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Friday, April 19, 2024
Vol. 12, No. 16
NORTH SHORE
NORTH SHORE GREATER MANHASSET PETITIONS SUBMITTED LIVING CIVIC MEETING OPPOSING BLAKEMAN DEPUTIES PAGES 27-38 SPECIAL SECTI A BLANK SLATE MEDIA
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ON • APRIL 19, 2024
Advocates call for child safety law Kyra’s Champions honor lost children BY C A M E RY N O A K ES Nearly 800 pinwheels were scattered across the lawn of Mary Jane Davis Green Park gave a beautiful appearance but carried a tragic meaning. Every pinwheel planted symbolized a child in New York who had died while in the family court system. “One of those children is twoyear-old Kyra Franchetti, a toddler I PHOTO COURTESY OF JACQUELINE FRANCHETTI never had the opportunity to meet but a little girl I think about every single day,” Kyra’s Champions student advoPinwheels cover the lawn at Mary Jane Davies Green Park in Manhasset to raise awareness for child cate Shayna Blumenfeld said. abuse and neglect by family court systems, while also advocating for the passage of a law that would Kyra’s Champions is a child safety protect children during custody disputes. advocacy group formed by Jacqueline
Franchetti in response to the murder of her daughter Kyra by Kyra’s father in the summer of 2016. The organization has promoted a bill to protect children in the court system On a windy Wednesday morning, Kyra’s Champions and supporting local officials gathered in the park surrounded by the sound of spinning pinwheels. State Assemblymember Gina Sillitti, who recently gave birth to a boy, said the wind spinning them and the subtle noise they produced was as if the children they represented were joining them. Continued on Page 50
Manhasset polled for mascot change From April 15 through April 21 the Manhasset community will be polled on the selection of the Manhasset School District’s new mascot after state regulations adopted last year outlawed all school uses of Native Americans as mascots. The three mascots that commu-
nity members can choose from are the Eagles, the Manhasset, or “set,” andthe Mavericks. “Our objective is to create a team name that encapsulates Manhasset’s distinctive character, culture, traditions, and history and symbolizes our strive toward excellence while projecting a positive image for the Manhasset Public Schools,” Manhasset Superin-
tendent Gaurav Passi wrote in a newsletter. “Our new teams’ name should be one all community members can proudly associate with.” In April 2023, the New York Board of Regents voted to ban school districts from using Native American mascots, team names, logos and depictions. School districts that utilize Native American mascots are required
BEST
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2024
BY C A M E RY N O A K ES
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COUNTY WWW.THEISLAND360.COM/CONTEST2024
to make the change by the end of the 2023-2024 school year. If they fail to comply, then state funding will be withheld. The state ban has drawn pushback from school districts throughout the state, with some going as far as to file lawsuits against the decision like the Massapequa School District, which claimed the regulation is unconstitu-
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tional. The Manhasset School District has used the Native American mascot since its founding in 1920. The history of Manhasset’s “Indian” mascot is traced back to the Matinecock Indian Tribe, a group that occupied a majority of the Town of North Hempstead. Continued on Page 49
NOW THROUGH MAY 24
WHO WILL BE THE FAVORITES IN 2024? https://theisland360.com/bonscontest/