional District, an area that is home to a large Black population that was negatively affected by a Republican gerrymander. Instead of staying in her newly Republican-leaning home district, Wasserman Schultz, who is white, jumped into the neighboring 20th Congressional District. It’s heavily Black territory that Black members of Congress have represented since 1992.

Her primary opponents — former Broward County Mayor Dale Holness, activist Elijah Manley, former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and rapper and community activist Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell — were all Black. The racial implications were impossible to ignore: a white woman chose to run in a majority Black district because it would be easier for her to win. The optics were so distasteful that Black political leaders even discussed consolidating behind one candidate to avoid splitting the vote and handing the nomination to Wasserman Schultz. They never managed to do it. Wasserman Schultz won. Throughout the campaign, she played up her seniority, experience, and her ability to deliver for Broward County; that, she said, matters more than the race of the person occupying the seat. But opponents countered that representation itself matters — particularly after Republican mapmakers had already diminished Black political power everywhere else in the state. Both arguments collided in a district created by a gerrymander neither side asked for. Nixon’s the One Then Angie Nixon flipped the mirror again. The Jacksonville state representative, plain-spoken and casually dressed in signature pink clothes and sneakers, entered Florida’s Democratic Senate primary against retired Army Lt. Col. Alex Vindman as the clear financial underdog.

Vindman raised roughly $16 million, according to reporting by The Wall Street Journal. Nixon raised less than $1 million. Money alone said she should lose. She won instead. Along the way came an episode that seemed almost custom-designed to illuminate the class, race, and gender dynamics surrounding Black women in politics. Vindman’s wife, Rachel, posted a profane attack that did not name Nixon but appeared aimed at her and included an aside telling her to buy “professional clothes” — including shoes. Rachel Vindman later deleted the post and apologized. Nixon, who frequently campaigned in sneakers, responded by posting a picture of high-heeled sandals and asking: “Are these ok?” Then voters gave their answer. Nixon defeated Vindman despite being dramatically outspent, handing Florida’s progressive wing an improbable victory and earning the right to face Republican Sen. Ashley Moody in November. None of these races means Black voters suddenly think alike. Quite the opposite: they demonstrate how inadequate the old shorthand about race and representation has become. A Black candidate can represent policies most Black voters oppose. A white politician can win the support of thousands of Black voters despite legitimate questions about Black political representation. And a Black woman without establishment money can defeat a candidate whose campaign possessed nearly every traditional advantage. Meanwhile, Florida itself has moved sharply right. Republicans now hold more than a 1.5 millionvoter registration advantage over Democrats, a remarkable reversal from 2020, when Democrats still held the edge. That makes what happened in the primary more than a collection of intriguing political stories. It is a snapshot of Black political power at a moment when the familiar markers — Democrat and Republican, representation and ideology, money and electability — don’t line up as neatly as they once did. Florida’s political mirror isn’t necessarily lying. But depending on where Black voters stand, the reflection can look very different.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Spoken word artist Lyrical Faith, ready for her debut album, says she wants to inspire

Black

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 5

THE URBAN AGENDA

By David R. Jones, Esq

New York’s Opportunity to Boost Community Ownership

New Yorker

Wherever in New York City you live, I bet you can picture an apartment building that fits one of these two descriptions: a multi-family rental property that has passed from absentee landlord to absentee landlord, falling deeper into disrepair as its tenants suffer through cold winters, broken elevators, and leaky roofs; or, a once-affordable development where the subsidies expired and the building was sold to a new landlord as market-rate rentals, only for a great many long-term tenants to be displaced. For decades, New York City has allowed these twin problems of distressed property flipping and expiring affordability to fester—in Harlem, in Washington Heights, and across communities of color throughout this city. It is time for New York City’s elected leaders to stand up and proclaim: enough! Next week, on September 9th, the City Council will hold a hearing on a bill that would address these twin problems and give reputable operators a chance to intervene.

Lyrical Faith is a spoken word artist, cultural curator, and activist from the Bronx who speaks about social justice issues. She hopes to release her debut album in September. (Photo courtesy of Lyrical Faith )

By JASON PONTEROTTO Special to the AmNews At a period when many are facing hardships both at the local level and globally, Lyrical Faith, an award-winning spoken word artist and activist, says poetry as art can play an important part in empowering communities and serve as a revolutionary act of resistance. “Spoken word is not only an educational tool that’s used to extend our voices, but it becomes this revolutionary act in and of itself by having the ability to stand up in front of people to share these thoughts that are edgy, that are political, that are vulnerable,” Faith said. Growing up in the Bronx and Harlem, Faith, 32, whose real name is Imani Wallace, has carried her love of spoken word to major heights, becoming a three-time Women of the World Poetry Slam finalist and having performed across the globe. She is now a Ph.D. candidate in Social Justice Education at the University of Massachusetts and is hoping to release her debut spoken word album titled “Lyrical Analysis: The Evidence of Things Unseen” in September. She is a co-founder of Harlem Bomb Shelter, the longest-running spoken word showcase in Harlem, and spends her time mentoring young artists. “I like to say I fire lyrical shots in the air and watch and watch them land into souls to see how their minds unfold,” Faith said. ”I have the opportunity to use words to

impact people and inspire people and relate to people and help them feel seen.” Raised on Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, known worldwide as the birthplace of hip hop, Faith was always influenced by the stories of her neighborhood and rap music, having an appreciation for the lyricism of artists like Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. “It made me grow more into myself and more into my confidence,” Faith said about hip hop and rap music and culture. Understanding how community and activism go together, Faith has always been involved in community service organizations, going back to after-school programs growing up. As a teenager, she got involved in groups like Urban Word NYC, which is responsible for the National Youth Poet Laureate award, and the Phoenix Sorority with Minisink Townhouse in Harlem. She attended Syracuse University, further honing her skills, and says mentorship from figures like poet Cedric Bolton was crucial to her. She has now been doing spoken word professionally for a decade. Like all artists, Faith deals with detractors and people questioning “what is your real job?” when they hear that she is a spoken word artist. “It’s definitely pretty degrading how artists battle with all of this opposition and resistance to putting something beautiful into the world,” Faith said. However, it is her spirituality and faith, as well as being See BNY on page 25

The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, or COPA, is sponsored by Councilmember Sandy Nurse of East New York, Brownsville, and Bushwick, a well-known champion for tenants and Community Land Trusts. Modelled on similar bills in San Francisco, San Diego, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., New York City’s COPA would give a list of government-vetted qualified entities—including community-based nonprofit affordable housing developers, as well as a great many minority- and women-owned businesses— the first chance to buy troubled properties when they come up for sale. Funding for such acquisitions can come from already-existing New York City programs, like Neighborhood Pillars, a de Blasio-era effort that tenant and community organizations fought to revive in the 2025 budget. Once the new owners purchase a building through COPA, they would be eligible for grants, low-interest loans, and technical assistance from the city to bring the buildings up to code and preserve them as affordable rentals or limited-equity cooperatives. This law could help pave the pathway to social housing in New York, turning perennially troubled rentals into safe, affordable homes for long-term New Yorkers and new immigrants alike. Contrary to some critics’ allegations, COPA would not affect small homeowners or parents passing properties on to their children. The bill explicitly excludes owner-occupied buildings with less than six apartments, like the one my parents owned and I grew up in, and it does not cover transfers between family

members, as when a parent passes a property on to their child. It also includes a carve out for sales that need to happen quickly in order for owners to avoid financial hardship. The bill only applies to properties in the greatest distress and those with expiring affordability arrangements, such as buildings built with Low-Income Housing Tax Credits that—without further intervention—expire after a period of time. COPA puts a circuit breaker into a real estate system which has long enabled crumbling buildings to change hands behind anonymous Limited Liability Corporations and has allowed once-affordable buildings to surge to sky-high market rates. If readers are feeling a bit of déjà vu, that sensation is justified. Last year the City Council did, in fact, pass COPA alongside a slew of other housing bills, but, in a frenzy of largely destructive final actions, Mayor Adams vetoed COPA on his way out the door. Now the City Council has a chance to bring the bill back to the floor and send it to Mayor Mamdani, who has signaled his support for the legislation by including it in his administration’s housing plan, Block By Block. If the Council passes COPA and the mayor signs it into law, the effects could be transformative for New York City. If you have lived in your neighborhood for some years, you can readily envision the impact a bill like COPA could have made if it were in place years ago. Take a moment to imagine all the buildings in your neighborhood that have fallen into disrepair and been subject to frequent flipping, and the buildings where affordability protections were allowed to lapse. Remember all the people who used to live there but were since displaced by either formal evictions, informal harassment, or the endless grind of substandard conditions. Now picture a world where we passed legislation like COPA many years back. How many of those buildings would now be thriving and affordable? How many of those long-lost neighbors might still be vibrant parts of your community? It may be too late to bring them all back home, but this year the City Council has a chance to make sure this story does not keep repeating into the future. Instead of allowing buildings to flip or rents to surge, New York can preserve affordability and promote community ownership. Our communities cannot afford to let this opportunity slip away again. Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the New York Daily News.

David R. Jones, Esq., is President and CEO of the Community Service Society (CSS), New York’s leading advocate for low-income New Yorkers for more than 175 years. The views expressed in this column are solely those of the author. The Urban Agenda is available on the CSS website at www.cssny.org

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Dreaming Soca: Why Granville Straker was a Brooklyn music legend and a connection to home for so many

Founder of Straker’s Records turned his record shop into one of the most powerful names in Caribbean music. (All images courtesy the Straker Family)

By TAAYOO MURRAY Special to the AmNews It could be 3 or 4 in the morning in Brooklyn, and Granville Straker was still listening. His daughters, Suzanne and Laverne, sometimes accompanied their father to recording sessions, where the hours stretched long past the point when the girls wanted anything more than to go home. Straker, who did not play an instrument himself, would listen closely as a track played back, directing adjustments to the bass or other elements of the recording and working alongside arranger Frankie McIntosh until the music sounded right. Meanwhile, his daughters might sneak toward the microphones, sing and dance, and generally do what bored children do during an adult’s seemingly endless workday.

Their father was having none of it. “Time is money,” Laverne Straker remembers him admonishing them. At the time, his children could not have fully understood what was happening during those long nights. Their father was making records. Decades later, those recordings are also an archive of Caribbean music, and part of the legacy of a business owner whose work helped carry the sounds of the region far beyond its shores. Granville Straker, founder of Straker’s Records, died August 27 at age 86. During a career spanning decades, the St. Vincent-born entrepreneur became an influential force in calypso and soca, working with artists including the Mighty Sparrow, Winston “Shadow” Bailey, and a young Machel Montano. However, to understand Straker’s legacy only through the records he produced is to miss the breadth of what he built. He was a retailer, distributor, promoter, talent scout, investor, and entrepreneur. From Brooklyn, Straker helped create an ecosystem through which Caribbean artists could find audiences while Caribbean immigrants could remain connected to home. His son Allan Straker, 43, believes that larger role developed organically. His father understood the business of music, Allan said, but it became more than a business. He was passionate about the music and the people who created it, and believed Caribbean music should travel beyond the islands. Still, Allan doesn’t imagine his father thinking of himself as a See story on next page

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 7

Granville Straker at his Brooklyn record store.

Searchlight.vc, a St. Vincentian news website. “Surely we can expect that during the historical figure. 2027 celebrations of 50 years since the in“He was more focused on doing the work troduction of June/July Vincy Mas [St. than on creating a monument to himself,” Vincent and the Grenadines national carhe said. nival], Granville Straker would be among Much of that work centered around those honoured.” Straker’s Records. Through the next few years after its beginning in 1971, the busi- A connection to home ness grew from a single record store to For Caribbean immigrants establishseveral across Brooklyn and to a label that ing lives in New York, migration did not centered West Indian artists, eventually re- mean abandoning the culture they had left leasing more than 600 albums. By 1978, pi- behind. “They still wanted the food, lananist Frankie McIntosh, who is recognized guage, celebrations, and music of home,” as a calypso legend himself, joined Straker said daughter Suzanne Straker Greenwichas the label’s musical director, creating ar- Hewitt, 63. rangements for multiple artists and leadThe record shop became one of the ing the in-studio band, the Equitables. places where those worlds met. CustomThe artists flowed with melodies unique ers came not only to purchase music but to the Caribbean experience. Calypso to listen and socialize. Straker’s children Rose, Scorcher, the Mighty Duke, the Ron worked there, too. Suzanne remembers Berridge Orchestra, Chalkdust, King Short dancing with customers while helping sell Shirt, and Winston Soso were just a few of records. When their father traveled, the the names that were linked to the Strak- children sometimes found another use for er label. the shop. “Granville Straker will long be remem“We would close down the shop and bered for his pivotal role, in conjunction dance like a bunch of knuckleheads,” Lawith Frankie McIntosh[,] which has placed verne recalled. musical productions of the highest qualThey knew better than to do it when ity on the Caribbean and internation- their strict father was there. al markets,” said an editorial written on Straker’s commitment to the CaribContinued from previous page

bean community extended beyond his own business. Suzanne remembers her father deliberately patronizing other West Indian establishments and those business owners, in turn, supporting his. Even family meals became part of that ecosystem. Straker wasn’t a cook, his children agreed, but he loved feeding them. Whether it was breakfast at a bakery, pizza, Junior’s, or IHOP, Laverne remembers food as one of the ways her father brought his family together. Suzanne remembers something else embedded in those outings: her father consciously choosing where he spent his money. That entrepreneurial instinct also shaped his relationships with artists. Suzanne remembers her father possessing an uncanny ear for talent. Artists regularly brought him music, and his interest went beyond whether someone simply had a good voice. He listened for the artist’s personality, the songs, and what that performer could become. He also put his own money behind his judgment. Straker’s work eventually stretched beyond making and selling records to promoting concerts and bringing Caribbean music to places where it could reach larger audiences. His children remember him as

intensely focused and seemingly tireless. “He did not stop,” Laverne said. That relentless work ethic could obscure another side of him. His children describe a man who was quiet and unassuming, despite the stature he acquired. Laverne remembers traveling with her father in the Caribbean and watching people become excited when he arrived. As a child, she saw important people and official cars coming to meet him and gradually understood that others regarded her father differently than she did. Her reaction was much simpler: “Oh, it’s just Dad.” That distinction between the public Granville Straker and the private one is also part of how his children want him remembered. People tend to put him into a single box, Suzanne said, describing him simply as a producer. She sees something much larger: a man who scouted talent, financed projects, worked on album covers and photography, promoted artists, invested in real estate, and built businesses. Others would later operate on a larger scale, she said, but they had a roadmap. Her father helped provide it. Now, the music carries a different meaning for each of his children. For Laverne, listening produces a visceral See STRAKER on page 27

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Culture and capital: Black elected officials engage young entrepreneurs on how to get government contracts

From left to right: The Policy & Culture podcast co-founder Dan Lloyd, Assemblymember Chantel Jackson, Council Member Kevin Riley, youth advocate Joshua Dieudonne, Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, Assemblymember Clyde Vanel, and Policy & Culture podcast co-founder Andrew (Drew) Ayodeji at the Culture and Capital event at Ivory On Park in Brooklyn on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (Ariama C. Long photos)

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff A group of elected officials joined the Culture and Capital event in Brooklyn last week to help young entrepreneurs and small business owners figure out the best ways to land city and state government contracts. “These are doors that we were never privy to and we have to open them up,” said Council Member Kevin Riley, who sponsors the Minority Youth-owned Business Enterprise (MYBE) bill. The MYBE bill would require the city’s small business department to establish a youth entrepreneurship program for individuals between the ages of 18 and 30. The program would provide these owners with resources to navigate how to apply for and win city contracts, essentially building on the model for the current Minority Women Business Enterprise (M/WBE) program. According to the 2025 city comptroller report, only 5% ($2.4 billion out of $46 billion) of citywide procurement is actually awarded to M/WBEs. Businesses specifically owned by “women of color and Black and Hispanic American men” win far fewer

contracts than others, said the report. Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who chairs the New York State Assembly’s Subcommittee on Oversight of Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises, confirmed that there’s more than $20 billion in state funding allocated for businesses overall and very few Black and Brown business owners are successful in getting these lucrative opportunities. To counteract that, Bichotte Hermelyn said she pushed legislation in 2025 to raise the discretionary funding threshold for MWBEs for state agencies to $1.5 million. “That means that an agency can give you up to $1.5 million. You don’t have to go and compete with those white firms,” she said. “That’s what we do. We find ways to break barriers so that you, you, you, you, can have an easier access because all these years they make it hard for us. So that’s some things that we put in place.” She spoke about the process of getting M/WBE certified and suggested contacting the city’s small business services hubs or an elected official if an applicant has an issue. Once certified, a business owner is placed on a list with a North American Industry Classification (NAIC) code. The

From left to right: AM Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, rapper Young Devyn, Council Member Farah Louis, and Josh D.

city usually solicits these specific business groups for contracting procurement, she said. She encouraged every entrepreneur to move and network with government agencies as much as possible to meet the people making decisions on their contracts in person. She also suggested having an alternative means of financing, since some banks are reluctant to approve loans for Black small business owners. “There’s a lot of opportunities for our people out there, but the most important step is being informed and then being organized,” said Riley. “We’re innovative, we’re creative, we’re smart.” Youth advocate Joshua Dieudonne, a driving force behind the MYBE legislation, added: “When we are not informed, that’s when we mess up. When we don’t go through the proper channels, that’s when catastrophe happens. And that’s when they say that we can’t do anything right. So we want to make sure we go to the right channels and make sure that we’re using our influence for good and to do the right thing.” The event featured Black small business owners and electeds talking about their experiences with getting M/WBE certified

and finding reliable information about government contracting. Many were determined to persevere no matter the obstacles. Aaliyah Duah, who is the CEO of Financial Revolutionn, said, “Sometimes what happens is when something is a talent for you, you start to think that it’s easy for everybody. So you underestimate your work. Don’t do that. Because you sell yourself short. You need to understand that you have a gift. And when you have a gift, sometimes a gift can become your purpose.” Assembly Member Chantel Jackson, who chairs the Black Legislative Task Force, sponsored the state version of the MYBE bill. “We are the culture. We set the standard. We do all the things, but then we don’t make the money off it. We watch a lot of other people make the money off of the things that we have created,” said Jackson. For more information, go to the city’s Small Business Services website or the state’s Office of General Services for more info on government contract resources. You can also check out the city’s M/WBE program or the state’s M/WBE hub to get resources for certification.

Lt. Gov. candidate Adrienne Adams pleads with public to vote as campaign moves forward By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff

vember election. Hochul, the state’s first woman governor, selected Adams, the New York State Governor Kathy city’s first Black woman City Hochul and Democratic nominee Council Speaker, as her running for Lieutenant Governor Adrienne mate in February. Now, as an unAdams are busy opening cam- precedented two-woman ticket, paign field offices across the five they’re looking to make history. boroughs, ramping up efforts to “I did not expect to come back get out the vote ahead of the No- into politics,” said Adams at

the field office opening in Flatbush, Brooklyn on Aug. 26. “The only person that could’ve pulled me back into politics once I said goodbye happily was Governor Kathy Hochul. … I’ve known her since 2014. … We became each other’s sounding boards at different times during our work.” “We intend to fight, and we

intend to win,” continued Adams. “I know unfortunately our track record as voters has become abysmal in New York, so when I say, and I plead to you this evening, please, please do everything you can do get out the vote.” Hochul and Adams –– strong frontrunners since winning the June primary –– will face Repub-

lican primary winner, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman in the general election. According to the latest Siena University Poll from August 2026, Hochul leads Blakeman by roughly a 10point margin. The poll pointed out that the bulk of Hochul’s support See CAMPAIGN on page 29

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 9

At back-to-school brunch, young people touched by gun violence find supplies — and one another

The Melquain Jatelle Anderson Foundation’s back-to-school brunch united kids ages 8 to 17, helping them prepare for school and providing backpacks with supplies. (Karen Juanita Carrillo photos)

By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff A steady stream of youngsters showed up at the Charcoal Grill & Modern Buffet in Howard Beach, Queens, last weekend for a back-to-school brunch that memorialized a young man who dreamed of giving back, but whose life was cut short by gun violence. Organized by the Melquain Jatelle Anderson Foundation (MJAF), the event brought together kids ages 8 to 17 in an effort to help them prepare for the upcoming school year and provided them with backpacks stocked with school supplies. The children also had a chance to connect with peers who understand the pain of losing loved ones to gun violence. MJAF founder Michelle Barnes-Anderson — the organization’s chief executive and Melquain’s mother — said the foundation’s youth work grew out of a realization that grief reaches well beyond parents. “They grieve in the same amount as the mother. And we started saying it was ‘silent cries,’ because it’s like you sell it, but your heart is crying so loud.” MJAF, a Brooklyn community-service organization, was founded in memory of Melquain Jatelle Anderson, a John Jay College sociology student who was killed in 2017. The organization supports families affected by violence with healing and wellness work and promotes education and

civic engagement. Melquain had hoped to attend law school and to build a community center to help young men earn GEDs and enter college. This past April, Barnes-Anderson said the foundation started hosting monthly virtual gatherings for kids who lost relatives to gun violence and scheduled in-person activities. The group says it serves about 80 children, ranging from kindergarten through 12th grade. The children come from Brooklyn neighborhoods including Brownsville and East New York, as well as Queens. The virtual sessions run from 60 to 90 minutes. Children first meet together, then separate into age groups of 8 to 13 and 14 to 17 for discussions that match their developmental stages. They talk about school, anxiety, friendships, and conflict while learning coping strategies — including pausing to breathe, stepping away from an escalating exchange, and agreeing to revisit a disagreement later. In-person outings are planned quarterly; one earlier gathering paired a peace-themed meetup with bowling in Times Square. “We like to do the Zoom first,” Barnes-Anderson said. “Because we don’t want people to come in and not know who the other child is or whatever.” Once they meet faceto-face, she said, children recognize details that have been shared online — a favorite color, a sport, a concern about school

Backpacks stocked with loose-leaf paper, binders, folders, crayons, scientific calculators, and other supplies were handed out to kids attending the Melquain Jatelle Anderson Foundation back-to-school brunch.

— and have a starting point for friendship rather than entering a room of strangers. Barnes-Anderson described the community the children are building as a protective force. “This is about fellowship,” she said. “We have people you can lean on because you know sometimes that silence could turn into revenge. It could turn into suicide. And the last thing we want is to lose this generation.” At the brunch, students received backpacks stocked with loose-leaf paper, binders, folders, crayons, scientific calculators, and other supplies. Organizers also included age-appropriate journals to help younger children identify where feelings sit in their bodies, while older students could write about their aspirations. Families were told they could register for laptops to be distributed later through technology partners. The brunch program’s young ambassadors, MJAF’s Melkenzye Anderson, 8, and Miracle Anderson, 9, the ambassador from the anti-gun violence Meezy Foundation, told the Amsterdam News that the monthly online sessions really help. Miracle said kids “talk about things like everybody’s favorite color and get to know each other, stuff like that.” While Melkenzye added, “Yeah, we can be friends and talk to each other because we have like a group chat.” Amsterdam News asked how the group

helps children whose families have experienced loss, Melkenzye added: “It’s good, it’s good because you can meet new people that you also can tell stories to. Because they all have somebody they loved and then they lost.” She said she wanted the peace and backto-school events to help children know one another and “stop violence and everything.” Steven, 12, another young program participant who asked to be identified by his first name, said his uncle was killed around 2018. “My family has the trauma of losing, especially on my dad’s side, losing our uncle. It was very sad for all of us because he was a very important person.” Steven said people can imagine the grief he’s gone through, but “you can never truly know something unless it’s happened to you.” He said the group has helped him develop tools for anxiety and self-advocacy. “It’s taught me coping skills. How to feel when I’m anxious, how to learn to speak up when I feel like I have the words,” Steven said. He hopes to join a debate team this coming school year and, in the future, become a lawyer and possibly play for a Major League Baseball team. MJAF’s Barnes-Anderson says grief from gun violence should not narrow a child’s future. “We just want to make sure this generation doesn’t grow up heartbroken and suicidal,” she said. “So, we’re going to keep bringing community.”

10 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Union Matters Federal spying on unions like SEIU and CWA spurs demands for answers by workers’ groups

Federal immigration officers confront protesters outside Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis. (Yuki Iwamura/AP, File photo)

By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff Court documents show that federal law enforcement conducted an undercover surveillance campaign in Minnesota earlier this year, targeting community organizations, progressive groups, and labor unions demonstrating against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minneapolis. Federal officials described the surveillance programs, Operation Puppet Master and Project Whipple Shield, as attempts to identify conspirators aiding “violent opportunists and agitators.” But Kevin Riach, a defense attorney for one of the people accused in the case, called the programs a politically driven “broad and irrational investigation.” DHS agents reportedly attended organizing meetings, monitored chats, gathered license plate in-

formation, and used administrative subpoenas to get financial records on protesters from organizations like the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the Communications Workers of America, Voices for Racial Justice, and the Sunrise Movement. According to the Associated Press, the Department of Homeland Security’s investigative branch created a slide titled ‘The Conspiracy,’ showing 18 organizations, from a small Minneapolis bicycle repair collective to the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of labor groups in the U.S. Federal officials also accessed financial records stretching years for organizations ranging from the Sunrise Movement to large unions like SEIU and the Communications Workers of America. “You are requested not to disclose the existence of this summons for an indefinite period of time,” read a DHS request to Fed-

wire, the money transfer system operated by the Federal Reserve, according to the AP. Labor Notes, a union advocacy website, reports that CWA Local 7250 President Kieran Knutson said his local had been subjected to “an illegal and aggressive federal investigation” involving undercover agents entering the union office, infiltrating co-sponsored meetings, subpoenaing finances and surveilling one officer. Knutson said members were targeted because they took part in neighborhood rapid-response work, protests at the Whipple Federal Building, and a Jan. 23 Day of Truth and Freedom opposing ICE. Labor for Democracy, a network of unions, issued a statement condemning the actions of Department of Homeland Security agents in Minnesota: “This government’s assaults on our basic democratic rights are part of the Trump ‘National Security Memo-

randum Taskforce’ established to target progressive and anti-authoritarian/anti-fascist forces, accuse them of ‘domestic terrorism,’ while President Trump pardoned January 6th insurrectionists who actually attempted to violently steal an election.” Labor for Democracy also said DHS’ actions should lead to state and congressional investigations, prosecutions of officials who violated constitutional rights, and hearings before the House and Senate Homeland Security committees. Carl Rosen, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America former general president, called the DHS surveillance “an attack on everyone who believes in the right to free speech, the right to peaceful assembly, and the right to organize.” Advocates are saying the DHS operations could have a chilling effect on ordinary labor organiz-

ing. UFCW Local 663 executive board member Paul Kirk-Davidoff told Labor Notes that four undercover agents attended a Feb. 15 Workers Assembly to Defeat ICE, a gathering of more than 300 unionists and community members, and took detailed notes on speakers and political positions. Federal government monitoring of worker power and racial justice movements most recently dates back to the period between 1956 and 1971, when the FBI’s COINTELPRO surveilled, infiltrated, discredited, and disrupted groups it considered subversive. The Communist Party, Socialist Workers Party, Black Panther Party, Young Lords Party, American Indian Movement, and Southern Christian Leadership Conference received anonymous mailings, faced police harassment, and dealt with organizational infiltration that was designed to disrupt and discredit them.

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September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 11

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12 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

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Opinion Vandalism in Harlem isn’t something to ignore — it hurts everyone

EDITORIAL

According to a recent Crimegrade. org rating, Harlem residents may spend on average as much as $30 a year on the effects of vandalism. That may seem a minuscule fee, compared to costs in other parts of the city, but the issue isn’t so much the cost as the hurtful nature of the crime. Karen Taylor, founder and executive director of While We Are Still Here (WWSH) a Harlem-based nonprofit heritage preservation organization, has installed 25 historic markers in the community. Recently, three of them have been vandalized or knocked down, including one commemorating the great tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins and one denoting the importance of the Green Book, which was once so essential to African American travelers in the South. She contends that another one, the Jungle Alley sign, signifying a vibrant cultural enclave at 133rd Street between Malcolm X Blvd. and Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. during the Harlem Renaissance, may have been knocked down accidentally by kids. While she has that one in storage, the other two remain missing. “I am very upset and heartbroken by these acts, but this will not deter WWSH from putting them back up again,” Taylor vowed. The incidents she and her organization experienced are reminiscent of the graffiti scrawled on the front door of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on Malcolm X Blvd. last winter. While the police investigated that incident, Taylor said her current calls to the police have not been answered. “If whoever took the markers down thinks that will deter us, they are pitifully mistaken,” said Taylor. “I hope this is not a case of white supremacist derangement, but it could be, and it reminds me of how they kept shooting the Emmett Till sign in Mississippi.” If anyone has information about these acts of vandalism,” she said, “please notify the police and if you live near any of the other signs, your vigilance will be appreciated.”

What NYC high schoolers think about the future of municipal politics

Member

Alliance for Audited Media

(Pexels/Keira Burton photo)

By KIMBERLY KOO

November 4, 2025, marked the election of Zohran Mamdani as the 112th mayor of New York. That day also appeared to mark a significant increase in youth civic engagement: Approximately 42% of registered voters aged 18–29 cast ballots — nearly quadruple the 11.1% turnout among the same age group in the 2021 mayoral election. While many NYC teens are still too young to vote, they are paying closer attention to local politics than ever before. With the rapid increase in political discourse occurring on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit, political informaElinor R. Tatum: Publisher tion can be easily accessed by people and Editor in Chief of any age. Madison Gray: Executive & Investigative Editor To better understand how young Kristin Fayne-Mulroy: Managing Editor New Yorkers are responding to the Cyril Josh Barker: Digital Editor election results, I decided to speak Damaso Reyes: Editor at Large with several NYC teenagers about Siobhan "Sam" Bennett: their thoughts on Mamdani’s historic Chief Revenue Officer and Head of Advertising victory and whether they believed in Wilbert A. Tatum (1984-2009): a future in which teen opinions about Chairman of the Board, CEO and Publisher Emeritus political discourse are viewed as fun-

damental, rather than premature. Milo Olim, a junior at Brooklyn Technical High School, has already pre-registered to vote, stating that it was “easier to just do it now.” When asked whether he believed teens’ political opinions, including those about the mayoral election, were worth considering, he said, “Opinions should be qualified by the nature of the opinion, not by the person who has it. Lots of teenagers have interesting things to say, and lots of adults have more similar or generic opinions.” Ultimately, he said that “as long as the opinions come from serious places of experience and self-reflection, they’re worth discussing and having.” Ashley Kim, a junior from LaGuardia High School, noticed something striking: “After and during the mayoral debates, more and more teens are being involved in politics and expressing their political opinions more freely online and at my school. For example, I saw an increasing amount of organized walkouts throughout the city in schools.” She also felt that because teens are the “future of our generation, our opinions about poli-

tics matter, too.” Her sentiment highlights why Mamdani’s influence carried well beyond the voting booth: Even without the ability to vote, NYC teens recognized the importance of city policy because it affected them in their day-to-day lives. Sophia Esposito, a senior from Townsend Harris High School, leaves a message for future leaders and voters alike: “It’s not like we’re just sitting around and waiting for our turn to vote. When political decisions, anywhere, affect our own lives, our input isn’t just relevant, it’s necessary.”’ As the city enters a new political era, one trend is clear: The divide between youth and adult voters no longer dictates who shapes political dialogue. By calling for political views to be judged by their substance rather than the speaker’s age, younger New Yorkers are given the chance to establish themselves as active contributors to municipal politics.

Kimberly Koo is a junior at Brooklyn Technical High School. She is the founder of That Kid Can Write, a nonprofit that teaches creative writing to kids.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS O P I N I O N

Winning is easier than governing: David Dinkins’ lesson for Mamdani By JAMES J. BARNEY In 1989, David Dinkins made history as New York City’s first Black mayor. Yet four years later, voters denied him a second term, and his administration was widely and unfairly labeled a failure. Zohran Mamdani remains broadly popular among New Yorkers, but Mamdani should study the Dinkins era because the structural pressures of governing New York will inevitably test the coalition that elected him. Comparisons are natural between the two men because they emerged from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. However, these comparisons have limitations, because Dinkins and Mamdani came from different political traditions and governed markedly different cities. Thus, Dinkins’s experience does not predict Mamdani’s fate. Instead, Dinkins’s experience demonstrates how governing requires making hard policy decisions that can fracture a broad electoral coalition. Dinkins won the 1989 Democratic primary and general election backed by a broad coalition promising change. This coalition was diverse, uniting African Americans; liberal Manhattan Democrats; many Hispanic voters; organized

Mayor David Dinkins. (Bill Moore photo)

labor; reform-minded whites; and enough outer-borough Italian, Irish, and Jewish voters to secure victory. During the campaign, those groups rallied around a common desire to move beyond the Koch era. Once in office, though, campaign unity gave way to the realities of governing. Dinkins failed to hold his governing coalition together, in part because he was unable to craft a universalist agenda that transcended the demands of the individual components of his coalition. The coalition frequently disagreed about policing,

neighborhood investment, taxes, education, and economic development as Dinkins confronted rising crime, the crack and AIDS epidemics, and a severe recession. In 1993, Dinkins’s coalition unraveled, ushering in a generation of political leaders who took the city in a different direction. As part of my dissertation, I interviewed Dinkins in his office at Columbia University in 2019. As I sat in a room filled with photographs of prominent late-20th-century figures, I realized that Dinkins’s election and his time in office were both historically significant and misunderstood. Dinkins admitted that his time in office was “rocky.” When I asked what he would have done differently, he joked that if he knew, he would have done it. The Crown Heights unrest in August 1991 exposed one of the most serious fractures in Dinkins’s coalition: the deep tensions between Black and Jewish New Yorkers. Many in the Jewish community argued that Dinkins’s slow response helped allow a neighborhood crisis after a tragic car accident to develop into one of the city’s darkest episodes of antisemitism. In contrast, many Black residents viewed the crisis through See DAVID DINKINS on page 29

Recent suspicious hanging deaths of Black people are reminders that past is prologue

First, there was the hanging death of To’Nea Nicole Miller on June 18 in Miami, a day before Juneteenth. Then on Aug. 3, Tasia Fortune was found hanging from a tree behind an abandoned house in Jackson, Miss. Usually, when we learn of lynchings, the victims are Black men, not young Black women — Miller was 27 and Fortune was 29. According to an investigation by the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office and the county medical examiner in Miller’s death, no evidence was found of foul play. The circumstances of her death, they concluded, were “consistent with a suicide.” An investigation continues into the death of Fortune, the mother of four, whose body is in the custody of the

Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office. There, an autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause and manner of death. Her mother, Christy Spivey, told ABC News that she last saw her daughter on July 26 and described her as a loving mother with no behavior out of the ordinary. “She did not do this to herself,” Spivey said. “I know my daughter, and she did not do this to herself.” A Black man, Terence Anderson, said to be a person of interest in her death, has been arrested on an unrelated charge with a bond set at $250,000. Detained as a felon in possession of a firearm, Anderson has denied any involvement with her death, though admitted he had been in an argument with her. As in Fortune’s death, Miller’s sister, Teri, has rejected the conclusion of suicide, though Miller’s aunt, Michele Howell, after discussions with the medical examiner and an investigator on the case, told NBC “it was suicide.” These and others, including Demar-

travion “Trey” Reed, 21, who was found last September hanging from a tree on the Delta State University campus in Cleveland, Miss.; Kyle Bassinga, 21, who went missing before he was found hanged in February in a Cobb County, Ga., park, and Jerard “Jay” Jackson, 28, an Illinois man who was found dead after attending a music festival in Michigan. These cases and several more were said to show no evidence of an attack. But the suspicion is still growing, given the history of lynchings in this country. In the front-page story of our paper last week, we discussed a new book on the killing of Elbert Williams in 1940 in Brownsville, Tenn. All of this coheres with the notion of “past as prologue,” a theme often focused on Imhotep Gary Byrd’s weekly radio broadcasts, and we certainly will delve into it during our future shows. It is impossible to have a conversation about this topic without citing “100 Years of Lynchings” by Ralph Ginzburg. So, stay tuned.

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 13

The magic of Alvin Ailey is returning in a new season, so get ready! CHRISTINA

GREER PH.D. Alvin Ailey is coming! Everyone who knows me knows that the December holiday season does not begin until I see Alvin Ailey at City Center. Every holiday season must include at least one “Revelations” experience and an opportunity to take a friend to the show who has never experienced the brilliance of Alvin Ailey that has entertained and evolved for decades. I know, I know: December is quite a few months away. However, tickets go on sale on September 8 for the winter season beginning December 2, 2026–January 3, 2027. The tickets range in price, but the best early purchase is the $45 ticket for each show. Each year, I invite new friends to experience the magic. What I appreciate about Ailey is the mix of classic pieces, as well as the new movements that are added each year. I attend at least two or three nights and always bump into friends from around the city who are giddy with excitement to see either one of their favorite classic pieces or a world premiere of something new. I love to witness these powerful men and women on stage evoking so much emotion, purely through movement, costumes, lighting, and music. I am always stunned at the amount of emotion that fills my spirit by seeing the grace of so many bodies on stage. When I am waiting for my holiday Ailey fix, I also try to see the Dance Theater of Harlem (DTH) when I can. Robert Garland is the brilliant mastermind behind DTH and his vision for the company has created yet another dance collective I cannot wait to expe-

rience each year. Again, the level of talent is something I can barely wrap my mind around. As I stare at the dancers and feel iconic music in new ways, I am always transformed and so thankful for the way art moves and connects us. Luckily, you can catch Ailey and DTH in various cities across the country. Last year, I went to Ballet Hispanico for the first time and could not believe I had not previously experienced this brilliant diasporic collection. I could see so much pride in the faces of Latinx audience members as they saw various aspects of their culture embrace the stage. I feel a similar sense of pride when I experience Ailey and DTH each season. If you are interested in experiencing some of the most talented dancers to grace the stages in this moment, visit www.ailey. org, www.dancetheatreofharlem.org, and www.ballethispanico.org. It is my sincere hope that you will take the time to enjoy the elegance and movement of these dancers. The arts must be supported if we want them to continue, especially since arts institutions and organizations led by people of color are under attack. Grab your tickets and I will see you at City Center before you know it. Christina Greer, Ph.D., is a professor at Fordham University; author of the books “How to Build a Democracy: From Fannie Lou Hamer and Barbara Jordan to Stacey Abrams” and “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream”; and co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.

14 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Caribbean Update Oil producer Guyana inches closer to 1 million barrels daily By BERT WILKINSON Special to the AmNews Guyana, the Caribbean Community’s leading oil producer and exporter, is about to join the list of major producing countries globally as the country prepares to begin producing more than 1 million barrels daily. The move to cross that threshold is coming when mega oil companies, like U.S.-owned ExxonMobil, are enjoying windfall profits from uncertainty in the world market linked to the U.S.-Iranian conflict in the Middle East, and to the problems supply ships are encountering when trying to navigate safely through the Strait of Hormuz controlled largely by Iran. Exxon is the main operator in a consortium with Hess/Chevron and CNOOC of China. A large floating production, storage, and offloading vessel that will support the country’s fifth oilfield has already arrived offshore Guyana from its construction shipyard in Singapore, and is being hooked up and pre-

pared to begin operations in the coming weeks. Uaru is the latest oilfield to be thrown into production and it will produce around 250,000 barrels daily to add to current production figures of just over 900,000 barrels. The oil and gas windfall, first discovered in May of 2015 with production commencing in late 2019, has turned the country into one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, triggered an unprecedented construction bonanza and an immigration rush that has quickly moved the national population from around 850,000 to an estimated 1.2 million today. The 1-million figure, officials brag, will mean that Guyana will be the first in the 15-nation bloc to join the daily million-barrel club and perhaps the latest among producers globally to do so when production begins in the last quarter of 2026. Other regional producers include Trinidad, Suriname, Barbados, and Belize. Suriname, which shares the socalled golden offshore basin with

Guyana, is expected to begin production in 2028, while Trinidad appears set for a revival of its dwindling supplies when supermajor ExxonMobil begins appraisal of ultradeep acreage in the coming months. Officials say that the trouble in the Middle East also means that the consortium has recovered its $50 billion-plus initial investment far faster than anticipated, helped by consistently higher oil prices. This development means that Guyana will now grab a much larger share of the production-sharing mechanism with the consortium partners, said President Irfaan Ali. “Guyana’s share of oil has increased from 12.5% to 39.8%. This has occurred because the cost bank has been recovered two years earlier than originally expected. In terms of barrels, 75 of every 100 barrels produced went to cost recovery. Today, only about 20 barrels go to cost [recovery]. The US$55 billion expenditure was paid off. The cost bank is not saturated or entirely de-

pleted, but the 20 barrels today account for operating and other costs. That which is left, which is called the profit oil, is split evenly between Guyana and the companies. Guyana’s half is about 39.8 barrels out of every 100. The companies’ matching 39.8 barrels is split three ways between the co-venturers,” the head of state told reporters. As the consortium prepares at least three other large oilfields for production by 2030, Ali said the time for investment in a national refinery has come, because the country is reimporting refined oil that it had exported in the form of petroleum and lubricants, among other products. “The global environment and imported inflation,” Ali said. “Now, look at what’s happening in the global environment. We produce crude oil, but we import all refined oil, our gasoline, and everything, so we import back all the price differentials. Since the war, you know what has been happening. We cannot have crude oil and don’t have security

of supply … and security brings with it stability and then gives us some shield against shocks that are currently existing.” The Guyana success story has sparked renewed interest and efforts by governments in the region to attract global companies to explore for oil and gas. These include Grenada, Barbados, and Jamaica, with Jamaica being ahead of the three since United Oil of the United Kingdom has announced the presence of hydrocarbons off the island’s south coast. The company is now trying to attract investors to take projects to the next stage. Meanwhile, Barbados says two- and three-dimensional seismic surveys have indicated the possibility of up to 13 billion barrels of oil and up to 40-plus trillion cubic feet of natural gas. On the other hand, Grenadian authorities have dismissed a Russian company that had drilled a single offshore well nearly a decade ago because of inaction, as there has been no activity since then.

Milo wanted mass deportation. Then he got deported FELICIA PERSAUD

IMMIGRATION KORNER Be careful what you wish for. Milo Yiannopoulos, the Britishborn right-wing provocateur, early Donald Trump supporter, and enthusiastic cheerleader for mass deportation, reportedly called last year for “on-the-spot deportation” of people who could not prove they were legally in the United States. On Friday, August 28, Yiannopoulos got an unexpected opportunity to experience the immigration policy he had championed for others. He was deported. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Yiannopoulos was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport on Thursday, August 27, and deported to the United Kingdom the following day, August 28. DHS says Yiannopoulos entered

the United States legally in 2019 but overstayed his visa. An immigration judge reportedly issued a final deportation order in July after he failed to appear for his hearing. There is an obvious temptation to laugh at the irony. I confess, I did. But underneath the almost Shakespearean turn of events is a lesson worth considering, particularly for immigrants who believe their politics, proximity to power, or enthusiastic support for Trump’s immigration crackdown somehow places them outside its reach. Yiannopoulos was hardly a stranger to the Trump world. He became an early and prominent supporter of Trump’s first presidential campaign. He worked at Breitbart News. In 2022, he claimed credit for arranging the now-infamous dinner involving Trump, Ye (formerly Kanye West), and white supremacist Nick Fuentes. And he wasn’t merely supportive of tougher immigration enforcement. He reveled in it. Yet when the immigration system determined that he no longer had

lawful permission to remain in the United States, none of that apparently mattered. There was no MAGA exemption. That is what makes this story bigger than Yiannopoulos. For years, immigration hardliners have divided immigrants rhetorically into those who came “the right way” and those who did not. ButYiannopoulos reportedly did come legally. His case illustrates something frequently lost in America’s immigration debate: not everyone without current legal status crossed the southern border illegally. People can enter the United States lawfully and later fall out of status, including by overstaying a visa. And once that happens, political ideology does not rewrite immigration law. Yiannopoulos supported Trump. But Trump’s immigration system was under no obligation to return the favor. There is also a warning here for immigrant supporters of aggressive immigration enforcement who imagine the crackdown will always be directed at somebody else. The Haitian; the Venezuelan; the

Mexican; the asylum seeker; the farmworker; the person speaking Spanish at the construction site; the supposedly dangerous immigrant who everyone was promised would be targeted first. But enforcement powers do not necessarily remain confined to the people supporters imagined when those powers were being demanded. Eventually, the law may arrive at your door too. None of this means Yiannopoulos should have received special treatment. Quite the opposite. If DHS’s account is accurate, he overstayed his visa, failed to appear for his immigration hearing, and received a final deportation order. The same immigration laws should apply regardless of someone’s politics. And perhaps that is precisely the point. Yiannopoulos once advocated “on-the-spot deportation” for people unable to prove they were legally present. Ultimately, the government gave him something remarkably close to the immigration philosophy he advocated for others. Perhaps his deportation should

therefore serve as a reminder to every immigrant who believes political loyalty provides protection from the policies they enthusiastically support. The deportation order does not ask how you voted. ICE does not issue a MAGA exemption. Supporting mass deportation does not guarantee that the mass deportation system will distinguish between immigrants you believe should leave and immigrants you believe should stay. Trump’s immigration crackdown, it turns out, really can apply to everyone. Well, almost everyone. There appears to be one immigrant for whom America’s immigration system can never quite issue a deportation order. And she sometimes lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Felicia J. Persaud is the founder and publisher of NewsAmericasNow.com, the only daily syndicated newswire and digital platform dedicated exclusively to Caribbean Diaspora and Black immigrant news across the Americas.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

International

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News

Britons get the chance to read Jason Arday’s story for themselves as memoir is published in the U.K.

Former Cambridge Professor Jason Arday’s memoir, “Great and Unfortunate Things” on display at a book shop in London. (Frank Augstein/AP photo)

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britons who saw Professor Jason Arday’s life and death dissected by weeks of headlines covering allegations about his academic qualifications and personal accomplishments can now read his version of the story. Simon & Schuster will on Thursday publish Arday’s memoir “Great and Unfortunate Things,” which tells the story of how an autistic boy who was non-verbal as a child and illiterate until his late teens grew up to be the youngest Black professor in the history of Cambridge University. The book’s release comes less than two weeks after Arday, 41, was found dead at his apartment in London following relentless media coverage about allega-

tions that his academic work was bolstered by plagiarism and that he exaggerated his athletic and fundraising achievements. The memoir was published earlier this month in the U.S. Simon & Schuster said it decided to publish the book in accordance with his family’s wishes. The publisher said it would have no further comment about the book at this time. “To the very end, Jason was clear that he wanted his memoir to be published, and it is only right that we honor his wishes,” the family said in a statement released by Simon & Schuster. “There has been so much that has been written and said about our beloved brother, son, father, partner, and uncle, mostly by people who don’t know the truth of what he experienced, and we experienced as a family, or what an extraordinary person he was.”

Arday’s death on Aug. 14 has sparked recriminations over who was responsible. Cambridge has been criticized for elevating Arday too quickly in a rush to promote diversity, despite red flags about his qualifications. The news media has been targeted for driving the professor to despair with a barrage of coverage that his supporters say was out of proportion to what a white scholar charged with similar mistakes would have faced. Scrutiny of the memoir increased following the controversy, with British newspapers noting that some of the running and fundraising accomplishments he previously touted had been left out of the book. For example, an advance copy of the book doesn’t mention his claim that he once ran 600 miles in six days to raise money for charity.

In an interview with the Times of London that was published July 31, Arday acknowledged that he had made mistakes, which he attributed to his autism and a lack of oversight early in his career. But he rejected accusations that he was “a liar and a fantasist and an academic fraud,” saying they were motivated by “racism and ableism.” Arday, a sociologist, first rose to prominence when Cambridge announced his appointment in 2023, saying he was a “respected scholar” whose work focused on increasing the number of people from minority ethnic backgrounds who pursued higher education. Questions about his academic qualifications began attracting public attention in mid-July after British newspapers picked up plagiarism allegations published by a white researcher who

has been critical of “diversity, equity and inclusion programs.” Cambridge initially stood by Arday, saying the plagiarism allegations had been investigated and determined to be unfounded. But on Aug. 5, the university announced that it had opened an investigation into Arday’s appointment after receiving “new information” about his qualifications and honorary appointments. News coverage of Arday’s story didn’t stop, and he died nine days later. “We are happy to allow the book to speak for itself and won’t comment further on its content,” the family said in their statement. “The family is still in shock and we are grieving. We call upon the media to give the family the space it needs to come to terms with this terrible loss.”

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

chris tucker oct 2

trombone shorty & orleans avenue Sat, Oct 17 @ 8PM A conversation with filmmaker/author Nelson George featuring DJ Spinna, Jessica Care Moore, Carl Hancock Rux, Tracie Morris, Vernon Reid and more.

with Mavis Staples Fri, Oct 23 @ 8PM New Orleans brass band meets funk, rock, blues, jazzy improvisational genius and all the joyful swagger of hip hop.

ben vereen’s 80th birthday concert

thanksgiving comedy fest

Sat, Nov 21 @ 8PM Starring Karrin Allyson, Shoshana Bean, Melba Moore, Stephanie Pope, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Lillias White with the Andy Farber Orchestra.

Sat, Nov 28 @ 8PM Give thanks for this cornucopia of comedy superstars: Bill Bellamy, Luenell, Mark Curry and Tacarra Williams.

gregory porter with special guest Madeleine Peyroux Fri, Nov 13 @ 8PM “A jazz singer of thrilling presence, a booming baritone with a gift for earthy refinement and soaring uplift” – NY Times

dru hill & mýa Fri, Dec 11 @ 8PM R&B is in the house! Hear new music and throwback hits like “It’s All About Me,” “In My Bed,” “Beauty” and “Case of the Ex.”

The American Song series at NJPAC is presented, in part, through the generous support of the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, the David S. Steiner and Sylvia Steiner Charitable Trust, the Joan and Allen Bildner Family Fund, the Smart Family Foundation/David S. Stone, Esq., Stone & Magnanini.

@NJPAC • 1.888.MY.NJPAC • njpac.org | One Center Street, Newark, NJ

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September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 17

Arts & Entertainment

Action over optics: Dolly Parton’s passing garners wellearned mourning from Black community By MATTHEW ALLEN Special to the AmNews It gets harder and harder to define what an “ally” is for a community, particularly the Black community. For some people, it’s just a matter of someone who can mimic or genuinely, organically enjoy Black culture. For others, it’s having a non-Black person publicly speaking out against the systemic institutions and unseen barriers that have plagued Black people for centuries. There are even people who believe that allyship is mythical and unattainable. But what if there was someone who just behaved decently and supported the community in a quiet but profound way? Someone like Dolly Parton. The Queen of Country Music passed away last week at age 80, leaving behind a legacy of classic records, platinum albums, and hit movies. All over social media, Black people are mourning her passing with tearful tributes, cover songs, and gleeful remixes. Why is the Black community grieving this bucksome, blondehaired guitar player from Tennessee who made music that was gatekept by people with a melanin deficiency? Certainly, like much music, Black folks have come to love a white song that has some soul in it, like “Jolene” or “Hard Candy Christmas.” But it goes deeper than just vibing to a song that sounds good.

Dolly Parton in 1977.

President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush stand with the Kennedy Center honorees in the Blue Room of the White House during a reception Sunday, December 3, 2006. (L-R): singer and songwriter William “Smokey” Robinson; musical theater composer Andrew Lloyd Webber; country singer Dolly Parton. (Not pictured: film director Steven Spielberg and conductor Zubin Mehta). (Public domain photos)

Black people respond to decency, respect, and empathy; action over optics. One of the reasons Parton always appealed to us was because she respected all people and helped millions when she didn’t have to. The country music scene is such an insular community that it’s one of the few genres, at least during Parton’s heyday, that Blacks had no interest in participating in or ingesting. So, for someone like Parton to penetrate the hearts of so many Black Americans speaks volumes to how she connected with us through simple acts of humanity, decency, respect, and empathy. Parton’s come-up is similar to that of many Black people, especially Black musicians. Think of The Jackson family, growing up in the smoky steel town of Gary, Indiana, with 11 people packed into a two-bedroom house. Ghostface Killah waxed poetic on a similar upbringing on his 1995 single, “All That I Got is You.” He rhymed, “16 of us in a three bedroom apartment/roaches everywhere, cousins and aunts were there/ four in the bed, two at the foot, two at the head.” Parton was one of 12 kids, raised by her parents in a log cabin in East Tennessee, upgrading from a one-room to a two-

room cabin when she was a kid. Hard times seem like a rite of passage for many Black Americans, and it shapes how we relate to the world and the people around us. The way that Parton learned from her family, including an illiterate father who helped teach her about business, in poverty or quasi-poverty is what so many of us learn — sharing with the people around you, knowing how to bet on yourself when others try to take advantage, understanding how to give back to those who lived in the same conditions. Obviously, Parton’s connection to Whitney Houston is well-documented. Houston’s rendition of Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” set the then-record for most consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. While she received a substantial windfall of cash from the publishing royalties, her decision to invest much of that money into a predominantly Black neighborhood in Nashville illustrates that she was more interested in giving back to others than acquiring more material possessions. Not to say that Parton didn’t live a posh life, because she did, and she earned it. But so many other celebrities, white, Black, or oth-

erwise, hoard all of their wealth in fear of returning to poverty. Parton used the lessons from her poverty to lift people up, regardless of race. It was her father’s illiteracy that sparked her to found the Imagination Library, giving away free books once a month to children from birth to age five. Over 300 million books are given away for free across the world, thanks to Parton and the organizations she worked with for the library program. The sincerity of Parton shines through her actions and her demeanor. That’s why when we saw her singing with Patti LaBelle while they used their acrylic nails as percussion, or watched her go toe-to-toe with Queen Latifah in the film, “A Joyful Noise,” or collaborated with Beyoncé on her “Cowboy Carter” album, she never seemed out of place or pandering to Black people. She was an advocate for the working class. Her genuine care, concern, and respect wasn’t an act; it was real, and as we say, real recognize real. Dolly Parton’s allyship with Black Americans was easy for her to do and simple for us to understand. Why? Because we knew she meant it. Her actions told us so.

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Unieke Mode Swim Week anchors its last NYC fashion show By BRENIKA BANKS Special to the AmNews Unieke Mode Swim Week Rooftop Runway 2026 was a summertime success. The fashion event, held at Bliss Terasu in FiDi, fused luxury swimwear, resort fashion, and high-profile designer styles. The summer 2026 edition of Unieke Mode Swim Week, led by founder Monique Obeze, displayed a visual fashion experience transported beyond the runway, featuring luxury swimwear and wearable swim fashion while spotlighting upcoming designers. A rooftop fashion show served as the perfect setting for attendees and models on a comfortable, 80-degree summer day. Season two of Swim Week for Unieke Mode highlighted headliner designers Sharon Cole and Tziah Jones for the afternoon and evening show. When asked how she felt in between her shows, Obeze responded, “I’m feeling great! I think we did amazing for our last season in New York.” It was essential for Obeze to display not only Black and Latino designers, but to also include Asian designers as well. Diversity was very important for her. “That’s what my brand is all about — inclusion, diversity,” said Obeze. “I want to show all walks of life down the runway, not just one. Yes, we are Black-owned, but, at the same time, we represent everybody.” As a founder, Obeze wants Unieke Mode Swim Week and Fash-

Designers Kiara Sabrina and partner Tziah Jones at Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026. (Brenika Banks photos)

ion Week to be synonymous with community. “It’s something I’m very proud of.” Unieke Mode’s founder explained to attendees how bittersweet the show was, because it was the last Swim Week for New York Fashion Week, with Obeze’s brand expanding into Jacksonville, Florida. “I hope ya’ll will continue to support my designers

Model Valentina walking in Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026.

and support me,” Obeze said. She praised her designers for producing high-quality work. “They really closed out season two.” The designers and models vibed well with the audience as they voiced their pleasure and approval of the fashion show in realtime. “The goal is to make sure you bring designers that are ready to work, that have

Woman Model walking in Sharon Cole Designs at Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026.

a solid collection and can appeal to the audience — I think we did that tonight!” “Our headliner designer [Tziah Jones], he killed it, he always does,” said Obeze. Jones first worked with Unieke Mode in February. Obeze said that, “the crowd loves him” and she strategically brought him back. “I’m very proud to say that he shut the house down.” Jones described working for Obeze as “amazing — it’s always a good time with Monique!” He emphasized that her shows are well organized and run smoothly. Jones’ partner, Kiara Sabrina, echoed his kind words on working with Unieke Mode. When asked about working with Obeze, Sabrina shared, “She provides an atmosphere for everyone to feel like family.” She also expressed, along with Jones, how satisfying it was seeing their work on the runway after planning for months. “My favorite part of today is watching everybody come together as a community,” said Sabrina. She referred to the community vibes she enjoyed including on the runway, behind the scenes, and during in-between times where the audience and crowd mingled with each other. Obeze also had a couple of performances and a host to keep the audience entertained. Her attendees gave her a standing ovation and positive feedback post-show. She advised, “Stay tuned!” Unieke Mode returns for Fashion Week September 2026. For more info, visit uniekemodenyfw.com.

Unieke Mode NY founder Monique Obeze and Brenika Banks at Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026.

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9.6” Man Model walking in Sharon Cole Designs at Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026. (Brenika Banks photos)

Model Sabrina Buonavolonta walking Sharon Cole Designs at Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026.

Woman Model walking in Sharon Cole Designs at Unieke Mode NY Swim Week 2026.

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Facing the future with the Harlem Book Fair

Magnolia Xen, paranormal romance author, insists that young African Americans read a lot, mostly to escape today’s pressures. (Michael Henry Adams photos)

By MICHAEL HENRY ADAMS Special to the AmNews Between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on the last Saturday in August, several thousand Harlem Book Fair attendees enjoyed a beautiful and edifying day in Harlem’s front yard, on the plaza in front of the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office Building. Founded by Max Rodriguez, this year’s book fair was sponsored by the Bank of America. Anticipating the fair got me to thinking about one of Harlem’s most memorable, although long-lost, landmarks. It stood down the block, at the corner where CVS is now. Boasting well more than 200,000 texts all authored by Black authors, the African National Memorial Bookstore was by many measures a unique institution. Langston Hughes, Eartha Kitt, Malcolm X, and Charlie Rangel were its patrons. From there, proprietor Lewis H. Michaux, a onetime laborer, extolled the value of education among Harlem residents for over 40 years. Michaux even prominently displayed a sign debunking anti-intellectual sentiments born out of slavery. It famously read, “The best way to hide something from a Black man is to put it in a book.”

That his taunt was little more than a provocative ruse, calculated to prod unenthusiastic future scholars — youth, is something amply indicated by the avowed Black Nationalist’s incessant exhortation, “If I can get a Black person to read, I can change their life!” This was the fair’s 27th birthday. Fittingly, the annual literary confab celebrated the centennial of the Harlem Renaissance. There were live R&B musical interludes between some 20 authors showcasing their output by reading excerpts from their books. Hosted by Bob McNeil, these 10-minute stage presentations ran all day. Books representing every sort of genre imaginable were available and attendees seemed to run the gamut as well: young and old; men and women; Black, white, Latinx, African, Caribbean, and Asian. Nonfiction works by authors like Biodun Abudu, Eric Kellum, and Tanesha Cameron-Cole were on view. Self-help book authors, including Courtenay Lapovsky and Khadijah Butler, were on hand as well. Also present with their latest work were fiction writers including Margaret Adetimehin, Judy Ambers, and Karlene Joseph. Chatting with the engaging author Mag-

Excellent nonfiction titles were available.

nolia Xen, who specializes in romance fiction with a paranormal twist, revealed some interesting insights. All of the Instagram reels filmed on college campuses, asking new students to tell time from an analog clock, read a sentence written with cursive Spencerian characters, or answer history or geography questions, make contemplating what young people read today somewhat worrisome. Xen prefaced her observations saying that this year’s book fair turnout was the best of any during the five years she’s participated. ‘Do Black people read about our history for entertainment?’ I asked. “Not very much,” she said, adding, “Current events and politics don’t fare very well either these days.” ‘But we are living in such challenging times!’ I said. “And that’s the reason why,” she responded, meeting my anxiety with such calming patience. “They are looking for escapist books that can distract from today’s absurdity. Romance is really big. I write with a supernatural, metaphysical bent. I’ve done very well and sold a ton of books today, but horror romance, that’s a hot seller now, too!” “What a combination!” I answered, eliciting a pitying rejoinder: “Dating today can be scary, so it doesn’t take a big leap to

become engrossed by these scenarios that at first might seem extra.” I missed all the activities staged in the State Building. Readings and panel discussions in the morning basically focused on women’s health and self-health. Kameelah Phillips got things started by reading an excerpt from her women’s health book, “The Empowered Hysterectomy: Your Complete Handbook to Diagnosis, Decision, and Treatment.” The afternoon featured readings of nonfiction, fiction, and sci-fi literature. It was capped off by excerpts from some children’s books. If I was happy to discover books about Harlem lore and heroism, I was happier still to encounter people I know, like Ron Lester from Disco Party Fundraiser and Yuien Chin, who operates Harlem One Stop. In general, with the historic state building in front and a thriving new Studio Museum behind us, these familiar faces and the familiarity of the Harlem Book Fair produced a feeling of exuberant uplift. Despite ongoing economic displacement or the president’s attempts to undermine and eradicate African Americans, we’re still here and we’re fighting back, preparing ourselves for whatever’s ahead.

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Book Fair participants seemed to be in celebratory mood. (Michael Henry Adams photos)

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Meditation specialist and part-time chef author Evelyn Elphia said, “My work offers lots of jokes, humor, and hope!”

Torrie Q. Jones reading “Sun Book One” from her “Reborn” book series. She also has a book called “Luck Book Two,” and promised that Book Three is on the way.

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‘BK loves MJ’ takes over Fort Greene Park By NAFISSATOU YATTASSAYE Special to the AmNews “Good Music Lives On,” rapper Consequence chanted at the ‘BK loves MJ’ event on stage. As summer comes to an end, school approaches, and summer Fridays at the office are over, what a time it was to be a New Yorker this summer. From the New York Knicks ending a 53-year drought by bringing the championship title back home, to the Dominican and Puerto Rican parades flooding the city’s streets, and to the World Cup being hosted in our very own MetLife Stadium, 2026 has felt like 2016; some may argue that it is even better. Yet, amidst all the wins and celebration, the party has yet to end across the five boroughs. And what better way to bring New Yorkers to-

gether one last time? Music. Hosted by Spike Lee, featuring DJ Spinna’s Michael Jackson’s birthday tribute, ‘Brooklyn loves MJ’ annual block party on August 29 from noon to 7:00 p.m., did just that in one of the most vibrant boroughs, Brooklyn. Growing up, Lee always looked up to the late pop star. He admired Michael’s sound and style, eventually leading up to him working with him on “They Don’t Care About Us” to directing the “This Is It” video in 2009 and “Bad 25,” a documentary made in 2005. Michael would have been 68 years old. Amid the release of the highly anticipated biopic movie “Michael” this spring, the outpouring of love and support for MJ was expected to be high. And it exceeded those expectations, filling the park with thousands of attendees. On this bright and sunny

Sunday, DeKalb Ave was packed from top to bottom with food, jewelry, and clothing vendors as the Brooklyn pop-up shops drew traction in front of the tribute located at Fort Greene Park. The smell of freshly made soul food and the glistening gold and silver earrings being sold reflected the dominance of Brooklyn and why this was the perfect place to host this event: a mixture of soul and good vibes, a reflection of MJ. “Get here early, or it’ll be hard for you to get in,” Nadja Parker, a recurring attendee at the annual MJ tribute party for his birthday, said with a smile. As she reflects on the growth of this year’s attendance compared to previous years, she says the crowd “always gets bigger.” The crowds were a great mix of people, from older to younger generations, and a culture-

mixing gathering from all across New York and the world. With Spike Lee being at the forefront of the event, the attendance was through the roof. The music at the tribute celebration ranged across multiple genres and eras, with DJ Spinna at the forefront sampling beats from the ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s, infusing them with Michael Jackson’s biggest hits. “Michael Jackson loved everyone, and his words resonated with everyone,” Parker emphasized. This statement was on display at Fort Greene Park from start to finish. Smiles spanned across the stage from Spike Lee, DJ Spinna, and guest performances ensuring everyone was safe and had a great time at the long seven-hour, nonstop dance party. Fans in the crowd dressed in Michael Jackson attire, from customized outfits to casual clothes,

danced, their bodies swaying in the two-step, and sang together from “Remember the Time,” “Thriller,” “Enjoy Yourself,” to “Rock With You,” “A Brand New Day,” and other classics that uplifted the crowd. “Beat It,” a fan favorite, was led by an MJ impersonator coming on stage to perform his iconic dance as the crowd cheered and others followed. Lee’s Michael Jackson tribute was not only a celebration of MJ’s birthday, but living proof that music can bring people from all backgrounds together as one and create one loving community. And, with the continuous love Lee dedicates to MJ after his passing, one can only imagine what this event will look like for years to come. “His Life lives on through his music,” Consequence emphasized.

Michael Jackson fans dancing and having a good time at the seven-hour-long block party on Sunday. (Nafissatou Yattassaye photos)

A young fan dressed in Michael Jackson attire from top to bottom in Michael’s iconic black & white striped sparkled suit.

On Sunday, August 29, DJ Spinna and Spike Lee on stage at Fort Greene Park for the annual Brooklyn Loves Michael Jackson event.

A Michael Jackson impersonator took the stage during the song ‘Beat It’ by MJ.

Nadja Parker, a recurring attendee at the annual MJ tribute party.

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Nate Smith reflects on first year as Newport Jazz Fest’s artistic director By JOHNNY KNOLLWOOD Special to the AmNews The historic Newport Jazz Festival returned to Fort Adams State Park in Rhode Island from July 31 to Aug. 2. Jazz legends, emerging voices, and community members gathered next to the yachts under the beating sun to celebrate culture with one of the most diverse lineups in the festival’s history. “There really is such a breadth of music here, sort of coming out of this improvisatory spirit,” said drummer Nate Smith, who is serving in his first year as artistic director of Newport Jazz, in an onsite interview with the AmNews. “I think it speaks to this idea that music is universal and it’s bigger than any one musician.” Smith is no stranger to Newport, having first performed alongside legendary bassist Dave Holland in 2004. Smith called upon Holland to return to this year’s edition of the fest and Holland performed a special duo set alongside fellow Miles Davis band alum John Scofield. The bassist then discussed his work with the bandleader on the foundation stage on Saturday. “Really the biggest privilege of the job is I get to reach out to people I know — and people who I don’t know but would like to know and say, ‘come share your music at this legendary place,’” said Smith. “Newport is a family. People come here and they make

Herbie Hancock performing at Newport Jazz Festival on August 2. Hancock joined a diverse lineup spearheaded by new Artistic Director, Nate Smith. (Johnny Knollwood photos)

connections that last their entire careers.” Weekend highlights included performances by Herbie Hancock, Charles Lloyd, and Bernard Purdie; contemporary voices including Jon Batiste and Robert Glasper; South African pianist Nduduzo Makhathini; and the U.S. debut of Angine de Poitrine, who performed on the same stage as bassists Flea and Thundercat. Groups played throughout the weekend across three stages within the scenic seaside fort. While the festival sells out an-

nually, the vibe is easygoing and relaxed — courteous, even. Lines are pretty mellow and finding good spots to see and hear music is relatively easy. Many attendees and artists alike would agree that the festival is a unique entity. “Before you even get here, the enormity of Newport precedes you. You think about the history, you think about your heroes who have been on this stage, everyone from Louis Armstrong to Duke Ellington to Ella Fitzgerald, all these amazing artists. Newport has always been

about presenting the past, present and future of jazz,” Smith said. The Newport Festivals Foundation, the nonprofit behind the festival, supports the next generation by providing access to artistic resources and offering lessons and performance opportunities to children in the community. “I think one of the greatest things about this organization is that they are investing in the future of the music by teaching. That’s so important,” said Smith. “I did an hour-long masterclass with the Jazz Camp yesterday and we had a great time. We talked about everything from Art Blakey to J Dilla and they asked great questions. I left feeling really energized.” For Smith, part of the festival’s beauty and appeal lies in the potential for discovery. “My goal is that somebody comes to Newport, hears an artist they never heard before, then they go home and buy all their records, all their merch, tickets to their next show — that’s the kind of connection that sustains the music, when people really connect with an artist directly,” said Smith. “The environment here is so familial, it can create that kind of connection. That’s my hope. … That to me is what makes this exciting, that you can foster these connections for the rest of an artist’s career.” Stay up to date with the festival, and get info about next year at newportjazz.org.

Thundercat performing at Newport Jazz Festival on August 2. The bassist joined a diverse lineup spearheaded by new Artistic Director, Nate Smith.

Nate Smith performing at Newport Jazz Festival on August 2. The drummer is serving in his first year as Artistic Director of the festival.

Joshua Redman and Cory Wong performing at Newport Jazz Festival on August 1.

Jason Moran performing with Charles Lloyd at Newport Jazz Festival on July 31.

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This week: Maysles Documentary Center, The Pocket, Farewell to Flo

In the midst of Harlem’s fast-struttin’ Lenox Avenue, there is an unassuming beautiful gem of truth, excitement, and joy: Maysles Documentary Center (MDC), located at 343 Malcolm X Blvd. The nonprofit organization is the only independent documentary film house north of 96th Street, making it one of the city’s most important venues. It’s apropos that Maysles is just blocks away south of the historical Studio Museum in Harlem and just north of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Maysles is committed to screening documentaries and films that amplify underrepresented artists and narratives, shed light on injustice, highlight histories of resistance, and take stylistic and creative risks, all while empowering young filmmakers in creative self-expression, communicating ideas, and advocating needs. In these rainy days of insanity where even the sane seem insane, Maysles recognizes the power of documentary to disrupt normative and harmful historical narratives, and to help visualize different future possibilities. Emerging filmmakers of color are a priority, especially those who may struggle to find distribution and exhibition opportunities. Kazembe Balagun (an alumnus of Third World Cinema Corp., co-founded by Ossie Davis in 1972, though its roots formed during the 1960s Black Arts Movement), has been the executive director at Maysles for the past three years. “What I love about the medium of film is the ability to galvanize audiences from viewers to activists,” said Kazembe. “Harlem is our country that we created for people without a country.” The center offers a vibrant educational program for young filmmakers with a prominent alumni network of professionals, such as award-winning documentarians Shawn Antoine II (“Sight Unseen”), Shawn Batey (“Changing Face of Harlem”), and Oscar winner Josh Seftel. “Many participants return to teach. We are short on money but long on good people,” joked Kazembe, as we sat in a large office space behind the screening room, which seats 50. “The intergenerational connection allows students a continuity of work that connects younger works to older works. It’s the intimate face of Harlem, and history sharing is a super important cultural component.” MDC’s Harlem Photo League (inspired by photographers Gordon Parks and Roy DeCarava) focuses on still photography. Students not only take photos but learn the process of developing their own film with Hamilton Heights Darkroom, a partnership with Maysles. “This summer we had

Kazembe Balagun (Ron Scott Associates photo)

Flo Anthony Spinks (Facebook photo)

our first accelerated program, where we’re helping emerging filmmakers develop their portfolio and have them in conversation with working directors,” explained Kazembe. “Right now, we’re helping young people to submit their works to festivals, and we are paying for their festival fees. We are also helping them with their portfolios — how to write log lines [descriptions of their films] and create electronic press kits. These classes are developing and deepening our young people’s ability to go out into the world as confident artists.” The MDC was founded in 2005 by legendary filmmaker Albert Maysles (1926–2015) and his wife Gillian Walker — after moving from their Upper West Side apartment, they purchased this present location as a community center for documentary films and filmmaker conversations in Harlem. The Maysles family is still actively involved with the ongoing nonprofit. Some of MDC’s filmmaking instruction reflects the Maysles brothers’ (Albert and David, who passed in 1987) direct cinema style — handheld cameras, natural lighting, and unscripted storytelling. The pioneering documentary filmmakers made over 30 films together. “The camera is never neutral; it’s always going to be a weapon of politicalization and the views of globalization,” said Kazembe. “That’s what’s so important about our center — we are not just watching these films and going home. We have conversations with the films’ director that allow us to share ideas and values, giving us a sense of community which is very important. We look to be local with a global reach.” For more information and for film schedules, visit Maysles.org. It’s been quite some time, easily over

two decades, that our metropolis has been blessed with six new jazz clubs within one year, and that doesn’t include Brooklyn, a borough with a serious jazz tradition. Unfortunately, the hippest jazz scene in America, Harlem, is still waiting for a full-service jazz club (seven days per week). The Pocket (130 West 46th Street) is the latest jazz club to anchor in the hurry-scurry tourist scene of Times Square. Casually walk mid-block to the unassuming gray door, take a few steps in, walk down two short flights of stairs, and you’ve landed. The chic room is reminiscent of a Hollywood jazz scene, but feel free to dress up or dress down. The 170-seat capacity is quite comfortable whether at a table or sitting in the rear on long couches; no worries of being squeezed in sardine style. The ambiance calls for a first date or jazz lovers’ night out, but as we know, the music comes first. During my visits, the musicians took time to speak with fans and patrons after each set — a real treat for out-of-towners and NYC jazz enthusiasts alike. “It’s crazy out there (Times Square)! We just want people to come in, sit down, take a deep breath and just relax,” said co-owner Paul Martin. “We’re looking to make The Pocket a separate world from all the craziness where you can come to experience something memorable.” Upon entering the dimly lit room, there is one prominent fixture missing — oh hey, there is no bar. Drinks are, instead, being made in the kitchen. Translation: no rattling ice from drinks shaken, not stirred, no blenders, and no clicking glasses. Just the sound of good music with an excellent sound system, aaahhh! “We’re not just going to be a tourist spot; we want to be the real deal, and we’ve al-

ready seen that with over half the audience coming from the five boroughs,” said Martin, who earned his jazz wings while working with co-partner Grant Gardner at Jazz Standard. Thanks to Gardner, who’s opened a two-Michelin-star restaurant, the partners are relying on their food and hospitality. “We are operating at a high level in the spirit of the Jazz Standard, a really great restaurant culture,” said Martin. Only in its second month, the Pocket is looking like a jazz contender, having presented a cross section of jazz nobility like NEA Jazz Masters Wynton Marsalis and George Coleman; Peter Bernstein & Ed Cherry, and rising stars like Vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, Saxophonist/Composer Lakecia Benjamin, and Los Angeles Vocalist Michael Mayo, in for a one-night stand. Two weekly residencies: Mondays featuring Mingus Big Band and Tuesdays Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra. “We have to stake our claim and let the people know who we are,” said Martin. “We are looking to mix it up with an eye on the bottom line, having presented musicians like Nasheet Waits and Abraham Burton, and drummer Tyshawn Sorey and Immanuel Wilkins.” Coming up, three exceptional women of prominence. Two vocalists: Karrin Allyson on September 9 — she has a caressing tone with confidence to tackle Oscar Brown, Jr.’s “But I was Cool,” the high flyin’ “Everybody’s Boppin’,” and my favorite album “Ballads: Remembering John Coltrane (Concord 2001), ” and on September 10, Lucia, the Mexican jazz vocalist, blending jazz, Latin, and pop influences. The week closes out September 11-13 with clarinetist and composer Anat Cohen. “Bloom” (2024), her second album by her foursome Quartetinho, was quickly followed by the live album: “Interaction,” on Anat’s label (Anzic Records 2025). She is also a collaborating member of the all-star female group Artemis. All shows are at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. For reservations, visit thepocketnyc.com. I wanted to close this column with a farewell to my friend and colleague Flo Anthony. In the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, I was publicist for her cable TV show “Go with the Flo,” which is also the name of her AmNews column; at one point our columns appeared on the same page. Flo was a real sports fanatic, especially football and boxing; I met so many athletes while working with her, and I can’t forget her best friend, actress and singer Grace Garland. It was so funny to me that for some reason she always called me Ronnie, and we had some great times at press parties and happenings about town. Flo was a warm individual with a big smile who inspired all of us with her great achievements. She made an incredible contribution to the world of entertainment and sports, leaving an eternal legacy for generations to come. As my father would say, “You did good.”

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

White collar crime

BNY

Continued from page 3

Continued from page 5

workers we’ve heard from were literally told by their bosses, ‘if you don’t like how we’re treating you, you can report it, but then I’m going to report you to ICE.’ There’s this real sense of chill, especially among immigrant workers.” Under Bragg, the Manhattan D.A. renewed crackdowns against white collar crime in New York County, the world’s financial nexus. He created the office’s Housing & Tenant Protection Unit in his first year in office and its Worker Protection Unit a few months later. Bragg says historically, the office maintains a “very significant footprint” in the construction industry but is now making headway into protections for retail employees, garment workers, and even actors. “I don’t think that any industry is immune from this based upon the observations in our docket,” said Bragg. “I think we’re mostly talking about blue collar work, but [it’s] spanning lots of different industries.” For now, Levine says, the part-

nership is still shaping up and the public will not see much initially as work gets done behind closed doors. He also expressed hope for future partnerships with the city’s other four district attorneys’ offices and said working with Bragg will provide better insight into what worker and consumer issues New Yorkers face. “Manhattan does not have a monopoly on wage theft [or] white collar crime,” said Levine. “We would welcome partnerships with the other D.A.s. We bring cases in every borough…this partnership [is] going to give us more visibility into the type of wage theft we’re seeing. I really think that there’s a whole dimension to our economy that doesn’t show up when you look at the stock market. It doesn’t show up when you look at GDP figures and that’s the day-to-day experience of workers, especially immigrant workers, on the job.”

purpose-driven and having support, that have kept her grounded and motivated. Faith has performed in South Africa, Mexico, Paris, Brazil, and more, and has had her work shown in classrooms across the globe. She has also made appearances at world-famous venues including the Apollo Theater, on television

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 25 with News12 The Bronx, and both the African American Day Parade and the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Center on several occasions. Recently, she was named the inaugural Poet-in-Residence at the UMass Amherst W.E.B. Du Bois Center and earlier this year, the inaugural Ignite Fellow and artist-in-residence at the Mosesian Center for the Arts in Watertown, Massachusetts. This year, she has been preparing for her album and took part

in a summer tour performing in countries including Portugal and Spain and cities including Los Angeles and Chicago. The album will be available on all streaming platforms, and the release date will be available on her social media. “I know that what I’m doing is greater than me,” Faith said. “There are souls on the line, there are our lives that are being impacted, there are people that are feeling seen and heard and affirmed in spaces.”

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Education

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Five Percenters hold back-to-school backpack giveaway for Brooklyn kids By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff Members of the Five Percent Nation came together in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene Park on Aug. 30 to hand out backpacks for neighborhood children as school gets underway. Organizers said they arrived at the park around midday with about 150 backpacks and book supplies and planned to stay until every bag was given out. The organization’s annual giveaway, held on the last Sunday in August, has been held for 20 years, said Divine Justice, who helped organize the event. “We’re giving out free book supplies and free book bags to children in the community, and we do this every August.” Five Percent Nation members paid for the backpacks themselves, Justice said, due to the high cost of backpacks and school supplies, which can quickly put a dent in any normal household budget. “So, I went out of my way, me and a few brothers, good brothers, and we donated to the cause, and we said, ‘You know what? By August, we’re going to give out

at least 100 to 200 bags.’” The giveaway was part of a summer schedule of service events, Justice said, because Five Percenters also help neighborhood children with food, activities, and educational assistance. “We basically do June, July, and August; we usually give out scholarships, and we help give out free book supplies, free food, free events, free activities; and we just donate to let the kids know that we are here for them.” In July, the group sponsors a Children’s Day at Fort Greene Park: an event featuring food grills, banners, balloons, and a scholarship fund for young people entering school or college. Justice said the backpack drive is an organized response to the financial pressures local families are facing. A former juvenile detention counselor, Justice now works as a fatherhood specialist with the family services organization Forestdale. “A lot of families are struggling,” he explained: “They’re going through financial hardship. And because we know that we do this –– because we know the community can’t afford it.”

Five Percenters held backpack giveaway in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn, on Aug. 30. Divine Justice explained that Five Percent Nation members, who promote community empowerment and self-reliance, raised funds themselves to buy bookbags for giveaway. (Karen Juanita Carrillo photos) WWW.AMSTERDAMNEWS.COM

Vol. 116 No. 5 | January 30, 2025 - February 5, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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Straker

Don’t let scammers crash back-to-school season Tips from local Community Manager, Iliana Menesick

Continued from page 7

connection to home. Suzanne hears the labor — the hours, discipline, and dedication that went into producing what listeners experience simply as a finished record. For Allan, the music is nostalgic, transporting him back to the time he spent with his father. Home. Work. Memory. Together, they capture something of what Granville Straker leaves behind — not simply a catalog of Caribbean music, but evidence of the life and infrastructure built around it by a man who rarely stopped long enough to contemplate his own legacy. He was too busy doing the work.

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 27

Sponsored content by JPMorgan Chase

Beverly Tucker-Straker and Granville Straker.

(L to R) Lavern Straker, Allan Straker, Suzanne Straker Greenidge-Hewitt, and Clem Straker with their father, Granville Straker.

Today’s students and young adults are true digital natives, having grown up online, learning to navigate digital spaces as a normal part of daily life. As they transition to college, they turn to digital platforms and social media for everything from apartment hunting and job searches to shopping, banking and talking with friends. That familiarity, however, can create a false sense of security, making younger adults just as much of a target for fraud and scams as older individuals. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Report, Americans ages 20–29 reported more than $500 million to internet-crime losses in 2025. As scammers become more sophisticated, including using AI, students need to be more vigilant than ever about fraud and scams. Understanding the most common ones can help you and your children avoid becoming victims. Common scams targeting students (and the families supporting them) Online shopping and marketplace scams Whether your student is furnishing a dorm, moving into an apartment or buying textbooks--or you’re helping them pay for essentials—online deals and secondhand marketplaces can help you save money while also creating more opportunities for scammers. Buy from official and trusted retailers whenever possible, double check website URLs for misspellings or other red flags, and make sure the site uses https://. Be wary of deals that seem too good to be true as well. Avoid clicking links in unsolicited emails or text messages, including fake “missed delivery” notifications that often lead to fraudulent websites or malware. Before making a purchase, read seller reviews and ratings. If you’re buying locally, meet in a safe public place and inspect the item before paying. Job scams As students return to school this fall, some may be looking for part-time jobs or internships. Scammers target students with fake jobs offering high salaries, flexible schedules or jobs you can do from a residence hall, apartment or home. If your child receives a job offer by text, email, or direct message – be cautious, especially if they never applied to work at that company. Encourage them to use wellknown job boards and then apply directly through the company’s official website. Also, if an employer asks them to pay upfront for training, equipment, background checks or application fees, it may be a sign of a scam. Legitimate companies will never charge you to get a job. They also won’t send you money and then ask you to return a portion of it. Rental and housing scams Scammers know student housing is in high demand. They’ll often post fake apartment listings or copy legitimate ones to trick potential renters (or their families) into sending money for a deposit. Rental prices that seem unusually low should raise a red flag. Use a reverse image search to see if photos of the property appear on a different website or in a different location. Research unfamiliar property managers or housing websites before sending money, and avoid paying deposits through wire transfers, gift cards or peer-topeer payment apps. Double check the address, read online reviews of the property management company and schedule a tour of the house or apartment before signing a lease or sending a deposit. That way, you’ll know

1

the listing and location is real. The influence of AI Thanks to artificial intelligence, scammers can now create cloned voices and deepfake videos, along with fraudulent emails, text messages and even websites and apps that look real. These AI tools let scammers impersonate family members, employers, banks, law enforcement, delivery companies and trusted brands to get you to send money or share personal information. They may even target parents directly—claiming your child is in trouble and needs money immediately. How to protect yourself (and your children) No matter what type of scam you encounter, a few simple habits can go a long way toward reducing your risk: • Limit the personal information you and your children share online and make social media profiles private whenever possible. This can help reduce the information scammers can use to target you, guess your security questions or attempt to access your financial accounts. • When you’re making a payment, use more protected methods, such as credit and debit cards, which generally offer stronger consumer protections than wire transfers, gift cards or peer-to-peer payment apps. Treat peer-to-peer payments, such as Zelle, like cash — once the money is sent, it’s often difficult to recover. • Scammers can spoof phone numbers to make calls look like they’re coming from your bank, law enforcement or another trusted organization. Don’t automatically trust your caller ID – if you get a call demanding immediate action or claiming there’s a problem with your account, hang up and call back directly using a verified phone number. Banks will never call and ask you for account information, tell you to transfer money to ‘protect’ it or pressure you to act immediately. • Don’t click links or download attachments from unexpected emails or text messages and avoid accessing your financial accounts or making online purchases on public Wi-Fi, where savvy cybercriminals can gain access to your login credentials. • Perhaps most importantly, slow down. Back-toschool season brings a flurry of financial decisions and scammers know students and families are looking for deals. They often create a false sense of urgency to try to pressure people into making quick decisions. Taking a few extra minutes to verify information can make the difference. The bottom line Whether your student is shopping for school supplies, searching for a job or signing a first lease, their status as a student can make them a prime target for scammers—and families can be targeted too. Stay skeptical of unsolicited offers, verify before you pay or share personal information, and slow down when something feels rushed. Those simple habits can help protect your money, your identity and your family’s peace of mind throughout the school year from scams and fraud. To help consumers stay ahead of common and emerging threats, Chase hosts more than 1,000 free fraud and scam prevention workshops each year in communities across the country. This September, Chase will host a workshop for Bronx Community College students focused on recognizing scams and protecting their money and personal information during the back-to-school season.

For more financial health tips, visit chase.com/scamproof. For informational/educational purposes only: Views and strategies described in this article or provided via links may not be appropriate for everyone and are not intended as specific advice/recommendation for any business. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but JPMorgan Chase & Co. or its affiliates and/ or subsidiaries do not warrant its completeness or accuracy. The material is not intended to provide legal, tax, or financial advice or to indicate the availability or suitability of any JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. product or service. You should carefully consider your needs and objectives before making any decisions and consult the appropriate professional(s). Outlooks and past performance are not guarantees of future results. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its affiliates are not responsible for, and do not provide or endorse third party products, services, or other content. Deposit products provided by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Opportunity Lender.

Granville Straker with family.

© 2026 JPMorgan Chase & Co

28 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Health

Measles deaths reported in Pennsylvania spark fight among politicians and health officials By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The recent announcement of Pennsylvania’s first measles-related deaths in decades has ignited a public feud among politicians and health officials who disagree over the role of the contagious disease in the fatalities. Independent experts say the conflict is a symptom of a social and political debate about how to frame a national surge in measles cases — the worst seen in more than three decades. Pennsylvania officials this week reported that two unvaccinated residents died after being infected with measles, with Gov. Josh Shapiro stressing that vaccinations could have averted the deaths. The announcement quickly came under fire as a clash erupted between Shapiro, a vaccine-promoting Democrat, and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Trump administration appointee with a history of raising

Commercial vaccine for the prevention of measles, epidemic mumps, and rubella. (Wikimedia Commons)

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alarms about established vaccines. Kennedy said in a social post the deaths “may even have been altogether fabricated.” Kennedy’s attack echoed statements he made last year, when three measles-related deaths were recorded and Kennedy questioned whether one of the children who died was killed by measles. Medical experts say the brouhaha has diverted focus from an exploding public health threat. “Now it’s turned political,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease doctor in the Pittsburgh area and a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “It’s no longer about getting answers and figuring this out.” The challenges of tallying measles deaths The U.S. eliminated the domestic spread of measles in 2000 by maintaining high vaccination rates, but those rates have fallen in recent years to below the 95% coverage needed to prevent outbreaks. In November, international health officials will meet to determine whether the U.S. and Mexico have lost their measles-free status. Complicating the situation in Pennsylvania are questions about what counts as a measles death, which is rare in the United States. The World Health Organization counts a death when a person has tested positive for measles, the death occurs within a month from when a rash appears, and the death is not obviously due to another cause such as trauma. State health officials are the ones who report measles cases and measles-associated deaths. The question of defining a measles death hasn’t come up much in recent decades because vaccination rates were high and measles illnesses and deaths had become rare. However, recent trends are driving conversations among health officials about how to better track the consequences of a surging problem. “As measles infections increase, we also need to prepare for more of the tragic complications we have largely avoided in this country for decades,” including not only deaths but also hospitalizations and brain injuries, said Janet Hamilton, executive director of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, in a statement. What’s known and not known about measles deaths In Pennsylvania, what’s not disputed is that both people who died had been infected with measles and were unvaccinated. The unresolved question is whether measles was

the main cause, or a contributing cause, of their deaths. In one of the deaths, an official has reached a conclusion. The Lancaster County Coroner, Dr. Stephen Diamantoni, said he is aware of only one death with evidence of measles infection. It was a newborn baby boy who died on August 14 — someone too young to get a recommended measles vaccination. Because one of the boy’s family members had measles, investigators tested the boy’s lung tissue and found evidence of measles infection, Diamantoni said. However, investigators did not see signs of a swollen spleen or other ravages from a measles infection that would have contributed to the death. The cause is being attributed to a tear in the spleen, and the coroner’s office says the virus did not play a role. The baby “did not die as a result of measles,” Diamantoni said. The Pennsylvania Department of Health initially refused to disclose any details about the two people who died, but on Wednesday night, state health officials posted on social media that one of the deaths is under investigation by the coroner’s office. No information has been released about the second death. The department said it stands by its announcement, adding that it relies on two questions to determine if a death was measles-related: Did the person have measles and did they die? As of Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had not updated the latest national tally of measles cases and deaths. The agency said on its website that the scheduled update was delayed, but did not disclose why. Dr. Paul Offit, a Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia vaccine researcher, said he’s worried that two measles-related deaths are an unusually high number in a county that reportedly has about 400 cases. The expected death rate for measles is 1 in 1,000 cases. That suggests there are a large number of other unreported infections in the Lancaster County area, said Offit. That is worrisome, given that this is the time of year when kids go back to school, which could increase the spread of an extremely transmissible disease. Vaccination efforts need to be stepped up “to prevent what I think is a coming disaster,” Offit said. Adalja faulted Pennsylvania officials for how they announced the deaths earlier this week. It should have only been health and medical officials, stating what is known and not yet known. “They should learn to keep the politicians out of it,” he said.

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Campaign

David Dinkins

comes from Democrats and voters in New York City, primarily with women, Latinos, and Black voters, said the poll. “There’s so much going on in Washington and beyond that, quite frankly, freaks us all out. There’s not a moment where we can rest and say our nation is in good hands because it’s just not. The work that we must do over the next 69 days is democracy building,” said Rep. Yvette Clarke, who joined in to celebrate with Adams, volunteers, and supporters in attendance. “That’s what our organizing is truly about. We are in the grips of an authoritarian slide.” Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon, former Assemblymember Annette Robinson, NAACP Brooklyn Chapter President Joan Alexander-Bakiriddin, and Brooklyn Councilmember Rita Joseph were also in attendance. Hochul’s ground team plans to phonebank, door knock, and canvass for Democrats up and down the ballot in the state from now until Election Day. They’re also leaning heavily on the hope that they can flip seats in this midterm to sway power away from President Donald Trump and the influence of MAGA Republicans in the House and Senate. “Two years ago, I was right here at the PDP campaign office, and together we worked tirelessly to bring victory

longstanding grievances involving policing and unequal treatment. Dinkins was caught between two constituencies central to his coalition; reassuring either community risked intensifying the other’s distrust. His eventual successor, Rudy Giuliani, exploited that fracture in 1993, helping move Jewish and other white ethnic voters away from Dinkins. Today, Mamdani faces a familiar political challenge: holding together a governing coalition whose members agree about the need for change but often disagree about how to achieve it. Mamdani assembled a coalition that is as diverse as the one supporting Dinkins. It includes Democratic Socialists, younger progressive voters, organized labor, renters struggling with housing costs, many Muslim and South Asian New Yorkers, liberal professionals in Manhattan and Brooklyn, and segments of the Jewish community drawn together by concerns about affordability and the desire for political change. Those constituencies share a desire for reform, but they do not necessarily share the same priorities. For example, Mamdani has promised to build nearly 200,000 affordable homes over the next decade — but fulfilling that promise will affect organized labor, outerborough homeowners, professional-class

Continued from page 8

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Former Assemblymember Annette Robinson joined the volunteers that are campaigning for Hochul and Adams on Aug. 26. (Ariama C. Long photo)

home,” said Community Organizer Jabaran Akram. “We built a strong coalition, mobilized our communities, and got the job done. This year, we’re back — and we’re ready to do it again. We know what it takes to win, and together, we’re going to bring another victory home for Governor Hochul and Speaker Adams.”

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September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 29 liberals, and younger progressives in different ways, potentially causing conflict in his coalition. Many New Yorkers support affordable housing in principle, but opposition often emerges when proposed developments affect their own neighborhoods. Public safety is another issue likely to expose fault lines in Mamdani’s coalition. New Yorkers generally agree about the need for safer streets and subways, but many disagree about how to achieve these goals. Public safety policies may expose differences between progressive activists and residents whose primary concern is crime. Mamdani assembled a broad coalition of New Yorkers who wanted to change the city’s direction. To avoid the intra-coalition conflicts that plagued Dinkins, he must explain how his policies on housing, public safety, and affordability benefit all New Yorkers. He must also ensure that disappointed coalition members still have a place at the table. Ultimately, the lesson of the Dinkins era is that effective governing requires a mayor to keep a coalition together, even when its members disagree about what change should mean. James J. Barney is a professor of legal studies at American Public University System and the author of “A Fragile Alliance: David Dinkins, Coalition Politics, and the Struggle to Govern a City in Crisis” (Fordham University Press, September 2026).

Madison Treated for rhabdomyosarcoma

30 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

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Religion & Spirituality Gary fell into darkness. Black churches refused to leave it there By REV. DOROTHY S. BOULWARE Word in Black When a powerful storm swept through the area earlier this month, downing trees and snapping power lines, the city of Gary, Indiana, was plunged into darkness. It’s taken the better part of a month for some of the city’s lights to flicker back on, but the crisis isn’t over for some. Without electricity for 17 days, some residents had to throw away spoiled food, leaving them staring at empty refrigerators and freezers. Others learned their homes needed hundreds, or in some cases thousands, of dollars in repairs before power could be restored. To Rev. Nicole Patrice Guns, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Gary, the derecho that tore through Gary illustrated the stark disparity between her working-class city of 60,000 — a part of the state accustomed to being overlooked — and the rest of nearby Indiana, a state with a racial makeup that is only 10% white. “You go further into the state, and power was restored,” Guns says. “But then you go to Gary, and it’s dark. It’s dark.” As residents waited for government agencies and the local utility company to catch up, Black churches in Gary and congregations across the country stepped into the gap. They’ve donated money, food, supplies, and volunteer manpower into the city, reviving the Black church’s historic role as both sanctuary and first responder. “Jesus preached, and he taught, and he healed people, and he fed people,” says Guns. “The Black church has been on the front lines in Gary.”

of 99 mph, comparable to the winds of a Category 2 hurricane. Guns described driving after the storm: streetlights burned in Chicago on the Illinois side of the interstate, but darkness swallowed the highway in Gary just over the Indiana state line. “It was pitch black,” she says. “This busy interstate with semi-trucks — I’ve never seen so many semi-trucks going through — and it’s dark.” As power lines fell during the storm, nearly 38,300 Gary customers lost electricity. But more than half of those customers were still waiting for service 10 days after the storm. Nevertheless, the massive storm and the lingering blackout in a Black Midwestern city received little national attention; Gary had been in the dark for about a week before much of the country noticed. Gary’s Historic Legacy That silence was especially painful in a city that has a rich history. A former steel town, Gary drew Black Southerners for mill jobs during the Great Migration and later became a center of Black culture, political power, and enterprise. It’s the hometown of Michael Jackson, the legendary King of Pop; it elected Richard Gordon Hatcher, one of the nation’s first Black big-city mayors, in 1967, and hosted the 1972 National Black Political Convention. But decades of economic hardship, including white flight and the wholesale outsourcing of manufacturing jobs, have scarred modern-day Gary. The city’s downtown is pocked with boarded theaters, abandoned department stores and vacant buildings that once housed Black-owned businesses. Outsiders see Gary as beset with crime, urban decay and administrative dysfunction. After hearing reports of slow power restoration, Gary Mayor Eddie Melton publicly called it “unacceptable” that thousands remained without electricity nearly two weeks after the derecho. Indiana Gov. Mike Braun, a Republican, ordered an investigation into Northern Indiana Public Service Co. to determine if the utility company, also known as NIPSCO, had been adequately prepared for the storm. Meanwhile, the company is facing a lawsuit for allegedly failing to adequately manage trees and vegetation around power lines. NIPSCO has denied negligence and said the storm caused historic damage, including destruction to hundreds of utility and transmission poles.’

‘It Was Pitch Black’ Still, as crews clear trees from the streets and repair power lines, Guns notes that Gary’s full recovery can not be addressed by simply flipping a switch. Decades of disinvestment, job loss, and blight have hamstrung the potential of a city that once powered the Hoosier State’s manufacturing economy. Guns says Gary may be down, but it’s definitely not out. “I see the resilience in the midst of hurt and devastation and poverty,” Guns says. “People love the city of Gary, and they’re not willing to just go down without a fight.” On Aug. 11, the derecho — a fast-moving, widespread line of severe thunderstorms that produces powerful, hurricane-force Trauma Hidden in the Dark straight-line winds over a large area — But Guns said NIPSCO’s delay in restoring ripped across northern Indiana. The Na- electricity mattered. Elderly residents sat in tional Weather Service recorded a wind gust dark homes for days. Families with critically

Shatiya Hardin uses a flashlight as she looks around her basement after power outages at her house in Gary, Ind., more than a week after a deadly storm passed. (Nam Y. Huh/AP photo)

ill loved ones struggled to preserve medicine and keep medical equipment functioning. Children started the new school year in the dark — another layer of trauma amid memories of tornado sirens, black skies and frightened classmates huddled in basements. Guns says the stereotypes about Gary and the hardships it faces overshadow residents’ love for their city and one another — an ethos the storm revealed. Before aid trucks and news cameras arrived, she says, restaurants fired up outdoor barbecue grills, cooked whatever food they had before it spoiled and gave it away. Neighbors helped neighbors haul away fallen trees. Churches handed out food, water, toiletries, and other necessities. “If I have it, then you have it,” Guns said, quoting the spirit of mutual aid in the wake of the storm. “Before the government came in to do anything, everyone just helped each other.” Guns’ own congregation, founded in 1908 and recognized as Gary’s oldest Black church, became one of the community’s relief centers. Guns, who will celebrate her first anniversary as pastor in October, said the disaster has pushed the congregation back toward its historic identity as a church “in and for the community.” Then help began arriving from beyond Gary — much of it through the network of the Black church. Outpouring of Support The National Baptist Convention USA Inc. sent workers to assist with tree removal. The denomination also arranged for a tractor-trailer filled with relief supplies to be delivered to First Baptist. Guns said National Baptist Convention President Boise Kimber

personally contacted her. Some churches sent substantial financial contributions. Others acknowledged that they could not give much but sent what they had. Pastors across the country — including the Rev. Frederick Douglass Haynes III of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas and the Rev. Gina Stewart of Christ Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis — also reached out. World Vision partnered with First Baptist for a disaster relief giveaway that provided residents with toilet paper, backpacks, and other supplies. First Baptist reported serving more than 300 people during the event. COGIC Charities, the benevolent arm of the Church of God in Christ, announced a $50,000 emergency relief contribution to its Indiana jurisdictions to assist families and congregations affected by the storms. The support was not limited to money. People sent supplies, equipment, personnel, and encouragement. “To me, that means just as much as the gifts,” Guns said. “That’s who we are.” That work, she said, represents the ministry of Jesus and the Book of Acts lived out in real time. Guns believes one way outsiders can help is by refusing to accept narratives that reduce Gary to a city overwhelmed by crime, poverty, and dysfunction. She objected to reports that violence against utility workers explained the slow restoration of service across the city. “The people of Gary are kind people,” she says. “Everybody in Gary is not violent,” and Guns has no intention of surrendering the city to the stories told about it. “Gary’s a great city,” she said. “And I believe that Gary’s going to live again.”

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 31

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NOTICE Notice is hereby given that a license, number #NA-0340-26124408 for Beer, Wine &Amp; Liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell Beer, Wine &Amp; Liquor at retail in a Restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 21 E. 16 Th St., New York, NYC, 10003, New York County for on premises consumption. Mahazan Inc., Mahazan Inc.

against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Katie Rue: 45 Orchard St, Storefront, New York, NY, 10002. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2007- HY7, Plaintiff AGAINST TERRE SIEPSER SIMPSON A/K/A TERRE S. SIMPSON A/K/A TERRE SIMPSON A/K/A TERRE SIEPSE-SIMPSON; ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered August 4, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, see posted location outside room 130, at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on October 6, 2026 at 2:15 pm, premises known as 106 Central Park South, Unit 3B, New York, NY 10019. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, Block: 1011 Lot: 4089. Approximate amount of judgment $1,863,650.44 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850164/2023. Allison Furman, Esq., Referee Fein, Such & Crane, LLP 28 East Main Street Rochester, NY 14614 SPSNC846 91290

Citizens Bank, N.A. d/b/a Citizens One Home Loans

NOTICE Notice is hereby given that a license, number #CL-26102514-01 for Beer, Wine & Liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell Beer, Wine & Liquor at retail in a Restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 75 Murray Street , New York, NY 1007, New York County for on premises consumption. Italia Like Locals Inc., Italia Like Locals Inc. NOTICE Notice is hereby given that a license, number #NA-0340-26121166 for Beer, Wine &Amp; Liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell Beer, Wine &Amp; Liquor at retail in a Restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 1481 York Ave. , New York, NYC 10075, New York County for on premises consumption. Gambetta 31-Akbou 06 Inc., Gambetta 31-Akbou 06 Inc. Notice of formation of Prompt Studios, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/02/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Prompt Studios, LLC: 140 Broadway 28th Floor New York, NY 10005. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Revolutionary Therapeutic Services, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/30/2026. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Shakeem E. Holmes: Shakeemh@ yahoo.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Afterglow NYC LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/09/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process

Notice of formation of Lindi Gordon Photography LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/02/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to ZenBusiness: RA@ ZenBusiness.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Good Timing Platform, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/11/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Good Timing Platform, LLC: 110 West 40th Street, Suite 1500, New York, NY 10018. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. 108 HIGH POND RD LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 06/03/26. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 251 Central Park West, Apartment 8A, New York, NY 10024. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. SKYLARK TALENT MANAGEMENT, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 07/16/2024. Office in New York Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to 192 East 3rd Street, Apt, 4A, New York, NY 10009. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of VCW JV, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/10/26. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 370 Lexington Ave., 23rd Fl., NY, NY 10017. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of PHIPPS SOLAR I, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/04/26. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: c/o Phipps Houses, 257 Park Ave. South, 12th Fl., NY, NY 10010. SSNY designated as agent

GALLIUM PRESS LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 06/03/26. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 15 West 67th Street, Suite 4FW, New York, NY 10023. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of 65 CPW 1G LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/02/26. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Cindy Kadet, 65 Central Park West, Apt. 1G, NY, NY 10023. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of LUCID MEDIA ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTIONS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/10/26. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 1 Saint St., Apt. 2, Brooklyn, NY 11217. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of WHITTINGHAM LAW PLLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/29/26. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of PLLC: 3 Columbus Circle, Fl. 15, NY, NY 10019. SSNY designated as agent of PLLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the PLLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Law. Notice of Authority of RLB Official LLC. App. for Auth. filed with SSNY on 12/3/25. Offc. Loc: NY Cty. SSNY desig. for service of process. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, c/o Square Seven Management, LLC, 15 E 26th St, Ste 602, NY, NY 10010. Purpose: any lawful purpose NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK U.S. BANK NA, SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE TO BANK OF AMERICA, NA, SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST TO LASALLE BANK NA, AS TRUSTEE, ON BEHALF OF THE HOLDERS OF THE WAMU MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH

SUPREME COURT-NEW YORK COUNTYHILTON RESORTS CORP., Pltf. v. TALIA N. PLAUT, Deft. - Index # 850015/2025. Pursuant to Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated May 28, 2026, I will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse located at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, at 2:15 pm, an interest of an undivided 0.047201260419194% tenant in common interest in the timeshare known as 48TH STREET VACATION SUITES located at 12 East 48th Street, New York, NY. Approximate amount of judgment is $23,658.41 plus costs and interest as of March 4, 2026. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale which includes annual maintenance fees and charges. Jeffrey R. Miller, Esq., Referee. Cruser, Mitchell, Novitz, Sanchez, Gaston, & Zimet LLP, Attys. for Pltf., 341 Conklin Street, Farmingdale, NY NOTICE OF SALE Index No. 850660/2023 MORTGAGED PROPERTY: 635 W. 42nd Street, Unit 2E, Borough of Manhattan, City of New York, State of New York 10036 Assessment Roll: Tax Map No. 01090-1163 Mortgage Servicer:

Mortgage Service Telephone No.: 800-234-6002 SUPREME COURT STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK CITIZENS BANK, N.A., Plaintiff, -against- ANTHONY PERKINS a/k/a ANTHONY R. PERKINS a/k/a ANTHONY RAY PERKINS; CITIZENS BANK, N.A. f/k/a RBS CITIZENS, N.A.; THE BOARD OF MANAGERS OF THE ATELIER CONDOMINIUM; COMMISSIONER OF LABOR STATE OF NEW YORK; NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE; ROYAL BANK OF CANADA; PEARL DELTA FUNDING LLC; NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT ADJUDICATION BUREAU; and NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PARKING VIOLATIONS BUREAU, Defendants. In pursuance of a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly made on June 4, 2026, and entered in the New York County Clerk’s Office on June 6, 2026, I, the undersigned, the referee, will now sell at public auction, at the New York County Courthouse located at 60 Center Street, New York, New York in room 252 on September 22, 2026, at 2:15 o’clock in the afternoon of that date, the premises directed by said judgment to be sold which are commonly known as 635 W. 42nd Street, Unit 2E, Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City of New York, State of New York, Assessment Roll: Tax Map No. 01090-1163. A complete legal description can be obtained upon request from plaintiff’s attorney. Judgment amount $842,896.62, plus interest, costs and expenses. Matthew D. Hunter, III, Esq. COOPER ERVING & SAVAGE, LLP Attorneys for Plaintiff 20 Corporate Woods Blvd., Ste. 501 Albany, New York 12211 (518) 449-3900 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT BRONX COUNTY PNC BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff against ANGELA MCGHEE AS BENEFICIARY UNDER THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF STANFORD SHAW A/K/A STANDFORD SHAW, et al Defendant(s) Attorney for

32 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

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Plaintiff(s) Margolin, Weinreb & Nierer, LLP, 575 Underhill Boulevard, Suite 224, Syosset, NY 11791. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered October 15, 2018, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at the Bronx County Courthouse, Courtroom 711 at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, New York on September 28, 2026 at 2:15PM. Premises known as 4084 Wilder Avenue, Bronx, New York 10466. Block 4984 Lot 33. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being at Edenwald, Borough and County of Bronx, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $137,370.70 plus interest, fees, and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 32231/2015E. The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with 12th Judicial District’s Covid-19 Policies and the Bronx County foreclosure auction rules. The Referee shall enforce any rules in place regarding facial coverings and social distancing. Charlane Brown, Esq., Referee File # 17-0930

SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF New York, U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee, in trust for the holders of UBSBarclays Mortgage Trust 2013C6, Commercial Mortgage Pass-through certificates, series 2013-C6, Plaintiff, vs. 240 Park Avenue South Owner LP, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on July 20, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction to be posted outside of Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on October 6, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 240 Park Avenue South, Commercial Storage Unit, A/K/A 240 Park Avenue South, A/K/A 49/55 East 19th Street, New York, New York and 240 Park Avenue South, Commercial Unit, A/K/A 240 Park Avenue South, A/K/A 49/55 East 19 Street, New York, NY 10940. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 848 and Lot 1301 and 1302 together with an undivided 5.9491 and 4.2941 percent interest in the Common Elements. Approximate amount of judgment is $14,002,392.26 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850406/2024. Mark McKew, Esq., Referee Duane Morris, LLP, 22 Vanderbilt, 335 Madison Avenue, 23rd Floor, New York, New York 10017-4669, Attorneys for Plaintiff

proximate amount of judgment is $1,197,719.00 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850019/2025. Sofia Balile, Esq., Referee Polsinelli PC, Aaron P. Davis, Esq., 600 Third Avenue, 42nd Floor, New York, New York 10016, Attorneys for Plaintiff

to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 850003/2024. Approximate amount of judgment is $5,298,632.71, together with interest and costs.

by publication pursuant to an order of the Honorable Francis A. Kahn III J.S.C. Dated: July 9, 2026 Filed: July 9, 2026. The object of this action is to foreclose a mortgage and covering the premises known as 493 Manhattan Avenue, New York, NY 10027. Dated: June 16, 2026 Filed: July 27, 2026 Greenspoon Marder LLP, Attorney for Plaintiff, By: Raspreet Bhatia, Esq.1345 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 2200, New York, NY 10105 P: (212) 5245000 F: (212) 524-5050 (No Service by fax)

Co. LLP. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/30/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Secretary of State of New York (SSNY): Gluck & Co. LLP, 305 Broadway, Suite 731, New York, NY 10007. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF New York, Freedom Mortgage Corporation, Plaintiff, vs. Farhad M. Boukani, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on December 19, 2022 and a Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on July 29, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, to be posted outside of Room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on September 29, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 467 Central Park West a/k/a 467 West Central Park, Unit No. 1-D, New York, NY 10025. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 1842 and Lot 1003 together with an undivided 0.4972 percent interest in the Common Elements. Approximate amount of judgment is $332,718.76 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850053/2019. Roberta Ashkin, Esq., Referee Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff. Firm File No.: 244201-1 Notice of Formation of SEAL PARK VENTURES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 6/16/2026. Office location: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 245 8th Ave, #884, New York, NY 10011. Purpose: any lawful activity. NOTICE OF SALE

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF New York, Stormfield SPV IV, LLC, Plaintiff, vs. Bowery Shed LLC, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on March 9, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, room assignment will be posted outside of room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on September 22, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 354 Bowery, Unit 3, New York, NY 10012. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 531 and Lot 1203 together with an undivided 16 percent interest in the Common Elements, as well as all personal property of Defendant as identified in that certain Consolidation, Extension and Modification Agreement, dated as of May 16, 2023, and recorded on May 23, 2023, as CRFN 2023000126995, and excluding any funds held by Plaintiff in any reserve, escrow, or suspense fund, and excluding any funds held by Plaintiff in any cash management account. Ap-

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK U.S. BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE TO BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. AS SUCCESSOR TO LASALLE BANK, N.A. AS TRUSTEE FOR THE HOLDERS OF THE MERRILL LYNCH FIRST FRANKLIN MORTGAGE LOAN TRUST, MORTGAGE LOAN ASSETBACKED CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2007-FF2, Plaintiff AGAINST JOSE BUCO A/K/A JOSE H. BUCO A/K/A JOSE SANDY H. BUCO A/K/A JOSE SANDY HAYAG BUCO; ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered June 3, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse, see posted location outside room 130, at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on September 15, 2026 at 2:15 pm, premises known as 350 West 42nd Street Unit 57D, New York, NY 10036. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York, Block: 1032 lot: 1517. Approximate amount of judgment $3,064,889.44 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850001/2023. For sale information, please visit ServiceLink Auction at https:// www.servicelinkauction.com or call (866) 539-4173. Jeffrey R. Miller, Esq., Referee Fein, Such & Crane, LLP 28 East Main Street Rochester, NY 14614 SPSJC189 90984 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK , Mary Djurasevic , Plaintiff, vs . Marcy Ellin Boucher, a/k/a Marcy Ellen Boucher, a/k/a Marcy E. Boucher a/k/a Marcy Boucher ET AL. , Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion dated January 30 , 2025, and duly entered May 21, 2025 I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Supreme Court, Room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on September 15th at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 406 West 25 th Street, New York, N.Y. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of New York, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 722 and Lot 45. Premises will be sold subject

Jeffrey R. Miller, Esq., Referee Law Offices of Morrison Cohen LLP, Joaquin Ezcurra, Esq., 909 Third Avenue, 27 th Floor, New York, NY 10022-4784, (212) 735-8600 SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS–SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, COUNTY OF NEW YORK – CITY NATIONAL BANK, Plaintiff, -against- BRENT BOYCE AKA BRENT T. BOYCE, if he be living and if he be dead, the respective heirs-at-law, next-ofkin, distributes, executors, administrators, trustees, devisees, legatees, assignees, lienors, creditors and successors in interest and generally all persons having or claiming under, by or through said defendant who may be deceased, by purchase, inheritance, lien or inheritance, lien or otherwise any right, title or interest in or to the real property described in the complaint; NEW YORK CITY ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL BOARD, Defendants - Index No. 850569/2025 Plaintiff Designates New York County as the Place of Trial. The Basis of Venue is that the subject premises is situated in New York County. To the above named Defendants– YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your Answer or, if the Complaint is not served with this Summons, to serve a Notice of Appearance upon the Plaintiff’s attorney within twenty (20) days after the service of this Summons, exclusive of the date of service or within thirty (30) days after the service is complete if this Summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York. If you fail to so appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. That this Supplemental Summons is being filed pursuant to an order of the court dated July 9, 2026. NOTICE-YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME – If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to the mortgage company will not stop the foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (CITY NATIONAL BANK) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. The foregoing summons is served upon you

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK Index No. 153744/2026 Purchased: 3-252026 SUMMONS Address of Subject Premises: Unit PH3-D 222 Riverside Drive New York, New York 10025Block: 1253 Lot: 1172 BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 222 RIVERSIDE DRIVE CONDOMINIUM, Plaintiff, -againstPATRICK VIDAVER, Defendant. To the Above Named Defendant: You are hereby summoned to answer the complaint of the plaintiff in this action and to serve a copy of your answer on the plaintiff’s attorneys at the address indicated below within twenty (20) days after service of this Summons (not counting the day of service itself) or within thirty (30) days after ser-vice is complete if this Summons is not delivered personally to you within the State of New York. You are hereby notified that, should you fail to answer or appear, a judgment will be entered against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint. The basis of the venue designated is the county in which the subject of the action is situated, as required by CPLR § 507. Dated: New York New York March 24, 2026 The Grun Law Group, P.C. By: Karen E. McArthur, Esq. Attorneys for Plaintiff 424 Madison Avenue, 2nd Floor New York, New York 10017 (212) 973-3332 kmcarthur@grunlawgroup.com NOTICE: This is an action to foreclose on a statutory lien for unpaid condominium common charges. The relief sought is to have the condominium unit described below sold according to law, and that the proceeds arising from the sale be brought into court, and that there be paid therefrom, insofar as the monies properly applicable thereto will pay the same, the expenses of the sale and the other sums due to plaintiff pursuant to the lien, together with interest, attorneys’ fees and disbursements of this action to the date of payment. The subject of this action is the following property:

Notice of formation of Legal Management Tools, PLLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/29/26. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Jacob Richman: jrichman@legalmgmttools.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of 803 Street, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/172026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to 803 Street LLC: 66 Saint Nicholas Place Apartment 36A New York NY 10032. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Sancta Tribeca, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 6/24/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to LegalZoomUSCA, Inc.: 124 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10013. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of In The Ether Productions LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 6/20/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to LegalZoom USCA, INC.: 45 Main Street Suite 28 Brooklyn,NY 11201. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

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Notice of formation of Hostage Families NY Story Project LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/20/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Dana Cwaigrach: 27w 72nd st , 10023 NY. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Notice of formation of Gluck &

Notice of formation of Older

The condominium unit known as Apartment PH3-D at 222 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10025; Block 1253, Lot

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Sister Events, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/03/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Catherine A Sullivan: 310 1st Ave Apt 7H, New York, NY 10009. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/05/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to LEGALZOOM USCA, INC. 45 MAIN STREET, SUITE 238 BROOKLYN, NY, 11201, USA: DROPPINGEMZLLC@outloo.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

07/17/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to The Secretary of State: 106 W, 117th St, New York, NY, 10026. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

(Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Kenneth Musante: 127 W83rd St, #227, New York NY, 10024. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 30 E 23rd St, Floor 12, New York, NY 10010. Purpose: any lawful activity.”

cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to: Radio Man, LLC at PO Box 778, NY, NY 10013. Reg. Agent: eResidentAgent, Inc. 1 Rockefeller Plaza Ste 1204, NY, NY 10020. P/B/A: 205 Hudson St, Ste 1002, NY, NY 10013. Purpose: any lawful activity.

Notice of formation of THE WONDER TREE LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/12/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to ENTITY PROTECT REGISTERED AGENT SERVICES LLC: 447 Broadway, 2nd Fl. - #3000, New York, NY 10013. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Redman Protective Service LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/07/2026. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Redman Protective Service LLC: emeldara@yahoo.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Eagle Crest Facility Services LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 8/15/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Aldiana Hot: 105 Pinehurst Ave, Apt. Super, New York, NY 10033. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Redman Protective Service LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/07/2026. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Ransford Redman: 40B Adler Place, Bronx, NY, 10475. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Voyzant LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/13/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to VOYZANT LLC: ayesha@voyzantus.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of DROPPINGJEMZ LLC. Articles of

Notice of formation of 10 Topaz EH, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 6/22/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Andrew Koff: PO Box 111 New York, NY 10028. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Gluck & Co. LLP. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/30/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Gluck & Co. LLP: info@gluckllp.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of STOREY GALLERY, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/25/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to STOREY GALLERY, LLC: 60 Russell St, Brooklyn, NY 11222. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of NAPOLI BITES LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/01/2026. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to REPUBLIC REGISTERED AGENT SERVICES INC.: 54 STATE STREET, STE 804 ALBANY, NY, 12207, USA. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Platinum Lux LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/26/26. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Jose David Mora: 2600 Marion Avenue. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of BENOOSH LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on

Notice of formation of Cavu Books LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/10/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Elizabeth Anne Savery: 105 West 13 Street, Apt. 16D, New York, NY 10011. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Fushia Financials, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/16/2021. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to The LLC: 99 Wall Street Ste 5301, New York, NY 10005. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of 360 Event Supplies, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/21/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to The LLC: 228 Park Avenue South #201242 New York, NY 10003. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of WSA Culinary LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 6/11/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to c/o United Agent Group Inc.: 600 Mamaroneck Avenue #400, Harrison, NY 10528. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/18/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Mohammad Sadeghi Ghahareh: m.sadeghi@msgwe.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Litmatic, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/02/2026. Office location: New York County

Notice of formation of DEMI LINGO STUDIO LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/18/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Demi Lingo: 6634 108th Street Apt. 2B, Forest Hills, New York 11375. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of VELOR FILMS, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/27/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Northwest Registered Agent LLC: 418 Broadway, STE N Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Qualification of SUREGO TECHOLOGIES LLC. Certificate of Authority filed with Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/01/2026. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). Limited Liability Company (LLC) formed on 04/20/2026. SSNY designated as agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Registered Agent Solutions, Inc: 195 Canal St Suite 203 New York, NY 10013. Articles of Organization originally filed with Secretary of State (SOS). 1603 Capitol Ave Suite 310 Cheyenne, WY 82001 Purpose: Any lawful purpose. VTID LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/6/2025. Office: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: The LLC, 2 Cornelia St, Apt 801, New York, NY 10014. Purpose: any lawful act. STUDIODYKAS LLC Articles of Org. For Any Lawful Activity filed w/ SSNY 08/25/2026 New York County. SSNY designated agent whom process against to be served. SSNY mail all docs: 447 Broadway 2nd Floor #1476, New York, NY 10013 “Notice of Formation of Exponent Originations, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on May 7, 2026. Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom

Notice of formation of SEALED WITH SNARK LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 07/15/2026. Office located in NEW YORK. SSNY is designated for service of process. SSNY shall mail a copy of any process served against the LLC to SEALED WITH SNARK LLC 99 WALL STREET #2319, NEW YORK, NY, 10005, USA. Purpose: any lawful purpose. KINAN LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 06/17/2026. Office in New York Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to 228 Park Ave S #235091, New York, NY 10003. Legalzoom Usca, Inc. desig. as agent for SOP 45 Main Street, Suite 238, Brooklyn, NY 11201. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of formation of Restorative Retreats, LLC . Arts. of Org. filed w/ Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/13/2026 . Off. loc.: New York Cnty. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 220 East 65th St, #11EF, New York, NY 10065. Purpose: Any lawful activity. KYRIAKOULI GROUP LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 6/10/26. Office in New York Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to 808 Columbus Ave (17m), (c/o Pauline Cho), New York, NY 10015. Any lawful purpose STUDIO ARMANDO AGUIRRE LLC. Arts. of Org. filed SSNY 03/18/2025. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent for process & shall mail copy to: THE LLC, 73 W 11th St, Apt 4R, New York, NY 10011. Registered agent: United States Corporation Agents, Inc., 7014 13th Ave, Ste 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: any lawful act or activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION OF VNESS, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/19/26. Office Loc. NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to: Vness, LLC at 1001 Ave of the Americas, 2nd Fl, NY, NY 10018. Reg. Agent: eResidentAgent, Inc. 1 Rockefeller Plaza Ste 1204, NY, NY 10020. P/B/A: 1001 Ave of the Americas, 2nd Fl, NY, NY 10018. Purpose: any lawful activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION OF RADIO MAN, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/29/26. Office Loc. NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom pro-

169 OXFORD BLVD LLC filed Arts. of Org. with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/2/2026. Office: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: c/o St. Marks Hotel, 2 St. Marks Place, New York, NY 10003. Purpose: any lawful act. JWCM COF I MF ADMIN, LLC Auth. filed w/ SSNY 8/3/26. Off. in NY Co. Cert of Form. filed w/ SSDE 7/31/26. Process served to SSNY - desig. as agt. of LLC & mailed to 445 Park Ave., Ste. 1600, NY, NY 10022. Add. maintd. in DE: 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Name & add. of auth. officer in DE where Cert of Form filed: SSDE, Div. of Corp, John G Townsend Bldg, 401 Federal St, Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. Notice of Qualification of INTERNATIONAL AFFILIATES LLC, d/b/a NEXTGUARD INSURANCE AGENCY LLC. Application for Authority filed with Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/20/2026. Office location: New York County. LLC formed in Florida on 06/14/2019. LLC is not required to maintain an office in Florida. Principal office of LLC: 3000 S Ocean Drive, Apt 608, Hollywood, FL 33019. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: International Affiliates LLC, 3000 S Ocean Drive, Apt 608, Hollywood, FL 33019. Address of the officer in Florida where a copy of the Articles of Organization may be obtained: Secretary of State, State of Florida Division of Corporations, 2415 N Monroe Street, Suite 810, Tallahassee, FL 32303. Purpose: any lawful activity. NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF SUKHADAA NY, LLC. Appl. for Auth. filed with the Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/21/26. Office Loc. New York County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 7/21/26. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to: Sukhadaa NY, LLC at 3940 Laurel Canyon Blvd., #946, Studio City, CA 91604. Reg. Agent: eResidentAgent, Inc.1 Rockefeller Plaza Ste 1204, NY, NY 10020. DE address of LLC is 500 Delaware Ave., 903, Wilmington, DE 19801. P/B/A: 3940 Laurel Canyon Blvd., #946, Studio City, CA 91604. Cert. of LLC filed with Secy. of State of DE located at 401 Federal St, 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION

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OF MILLS VINTAGE LLC. Appl. for Auth. filed with the Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 8/3/26. Office Loc. NY County. LLC formed in FL on 12/11/14. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to: MILLS VINTAGE LLC at PO Box 65063, Los Angeles, CA 90065. Reg. Agent: eResident‑ Agent, Inc. 1 Rockefeller Plaza Ste 1204, NY, NY 10020. P/B/A: 2532 Garfield St, Hollywood, FL 33020. Cert. of LLC filed with Secy. of State of FL located at R.A. Gray Building, 500 S Bronough St, Tallahassee, FL 32399. Purpose: any lawful activity

Block: 1802 Lot: 38 Said premises known as 322‑324 EAST 126TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $10,548,529.53 plus interest & costs.

New York, NY a/k/a Block 496, Lot 34. Approximate amount of judgment is $28,125,967.56 plus cost and interest. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale. ELAINE SHAY, Referee. BALLARD SPAHR LLP, Attys. for Pltf., 1675 Broadway, 19 Floor, New York, NY. #103137

Block 1006 and Lot 1302. Said premises known as 1335 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY 10019 Approximate amount of lien $28,982.63 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850082/2023. HARVEY STEVEN MARS, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39064 {* AMSTERDAM*}

County. Princ. office of PLLC: 130 East 35th St., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of PLLC upon whom pro‑ cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the PLLC at the addr. of its princ. of‑ fice. Purpose: Medicine.

Notice of Qualification of ETH‑ MOS, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/18/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Dela‑ ware (DE) on 06/16/26. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. SIG RCRS D MF 2023 VEN‑ TURE LLC, Plaintiff ‑against‑ 318‑322 EAST 126 LLC, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated March 18, 2026 and entered on March 26, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Supreme Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY, in the courtroom designated by the posting out‑ side of Room 130, on October 6, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. PARCEL 1: situate, lying and being in the Borough of New York, County of New York, bounded and de‑ scribed as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the southerly side of East 126th Street, distant 300 feet easterly from the cor‑ ner formed by the intersection of the said southerly side of East 126th Street and the east‑ erly side of Second Avenue; be‑ ing a plot 99 feet 11 inches by 50 feet by 99 feet 11 inches by 50 feet. Block: 1802 Lot: 40 318 EAST 126TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY PARCEL 2: situate, lying and being in the Borough of New York, County of New York, City and State of New York, bound‑ ed and described as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the southerly side of East 126th Street, distant 300 feet easterly from the corner formed by the intersection of the said south‑ erly side of East 126th Street and the easterly side of Second Avenue; being a plot 99 feet 11 inches by 50 feet by 99 feet 11 inches by 50 feet. Block: 1802 Lot 39. Said premises known as 320 EAST 126TH STRET, NEW YORK NY PARCEL 3: situate, lying and being in the Borough of New York, County of New York, City and State of New York, bounded and de‑ scribed as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the southerly side of East 126th Street, dis‑ tant 350 feet easterly from the corner formed by the intersec‑ tion of the said southerly side of East 126th Street and the easterly side of Second Avenue, being a plot 99 feet 11 inches by 41 feet 8 inches by 99 feet 11 inches by 41 feet 8 inches.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850136/2025. ALLISON FURMAN, ESQ., Ref‑ eree Windels Marx Lane & Mitten‑ dorf, LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 120 Albany Street Plaza, New Brunswick, NJ 08901 {* AMSTERDAM*} SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. BOARD OF MANAGERS OF THE 75 KENMARE STREET CONDOMINIUM, Plaintiff ‑against‑ KOK KIT LEE, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered herein and dated July 7, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auc‑ tion at the New York County Supreme Courthouse, 60 Cen‑ tre Street, New York, NY, in the courtroom designated by the posting outside of Room 130, on Tuesday, October 6, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, The Unit known as Unit No. 2G in the Building known by 75 Kenmare Street, known and designated as Unit No. 2G in the condomin‑ ium known as “The 75 Kenmare Street Condominium”. Together with an undivided 1.65 percent interest in the common ele‑ ments. Block: 480 Lot: 1310 Said premises known as 75 KENMARE STREET, UNIT 2G, NEW YORK, NY Approximate amount of lien $70,040.78 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 151896/2025. GREGORY M. LASPINA, ESQ., Referee Schneider Buchel LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 60 Crossways Park Dr West, Suite 340, Woodbury, NY 11797 {* AMSTERDAM*} NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT. NEW YORK COUNTY. WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE, FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE HOLDERS OF CD 2019-CD8 MORTGAGE TRUST COM‑ MERCIAL MORTGAGE PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2019-CD8, Pltf. vs. 63 SPRING LAFAYETTE, LLC, et al Deft. Index# 850042/2022. Pursuant to judgment of fore‑ closure and sale entered April 23, 2025, I will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on September 29, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. prem. k/a 63 Spring Street,

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT: NEW YORK COUNTY. FLUSHING BANK, Pltf. vs. CORY RE‑ ALTY, INC., et al, Defts. Index #850032/2022. Pursuant to an amended judgment of foreclo‑ sure and sale entered July 15, 2026, I will sell at public auc‑ tion in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on September 22, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises k/a 747 St. Nicholas Avenue, New York, NY 10031 a/k/a Block 2062, Lot 132. Said property beginning at a point on the Westerly line of St. Nicholas Avenue, distance 93 ft. 8 inches North of the Northwesterly corner of 147th St. and St. Nicholas Avenue, being a plot 100 ft. x 18 ft. 9 inches. Approximate amount of judgment is $2,965,996.90 plus costs and interest. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed amended judgment and terms of sale. JERRY A. MEROLA, Referee. WESTERMAN, BALL EDERER, MILLER, ZUCKER & SHARFSTEIN, LLP, Attys for Pltf., 1201 RXR Plaza, Union‑ dale, NY 11556 #103144 NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. HNY CLUB SUITES OWNERS ASSOCIATION INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff ‑against‑ PEARLIE DIANE MANNING A/K/A DIANE MANNING AS HEIR AT LAW AND DISTRIB‑ UTEE OF THE ESTATE OF ROBERT L. MANNING, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated July 8, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Supreme Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY, in the courtroom designated by the posting outside of Room 130, on September 15, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises being an undivided ownership interest as tenant‑in‑common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 1335 Av‑ enue of the Americas, New York, NY; known as The NYH Con‑ dominium. Together with an ap‑ purtenant undivided 0.0381% in common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on own‑ ership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 27, 2003 and November 3, 2003 as CFRN # 2003000442512 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Time‑ share Unit is also designated as

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWN‑ ERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff ‑against‑ MARY C. REGAN, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated July 21, 2026, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Supreme Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY, in the courtroom designated by the posting outside of Room 130, on September 15, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, ly‑ ing and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, be‑ ing an undivided ownership interest as tenant‑in‑common with other owners in the Time‑ share Unit in the building lo‑ cated at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest per‑ centage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a time‑ share unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Decla‑ ration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Time‑ share Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37. Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019 Approximate amount of lien $74,553.96 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850166/2023. ROBERTA ASHKIN, ESQ., Ref‑ eree DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39133 {* AMSTERDAM*} Notice of Formation of EVIA NANO MEDICAL, PLLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/18/26. Office location: NY

Notice of Formation of MAIL‑ LARD ART SERVICES LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/07/26. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 23 E 73rd St., NY, NY 10021. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corpora‑ tion Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Pur‑ pose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of RHODES CREDIT PARTNERS II LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/23/26. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 120 W. 45th St., 2nd Fl., NY, NY 10036. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom pro‑ cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. of‑ fice. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of BOW LIFT LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/07/26. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 200 Park Ave. South, Fl. 8, NY, NY 10003. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom pro‑ cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. of‑ fice. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of AVID RISK PARTNERS, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/16/26. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: Avid Holdings, LLC, 14 East 33rd St., Ste. 7S, NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Pur‑ pose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of StruX‑ ure Outdoor, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/06/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Georgia (GA) on 04/01/09. Princ. office and GA addr. of LLC is: 154 Ethan Allen Dr., Dahlonega, GA 30533. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom pro‑ cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Cert. of Form. filed with GA Secy. of State, 313 West Tower, 2 Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr., Atlanta, GA 30334-1530. Purpose: Manufacturer of au‑ tomated outdoor living systems.

Notice of Qualification of PO‑ NYGIRL PRODUCTIONS LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/05/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Dela‑ ware (DE) on 05/26/26. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Bennet L. Schonfeld, 183 Madison Ave., Ste. 1602, NY, NY 10016. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, 401 Federal St., Ste. #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of SOUND POINT U.S. DIRECT LENDING FUND IV (ON‑ SHORE) L.P. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/17/26. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/29/26. Princ. office of LP: 375 Park Ave., 34th Fl., NY, NY 10152. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom pro‑ cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of KRANE NEW ENERGY IN‑ FRASTRUCTURE FUND 3 L.P. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/03/26. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 07/29/26. Princ. office of LP: 280 Park Ave., 32nd Fl., NY, NY 10017. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom pro‑ cess against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilm‑ ington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, 401 Federal St., Ste.4, Dover, DE 19901. Pur‑ pose: Any lawful activity.

101 LEGAL NOTICES

101 LEGAL NOTICES

DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with Beverage Control Law at 4371 September - September 9, 2026 • 35 THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM3rd NEWS The Secy.3,of2026 State of the State Ave; Bronx, NY 10457 in of DE, Dept. of State, Div. of Bronx County for on premises Corps., John 101 Townsend consumption. 195LEGAL HELP WANTED 101 LEGAL NOTICESZion Restaurant 101 LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL Bldg., NOTICES 101 NOTICES Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any and Lounge Corp d/b/a Zion lawful Restaurant and Lounge of LP: 375 Park Ave., 34th Fl., HEAD MISSION SOLUTIONS, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawfulactivity. cess against it may be served.

NY, NY 10152. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Qualification of SARA ADLER ADVISORY, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/23/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 01/27/26. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 40 E. 83rd St., Apt. 6S, NY, NY 10028. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of

State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of SOUND POINT U.S. DIRECT LENDING FUND IV (ONSHORE) L.P. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/17/26. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/29/26. Princ. office

Notice of Qualification of WFFA ADVISORS, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/07/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 02/26/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 237 West 35th St., Ste. 1001, NY, NY 10001. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of BOW-

LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/21/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Alaska (AK) on 01/23/14. Princ. office of LLC: 6564 Loisdale Ct., Ste. 900, Springfield, VA 22150. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Cert. of Form. filed with Commissioner, 333 Willoughby Ave., 9th Fl., Juneau, AK 99801. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Qualification of OFF THE COUCH CLUB HOLDINGS LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/24/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 07/23/26. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 40 E. 83rd St., Apt. 6S, NY, NY 10028. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover,

activity.

Notice of Qualification of GOLAN CONSULTING LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/11/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/22/26. Princ. office of LLC: 217 W 18th St. #81, NY, NY 10113. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, Dept. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of CIG DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/17/26. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 07/11/25. Princ. office of LLC: 2101 Wilson Blvd., Ste. 525, Arlington, VA 22201. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom pro-

SSNY shall mail process to Attn: Marisa McGaughey at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808-1674. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Qualification of BLACKSTONE TACTICAL OPPORTUNITIES FUND (VG COINVEST) L.P. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/15/26. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/28/26. Princ. office of LP: 345 Park Ave., NY, NY 10154. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., #4, Dover, DE 19801. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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Racial equity Continued from page 2

cy-related deaths and increasing internet access, as well as improving workforce development and reducing disparities in housing. The city officials were particularly intentional about calling it a “plan” rather than a report. This is because of welldocumented racial disparities — today, the net worth of the median household of white New Yorkers is $276,900 a year, while the median net worth of a Black household is just $18,870. “These citywide goals give us a common destination, but getting there requires changes in how government works every day,” said Atta-Mensah. “From emergency management and procurement to health and service delivery, and this is what equity in action looks like. Racial equity is not a separate program or a separate system within city government. “It’s about improving the way existing government systems work, and we’re seeing that in different parts of city government, [like] with Emergency Management building a racially-conscious emergency planning framework that agencies can use.” Beyond the eight citywide goals, the plan also earmarked agency-level objectives like “advancing pay equity” and “addressing historical harms and advancing equity.” For example, the Administration for Children’s Services was tasked with addressing the overrepresentation of Black and Brown youth in foster care while the fire department will analyze response times based on neighborhood demographics. Democratic congressional nominee Brad Lander was a key advocate for publishing the plan while serving as NYC Comptroller and pointed to how the findings covered housing as a racial equity issue. Specifically, he mentioned how the plan addressed spurring affordable housing development through recent City Charter amendments for Black and Brown New Yorkers looking to stay in their neighborhoods. Lander, who long maintained that Black homeownership was key to cutting the racial wealth gap, also commended how the racial equity plan went beyond the rental stock. The city’s upcoming “Our Home” affordable housing program will help convert rental buildings into resident-run co-ops while the Mamdani administration expands existing initiatives to provide further downpayment and mortgage payment assistance. “We need to build more housing, especially affordable, but [also] at every level so there’s not such an imbalance of supply and demand,” said Lander. “But racial equity has a history here. It’s a segregated city. It has a long history of discrimination and exclusion…we have some traditions in New York City of

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS helping working class families become homeowners through limited equity cooperatives like Amalgamated Housing or Co-op City, but we’ve largely stopped using that approach right now.” The final plan also outlined priorities for the Mayor’s Office of Deed Theft Prevention not found in the preliminary plan. Initial exclusions of any mention of the new office established by the Mamdani administration in response to protect Black homeowners led to suspicions that the preliminary plan was largely passed down from the previous Adams administration.

before the people and tell the truth about your record.” At the time, the advocates — which included CORE commissioners — said they were told the 45 agencies already submitted their completed plans. Questions also surrounded why Adams took so long with his appointments, particularly given how quickly Lander appointed his city comptroller pick, Sadye Campoamor, in July 2023. “I didn’t start until October 11, 2023, but my first charter mandate was due October 2, 2023,” said CORE executive director Linda Tigani. “The delay of starting

“It affirms the vital role of the Commission and gives real legal teeth to the work New Yorkers created it to do ... The court made clear that this work is not optional. It is required by law. The ruling ensures that the City must respect CORE’s role and follow the racial equity planning process enshrined in the City Charter.” —Andrew Celli, partner at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP, representing CORE

‘Racial equity is law’ Former Mayor Eric Adams promised the final publication by early 2025 after already falling behind on staffing the New York City Commission on Racial Equity (CORE), an independent commission tasked with oversight of the report. Persistent delays continued even when CORE was adequately staffed. By last July, the plan was indefinitely postponed. So the commission sued the city in hopes of forcing publication through the courts. Last summer, advocates and electeds took to City Hall to announce the lawsuit. Several had particularly harsh words for Adams given his milestone as the city’s second-ever Black mayor. “You got a historic mandate from the ancestors by invoking them to get there,” said CORE commissioner Rev. Kirsten John Foy during the Aug. 2025 rally. “And now, brother, you have a mandate to step

CORE and several delays on the Mayor’s Office of Equity and Racial Justice is why the work had begun to be delayed, and we agreed on a planning process that would have completed before the Trump administration was inaugurated. Once all the training for city agencies was done, the plan was complete. “It was at the Law Department, that’s when the delays with the Law Department review continued extensively for months. Well after 2024 and early 2025, it was clear that they weren’t even putting in a tentative release date. It was [after] an indefinite hold with no path forward that we filed the lawsuit.” Both CORE and the racial equity plan stem from a successful 2022 ballot measure voted on by New York City residents. As a result, the City Charter mandates a new final plan every two years, preceded by the preliminary plan and a communi-

ty feedback period. The 15-person CORE would provide oversight, as well as input and public comment for the report. Seven mayoral appointees and five city council appointees make up the commission. The city comptroller and public advocate also get a pick. And the executive director Tigani rounds out the commission. On Aug. 25, a New York Supreme Court judge ruled that the city’s delays broke the law both under Adams and Mamdani. The courts also reaffirmed CORE’s ability to hire its own lawyers and to sue the city. Adams’ administration previously attempted to throw out the case by arguing against the city budget-funded commission’s legal ability to sue. Previously, the Independent Budget Commission was allowed to sue the Giuliani administration over charter violations. Andrew Celli, a partner at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP, represents CORE in the lawsuit and called last week’s ruling a “Declaration of Independence” for the commission. “It affirms the vital role of the Commission and gives real legal teeth to the work New Yorkers created it to do,” he added. “The court made clear that this work is not optional. It is required by law. The ruling ensures that the City must respect CORE’s role and follow the racial equity planning process enshrined in the City Charter.” During the press call, Atta-Mensah looked forward to “getting back on schedule” with each step of the charter mandate now seemingly fulfilled. But a few key steps remain regarding the lawsuit, according to Tigani. The recent ruling established that the city would need to cover CORE’s legal costs. Following Tuesday’s publication, CORE started reviewing the final plan on the night of publication and intends to respond in 21 calendar days. The cycle for the next report will start in October next year, with the second version starting when the third should have. “It does not matter who is the mayor in New York City with respect to this work,” said Tigani. “Every single mayor, including Mayor Mamdani, will have to comply with the charter mandate indicating that racial equity is law. [But] we are absolutely excited that he is moving forward the racial equity planning process. We do have now both a preliminary plan that we are charter-mandated to review, evaluate, and publicly comment on, which we did, and we will be doing the same for the final plan as well. “The planning process does not start or end with the mayoralty. The planning process starts with community — with our community equity priorities [through] CORE…now we have a mayoralty that has allowed the cycle to move forward because they are doing their part.” The plan can be found here: https:// www.nyc.gov/assets/equity/html/nyc-racial-equity-plan-2026/index.html

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS S P O R T S

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 37

The Liberty look to reset for the stretch run during the FIBA break By DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews Four more regular season games for the New York Liberty. That’s all. But they are more than two weeks away as the WNBA temporarily halts for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, which begins today in Berlin, Germany. Many of the league’s best players will be representing their respective countries in the event that culminates with the gold medal game on Sunday, September 13. Team USA includes Liberty superstar Breanna Stewart but they will be without the world’s best women’s player. USA Basketball announced on Monday that fourtime WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson of the reigning champion Las Vegas Aces will sit out the World Cup due to lingering health issues, likely pertaining to her back. Wilson, who leads the league in scoring (26.0 points per game) and blocks (2.0), and is third in rebounding (9.4), was named the 2024 Paris

Tennis courts Continued from page 40

NYJTL, which is the largest youth tennis and education non-profit in the nation, serves more than 90,000 youth in grades K-12. The organization received a $500,000 grant from the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Foundation and Yonex, a tennis equipment sponsor, to patch up the courts and apply a new sports coating over the course of three weeks, said NYJTL Executive Director of Tennis Ahsha Rolle. A portion of the funds went towards youth coaching, mentorship, and academic support at no cost to the young athletes’ families. Rolle added that the Bronx is one of the poorest congressional districts, especially where the center is located, so she applauds the efforts to pour resources into a community where the need is the greatest. “Tennis is one of those sports that’s kind of always been considered an elitist sport. So a lot of Black and Brown folks don’t know that the sport is for them,” said Rolle, a Florida native and a former pro tennis player in 2007. She achieved a career-high ranking of 82 in the world in singles. NYJTL has 15 ball crew mem-

Olympics and 2022 World Cup most outstanding player. Entering this season, oddsmakers installed the Liberty and Aces as the favorites to reach the WNBA Finals. Neither has that status now. The Liberty are in a threeway tie with the Washington Mystics and Dallas Wings for the No. 6 seed as they are all 24-16. The 27-13 Aces are the No. 3 seed and just one game in front of the Atlanta Dream and Indiana Fever, who are both 26-14. The top eight teams make the playoffs and they all have clinched spots with only four regular season games left for each of the WNBA’s 15 squads. But the seedings, even for the top position, are still for the taking as the current No. 1 seed, the 31-9 Minnesota Lynx, have a narrow two-game lead over the 29-11 No. 2 Golden State Valkyries. The Lynx hold the tie-breaker over the Valkyries, having beaten them in two of the three head-to-head matchups this season and they will not face each other again over

the final four games. The Liberty mathematically can rise to one of the top four seeds and earn homecourt advantage in the first round. They sit three games behind the Aces (27-13) and two below the Dream and Fever. Stewart, a two-time WNBA MVP who leads the Liberty in points (20.4), blocks (1.4), and steals (1.3), is optimistic about the team’s prospects despite being 2-2 in their last four games before the World Cup. “Really happy with the direction that we’re going in, even postAll-Star break,” she said. “We’ve had losses, but… It’s kind of like, all right, we learn, we lose, we learn from it, we get better. But I think that it’d be a good break for everybody to kind of focus on themselves a little bit, enjoy the moment wherever they’re at, and then, when we get back in a few weeks, it’s kind of guns blazing.” The Liberty will return to action on Friday, September 18, playing the Lynx on the road.

bers in the U.S. Open this year, and they will host the Junior U.S. Open qualifier at the Cary Leeds Center for Tennis & Learning on September 1-5, which is located about a 2-minute walk away from the refurbished courts in Crotona Park in the Bronx. Rolle said it’s essentially a sneak peek into the sport’s next big stars and a huge deal for the young athletes. “Being able to see yourself in the sport. Being able to see people that look like you on TV. I remember I had beads in my hair as a kid too, because Venus and Serena started out with the beads,” she said. More than motivation and discipline, Rolle said that tennis gave her access to high-level career opportunities. “Through tennis, they can go up, grow up to be other things. Maybe they want to be a coach. Maybe they want to be a director. Maybe they want to be a doctor. But they can use tennis and the life lessons that tennis teaches you that resilience, that discipline, that professionalism. They can use all those attributes to become essentially whatever they want to be.” Isis Gill-Reid is the founder and executive director of SG Next Level Tennis. She grew up in Bedstuy, Brooklyn, playing with NYJTL and went on to be a Division I tennis

Bronx youth enjoy newly resurfaced public tennis courts in Bronx with Mayor Mamdani on August 26, 2026. (Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

player in the USTA Eastern Section for girls 12-18. She has been a high-performance tennis coach and consultant since 2022, and has coached players at three Junior Grand Slams. Gill-Reid coaches small groups in Long Island and has community and afterschool programming in Brooklyn. Intent on giving back to the communities that raised her, she said that programming is just the first touchpoint to increasing accessibility to tennis, but it’s a long pathway to success when

New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones reads the Chicago Sky defense in an 85-66 win at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Saturday. (Photo courtesy of Jamir Dickerson)

dealing with young athletes. “The city can help with increasing access to tennis. One, just more tennis courts, putting lights at tennis courts so people have more time to actually come out and play. Increasing the budget to allocate funding for programming across the city,” said Gill-Reid, “ [And] if there’s funding for smaller programs that aren’t necessarily nonprofits, but operated social enterprises, you’re able to increase accessibility to the sport. And also just trying to partner with smaller

orgs to get them into schools.” “I definitely played at Harlem Jr. Tennis program in the Armory on 127th. They run a great program. I know they’re also trying to expand and build a tennis center up in Harlem,” she said. Gill-Reid added that she’d love to see fully funded tennis facilities in places like Harlem and East New York in Brooklyn next. The refurbished courts in the Bronx are the only ones in the borough with lights on during the night for extended practice and play.

38 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS S P O R T S

Odell Beckham Jr. finds redemption in his return to the Giants’ 53-man roster By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor Odell Beckham Jr. making the Giants’ 53-man roster is a feel-good story. But ultimately his second iteration with the franchise will last only as long as he can be productive and add value to winning. Through training camp and preseason, Beckham has instilled belief in the Giants’ principal player personnel decision-makers, with firstyear head coach John Harbaugh at the top of the hierarchy, that he can impact the team becoming a contender in the NFC East division as the first objective in ascending to Super Bowl challenger. He looked like he was ready to help us; that was it,” said Harbaugh meeting with the media on Monday at the Giants’ training facility in East Rutherford, New Jersey. “You just take the roster, you take the guys, you take the reps, the plays, what you need from your players going into the season, and you pick the best guys. He was one of the best guys; he earned it, he earned his spot. I mean, from beginning to end, he earned it.” The 33-year-old wide receiver was selected by the Giants out of LSU in

the 2014 NFL Draft with the 12th pick of the first round. It seems like ages ago. Tom Coughlin was the team’s head coach. Including Harbaugh and Mike Kafka, who led the team for the final seven games last season after Brian Daboll was fired, the franchise has had seven head coaches since Beckham’s rookie season. The Giants’ instability mirrors Beckham’s odyssey. He played for the Giants for five seasons before being traded to the Cleveland Browns in March of 2019, just seven months after signing a five-year, $90 million contract with New York. Following his release from the Browns less than two months into the 2021 campaign, he signed with the Los Angeles Rams, winning a Super Bowl but tearing the ACL in his left knee in the game, in just the second quarter, as he was on his way to possibly being named the game’s MVP; exiting with two catches for 52 yards and a touchdown. Beckham sat out the entire 2022 season, played for the Baltimore Ravens in 2023, appeared in nine games with the Dolphins in 2024 but had only nine catches for 55 yards and was let go in Decem-

ber. Last October, the Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native who played high school football in New Orleans was suspended last October for six games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs and was not on a roster. Now Beckham has come full circle. “God had a plan for me,” he introspectively shared on Monday. “The last two years I talked to y’all about just the spiritual journey that I’ve been on. The growth, the humility. Kind of walking through life over the last two years — a bit of hardships, with myself feeling, just wasn’t where I wanted to be.” Malik Nabers, Beckham’s fellow LSU product, crystallized his teammate’s path. “He’s put in great work. He showed every attribute and everything that he wanted to be a Giant. He wanted to be here,” said Nabers. “He wanted to come back and he had unfinished business. And we talked all the time, through the offseason and summer about things that he wanted to accomplish.” Beckham is a mentor to the 23-year-old Nabers, who was drafted by the Giants with the 6th pick in 2024 and is the team’s most gifted

After a long, winding road, Odell Beckham Jr., once a Giants superstar who was traded by the franchise in 2019, is again part of the team’s 53-man roster. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

wide receiver since Beckham’s early years. But Nabers is working his way back from a torn ACL in his right knee sustained last September. When healthy, he is one of the league’s most dynamic weapons, evidenced by his rookie numbers: 109

catches, the Giants’ single-season record, and 1,204 yards receiving. Now the duo, both healing — Beckham from internal afflictions and Nabers from external injuries — hope to be pillars of the Giants’ reconstruction.

HBCUs receive national exposure in college football’s opening weekend By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor

The Howard Bison, led by quarterback Ja’Shawn Scroggins’ 315 yards passing and three touchdowns, defeated Alabama A&M 31-24 in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge last Saturday night in Atlanta. (MEAC photo)

Saturday was a significant day for HBCU football. Several teams played in nationally televised games in what was referred to as “Week 0,” with the headliner the Howard University Bison and the Alabama A&M Bulldogs clashing in the 2026 Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge Kick-Off at Center Parc Stadium in Atlanta. The Bison (1-0) came away with a 31-24 victory as graduate quarterback Ja’Shawn Scroggins passed for a career-high 315 yards and three touchdowns in a gripping matchup broadcast on ABC in prime time. It was the first win for Howard’s Tederal “Ted” White, a 50-year-old college and professional football coaching veteran who is in his first head coaching job after

being hired by his alma mater in January. White, who played quarterback for Howard from 1995 to 1999, is the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s and Howard’s all-time leader in passing yards (9,808) and passing touchdowns (92). Howard and Alabama A&M playing in a coveted television time slot reflects the rebirth of historically Black colleges and universities football, which began in earnest when Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders was hired by Jackson State University as their head coach in September 2020. He ended up lifting the Tigers to two Southwestern Athletic Conference championships (2021, 2022) before moving on in December 2022 to take the head coaching job at the University of Colorado. Another sign of growth and

uniformity for HBCU football is the formation of the Black College Football Poll (BCFP). It will now be the standard for rankings for the MEAC, SWAC, CIAA and SIAC, the four major HBCU conferences competing in the Division I FCS and Division II. For many decades various media outlets, notably the Black press, published singular weekly HBCU football rankings, including this publication. BCFP is a voting panel of 57 members composed of HBCU head coaches and media members. The South Carolina State Bulldogs, the reigning HBCU national champion, entered Week 0 atop the poll and remain in the top spot going into their Week 1 game this Saturday versus the Florida A&M Rattlers at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. after crushing Savannah State 87-0 this past Saturday.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS S P O R T S

September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026 • 39

Olympian Nadia Eke to be inducted into Columbia Athletics Hall of Fame By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews

gave me this hunger and determination.” Eke continued to train and comColumbia University’s 2026 Athpete after graduating. A fellow Coletics Hall of Fame induction cerelumbia alum introduced her to the mony will take place on October 22 New York Athletic Club. Training, at Cipriani 25 Broadway in Manhatcompeting and working, Eke saw tan. Among the honorees is former that intense period as a launchpad Lions triple jumper Nadia Eke, a for her career. She competed in the 2015 Columbia graduate. 2020/21 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Now a sports business strategist serving as the flag bearer for Ghana. based in Washington, D.C., area, She retired from competing soon Eke channels her pursuit of excelafter but retained her competitive lence into being at the forefront of spirit. “I continued to be that mulinvestment in sports. The inductifaceted person,” she said. tion is a milestone for the two-time Expecting her second child, Eke Ivy League champion and school probably won’t attend the October record holder in the triple jump. celebration, but she will contin“When I was 18 years old and I ue to roar like a lion in apprecidecided I was going to go to Coation of her strong foundation. lumbia, there were a lot of quesAfter the Olympics, she started her tions why,” recalled Eke, who own strategy consultancy working Nadia Eke, who had a stellar track and field career as a Columbia University student-athlete, is being moved to the U.S. from Ghana as mainly with sports startups and inducted into the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame next month. (Photo courtesy of Columbia Athletics; Photo a teenager. “Coming out of high different sports projects. Now, her courtesy of Nadia Eke) school … I had a lot of offers, but focus is driving sports investment I knew that going to Columbia was plish anything.” city and of Columbia’s campus. always drawn to the challenge and and development across the Afrisymbolic … because I really beEke and her mother visited New When she turned down an ath- I love to prove people wrong,” said can continent. “Being a pioneer in lieved that if I could become suc- York City one weekend before an letic scholarship from another Eke. “I think it shaped every aspect that,” she said. “Doing what people cessful as an athlete and a student official visit to get a feel for things. school, the coach told her that she of my life … Being a student-ath- think is impossible. Here we go with at Columbia, then I could accom- She felt drawn to the energy of the was making a huge mistake. “I’m lete at Columbia in New York City the next thing.”

The best handball players in the world set to compete in NYC By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews History will be made in New York City Sept. 14–19 as the World WallBall (handball) Championships take place. Competitors from 11 countries, approximately one-third of whom are women, are expected. “The players are all excited,” said Paul Williams, founder of the Inner City Handball Association (ICHA). “This is the first time this is happening here in New York. They’re ready to show off their skills.” Players from the United States, Canada, Spain, Israel, Ireland, United Kingdom, Ecuador, Japan, Belgium and Hong Kong are among those expected. Due to school resumption in the U.S., there aren’t as many young people as Williams had hoped, but there are still junior brackets. Of course, New York City is well represented among the players. Venues include the West 5th Street Handball Courts and St. John’s Recreation Center in Brooklyn and Pomonok Park in Queens. The finals in the open division will be in Central Park. “Some of the local organizations, like the St. Albans Handball Association, Castle Hill Handball Association

Sheena Brown (center) will be competing in the World Wallball Championships in New York City beginning September 14.

Tywan Cook will try to capture a World Wallball Championship when the tournament takes place in New York City starting on September 14. (Photo courtesy of United States Handball Association)

and Impact Pro from the Bronx, are helping to assist in making this a successful event,” said Williams. The opening ceremony will be at the New York City College of Technology in Brooklyn and the closing ceremony at the New York Athletic Club in Manhattan. Young ICHA players are psyched. “They’re excited to see the top players compete; they’re excited to compete

online sales and purchases, the fact that we’re bringing the sport back into the neighborhoods, hopefully some of the local stores will carry handballs again.” Williams works with the Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL) to ensure that schools that are underserved can get involved in handball again. There were previously about 150 handball

themselves and meet people from other countries,” Williams said. “Part of this is trying to expand handball in the communities.” When Williams, who grew up in Brooklyn, was a kid, handballs were sold in local grocery stores. “It was accessible, easy to get and inexpensive,” he said. “Now, you’ve got to get it online, and for kids that don’t have access to

teams, but that number is now around 90. “The parks were very active this summer with a lot of little tournaments,” said Williams. “At the local tournaments, they’ve been able to see how they’re going to be seeded at the World Championships and if they can actually win. Bringing the sport back into the neighborhoods.”

40 • September 3, 2026 - September 9, 2026

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Sports

AM News

06/25/26

AM News

07/02/26

Legends fall and favorites advance in Week 1 of the U.S. Open By B.L. OLIVER Special to the AmNews

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moment that I spent on the court AM News for that.” The U.S. Open always offers “It’s amazing. 07/09/26 unexpected outcomes and inThe way we played spiring storylines, and sentifive sets against mentality is a common theme. the GOAT,” said Week 1 provided all three. Many Navone. “It’s a highly seeded players advanced dream come true.” AM News as expected: women’s No. 4 seed Serena Williams, Coco Gauff of the United States who has 39 total 07/16/26 defeated Zeynep Sonmez 6-3, Grand Slam titles 6-4 at Arthur Ashe Stadium on (23 singles, 14 Tuesday night, and men’s No. 2 women’s doubles seed Carlos Alcaraz of Spain took and two mixed down Roman Safiullin 6-4, 6-4 in doubles) teamed AM News their first-round meeting at Ashe up for mixed douon Monday. But Novak Djokovbles with Alcaraz. 07/23/26 ic, arguably the greatest men’s After winning their player of all time with a record 24 first match, they Grand Slam titles, fell to 25-yearwere eliminated old Mariano Navone of Argenti- Serena Williams who was paired with Carlos Alcaraz in mixed doubles at the U.S. Open, will play with sister Venus Williams in the quarterfina, 49th-ranked in the world. In a today in women’s doubles. Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic was upset in the first round in men’s singles. (Margot Jordan photos) nals on Aug. 25 by AM News marathon battle lasting more than the duo of Belinda four and a half hours, Navone prevailed latest start time in the history of the event. back massaged. Bencic and Flavio Cobolli 4-5(7), 1-4. 07/30/26 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1. As for Djokovic, it was the first time the “Just struggled all the way since the Serena, 44, will again team up with her Additionally, Venus Williams, who at 46 39-year-old from Serbia lost in the first fourth game of the match,” said Djokov- big sister Venus in women’s doubles; their years old was playing in her 26th U.S. Open round at the U.S. Open in 20 outings. ic after the defeat. “When it comes to the first match will be today at 11 a.m. versus singles tournament, lost to fellow American Suffering from an illness, Djokovic threw match itself and overall feeling of how I felt Chan Hao-ching and Maya Joint. The WilSofia Kenin 6-2, 7-6(6) on the court at Arthur up at least once into a towel, was given with my body and playing, it was really notNews liams sisters last played doubles at the AM Ashe in a match that began at 12:13 a.m., the pills by medical personnel, and had his enjoyable. I pretty much despised every U.S. Open together in 2022.

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08/06/26

Mayor Mamdani, NYJTL unveil new refurbished tennis courts in the Bronx By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff

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hands with the kids on the court after the press conference. AM News

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Assemblymember Chantel Jackson, the As the 2026 U.S. Open is underway in08/13/26 New chair of the Black Legislative Task Forces, York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New joined in on the fun and ribbon cutting on York Junior Tennis & Learning (NYJTL) high- the tennis courts last week. lighted support for the city’s local youth “Tennis can open doors that go far beyond tennis programs and the opening of 10 newly the court,” said Jackson in a statement. “For resurfaced public tennis courts in the Bronx. a lot of our young people, especially in urban AM News The city has a long, storied history with communities, tennis has not always been the tennis, with more than 500 public courts08/20/26 and sport they’ve had the same access or expoparks across the five boroughs, and a centu- sure to. That has to change. When we create ry-long tradition of the U.S. Open in Queens. spaces where our kids can learn the game, NYC is home to tennis legends like Althea compete, build discipline, and develop reGibson and former Mayor David Dinkins. lationships, we’re also creating pathways to AM News “These courts are some of the most popuscholarships, college opportunities, mentorlar in the Bronx. They are home to the coun- ship, travel, and careers they may not have 08/27/26 try’s largest free junior tennis competition, considered for themselves.” the Mayor Dinkins Cup, hosted by our partSee TENNIS COURTS on page 37 ners at [NYJTL] and featuring more than 800 young players from across the city,” said Mamdani at the press conference on Aug 26, 2026. “And yet, for too long, these courtsAM haveNews been worn down with cracks in the surface 09/03/26 that make bounces unpredictable and play all too difficult.” Mamdani also excitedly served a few back-

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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and New York Junior Tennis & Learning (NYJTL) unveil 10 newly resurfaced, professional-grade NYC Parks tennis courts in Crotona Park, Bronx. Wednesday, August 26, 2026. (Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.)

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