Brooklyn Ron

Ozier Muhammad Keeps Harlem in Vogue, With Photos That Will Outlive Videos

In some ways it pained me to write that headline, because I've been trying my eye at video-making lately.

And I know I will never create a video with the beauty and durability of Ozier Muhammad's photographs.

But that's okay, really. Not only is Ozier a friend of many years, but he's been a co-worker in the journalism craft, and has a Pulitzer Prize to show for his talent and courage.

Brian Lehrer, the quintessential interviewer and selector of worthy interviewees, saw the timelessness in Ozier's photographs of Harlem and Chicago, and he invited our friend and colleague for a revealing sit-down.

In that session on CUNY TV, Ozier speaks of how he developed his aesthetic sensibilities and of his love for Harlem and for the Black neighborhoods of Chicago. Along the way, he speaks also of how the current video revolution is changing the way Times photographers do their jobs.

Enjoy the interview by clicking the right-pointing arrow on the image below.

And, by the way, check out the New York Times "lens" web page showcasing Ozier's Harlem shots, along with audio commentary by the photographer.

It was here that Lehrer was made aware of the artist's love affair with America's best known African-American neighborhood. [Click here.]

Last, but not least in noteworthiness, we disclose that Ozier took the photographs making up the proud logo of this BrooklynRon website.

Al Vann is All but Sure to Win Bed-Stuy Council Race, One 'Objective' Observer Says

 The race for the City Council seat in Bed-Stuy (the 36th District) is one for the books.

Some half dozen challengers are trying to unseat incumbent Al Vann. And they are taking this all very seriously, turning deaf ears to the (here) oft repeated truism that incumbents win 97 percent of the time.

This truism is true whether incumbents have done a good job or whether they have "fucked up."

Excuse the language, but that was the phrasing, more of less, of a former Councilmember quoted anonymously in City Limits magazine.

Regarding the crowded field in the 36th, it is a testament to the ambition and/or character of the would-bees that they plow ahead, despite the odds.

And, in truth, there are some grounds, in virtually each case, for hope.

For example, one would think that challenger Mark Winston Griffith -- with the backing (and presumably accompanying money and manpower) of the Working Families Party and of ACORN -- could be putting fear into the heart of Councilman Vann.

After all, challengers do sometimes end up pumping their fists up in victory.

But a big problem for Griffith -- or for the others -- is precisely that there are so many of them, and that they are so seemingly sincere.

Their determination can be seen, said our source, in the way they are going through the petition process, with due diligence, gathering signatures that will allow them to be on the Democratic primary ballot this September.

And there's the rub: The more of them on the ballot, the greater the chances of Vann sailing to the finish line first.

All of this would be less an issue if one of the challengers -- particularly Griffith -- could draw more attention, raise more hell.

But that's just not been happening, so far.

[The "objective source" referred to up above, by the way, is about as knowledge (and honest) as they come, with respect to Bed-Stuy politics.]

Candidate Cornegy is Music to Ears of Patricia Robinson, Who Leads a Symphony of Pianos, Politics and History in Bed-Stuy

[caption: l-r, Bed-Stuy's historic Patricia F. Robinson Music School; Patricia Robinson; City Council candidate Robert E. Cornegy, Jr.]

Patricia F. Robinson embodies the cultural history of the wonderful place called Bedford-Stuyvesant. Her mother, as you will hear in the below video, started a local music school 79 years ago, and that place of aural learning endures to this day.

Such continuity!

But Robinson does not want to see that kind of continuity in her elected officials.

She believes incumbent City Councilman Al Vann has been in office too long (having served 35 years in elective office, most of it as Assemblyman before switching jobs with then Councilmember Annette Robinson).

And so Music Director Robinson is now playing the renegade in Bed-Stuy's exciting City Council primary race.

She's throwing her enthusiastic energies behind Robert E. Cornegy, Jr., son of a popular minister, about whom you'll hear more in the brief video below.

Robinson says life is music, and music (as any musician knows) needs changes.

[Also, please check out this Sunday, June 28, 2009, at 2 pm, "The 79th Annual Recital" of The Patricia F. Robinson Music Studio.

It's at the Brooklyn Music School, 126 St. Felix St., Brooklyn. $25 at the door; $20 in advance. School can be emailed at pfr_musicstudio@yahoo.com. Or visited at its website www.pfrmusicstudio.org or on Facebook.]

Here's the video:

Scamming America: AT&T, Verizon Lock up Their Phones (and Lock You up, Too)

About five years ago, after leaving a job and giving up the company phone, I decided to get my own cell phone from Verizon.

I went first to a Verizon store on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope.

The guy there told me you had to sign up for a two-year contract. Almost immediately a fellow standing next to me said, "That's not true. I have a one-year contract."

I thanked the fellow to my side and walked out the door. It didn't seem like a good place to be signing any kind of contract.

Stay with me. This gets better.

Some days later, I went to a Verizon place on 86th St. on the East Side of Manhattan, near my new job, and I (knowingly and smugly) asked for a one-year contract.

When the paper work was done, I looked it over and saw they had given me a two-year contract.

Feeling I was in the land of con men, I went back and told them that I had clearly and articulately asked for a one year contract. They apologized and promptly issued me what I requested.

But hold on. It gets better still!

A month later I received, not one, but two bills: One for a one-year contract, and another for a two-year contract.

It was easily rectified with a phone call, give me a break!

Clearly this was not just a simple clerical error. Deception was so obviously built into the marketing of these Verizon contracts.

And let me say the following: that this story of the two-year contract that would not die is growing in relevance.

Today, as so-called smart phones grow in popularity, carriers like Verizon, AT&T and Spring and others are creating new age monopolies, cornering the market on certain types of devices (for example, AT&T possessing rights for the iPhone, and Sprint doing the same with the Palm Pre).

And (just as they physically lock up those phones so they can't be used with another carrier) the companies all but insist on locking you into a one- or two-year contact.

AT&T tells you plainly that you can't get the iPhone without a contract. Others just trick you into it, by not telling you the ways that you can be on a month-to-month (non contractual) plan.

These days, many Free Internet advocates are accusing the big phone companies of being anti-free market.

And the advocates are pushing back against the virtual behemoths.

Writes Josh Levy of the Free Press Action Fund (in an email that I received):

"These "exclusive deals" remind me of the days when AT&T held a monopoly over all phone communications. Consumers could only use one phone, on one network, at rates set by one company. No innovations could take place without AT&T's permission. When federal rules forced AT&T to open its network, an explosion of innovation occurred with new fax machines, Internet modems and answering machines. . . Today, the FreeMyPhone campaign seeks to open up the wireless market in the same way."

Senator John Kerry is getting into the fray also, asking, "Who Really Owns Your Phone?" in a post on Save The Internet.

Please check out what the "Free My Phone, No More GateKeepers" folks are saying. Click here.

Finally, a Leader (Barack Obama) Concedes: Card Companies and Banks Abused Consumers

This is a Barack Obama speech that should go down in history, for its declaration of the evils committed over the past decade by credit card companies, banks and, yes, Verizon and various telephone companies as well.

Who thinks that those Verizon bills -- and the bills as well from National Grid or ConEd (as in "We con Ed or Bob or anyone else we can") or Citi Card -- were really meant to inform their consumers?

The statements have been so stunningly confusing that one suspected, at first, that they were devised by illiterates.

It took a year or so to realize it was intentional obfuscation on the part of the companies.

The time lag in reaching that awareness was attributable -- not just to stupidity -- but a reluctance to accept that well established American companies would treat their customers with such cold, calculating and (dare we say criminal) contempt.

American businesses, at the level of Verizon and big banks and insurance companies, created a culture of deception that enveloped us in a painful financial crisis, a crisis that, until recently, seemed likely to destroy the way of life we have known.

Obama's speech criticizing that culture was discussed and parsed on CNN and other news stations, but they were fairly boring and meaningless, really, when measured against the real thing.

They did not, of course -- egotists that they are -- want streaming competition from a 19 minute presidential speech of this type.

In it, Obama (in his gentle way) criticized companies that have cunningly lured millions of Americans into loans and deals they could not afford and that they did not understand, companies that offered "a bewildering array of incomprehensible options," companies that competed "not by offering better products but more complicated ones, with more fine print and more hidden terms."

Thus the need, he said, for better, tougher regulation.

[Meanwhile, The New York Times, in an analysis, says "There was "Only a Hint of Roosevelt in (Obama's) Financial Overhaul."]

A video of the speech was there on the White House website, for bloggers to grab and post.

My Fort Greene, Time is Swift and Time is Mean: A Story of Gentrification

Fort Greene Park at sunset is a beautiful place.

Then again, so is it beautiful during the day, now as it was a hundred years ago.

There is so much history in this storied Brooklyn neighborhood, which was my home many years (no, decades) ago.

Much of that history, as a majority of caring Brooklynites know, involved African Americans.

But the once very significant African American presence is diminishing these recent years, pushed by the gentrification that has so changed the social and business landscape of the community.

Herewith, in that vein, we offer a little video.

Below, check out previous BrooklynRon posts on Fort Greene:

"BAMboozled" and "A Slap in the Face of History."

Sen. Gillibrand's Favorite Journalist is . . . Guess Where? At Fox News

New York's junior Senator Kirsten Gillibrand [left] tells New York magazine that she loves journalists and journalism and that she, in fact, would have been a journalist had law not been her first passion.

Then came the disclosure that gave pause:

"Did I tell you if I wasn’t a lawyer, I wanted to be a journalist? I love getting at the truth. My favorite is Greta Van Susteren [photo, right].”

Almost right away, the senator realized the admission might not sit well with progressives and others who have complained about her con and neo-con positions when she was an upstate Congresswoman (before being appointed by Gov. Paterson to take Sen. Hillary Clinton's place).

The author (Stephen Rodrick) writes: "For a fleeting moment, a look of concern comes over Gillibrand’s face, and she touches my arm. 'Is this going to be okay?'”

We here thought Van Susteren was great when she was at CNN ages ago. Loved her. But we stopped watching her, almost in our tracks, when she went to Fox in 2002. It wasn't just the off-putting facial surgery, which made it seem she was turning over personality as well as reputation to right-wing Fox, that put us off.

It was the newly adopted, blatantly contrived TV tabloid Fox tough-talking style that made it impossible for us to watch or listen.

By the way, the Van Susteren angle is way at the bottom of the New York article.

It is an often effective technique, especially in longish feature-style pieces, to include the most awkwardly revealing comments or moments at the very end, as Rodrick did in this profile of Gillibrand.

To read the New York magazine piece, click here.

A Model for Local Politics? Candidates Presented Themselves Without Rancor or Hostility

Host Frantz Cayo, president of the Stuyvesant Heights Parents Association, clearly stated the purpose of the June 6 candidates forum.

"We wanted to allow them to be able to present themselves, and allow you to get to know them," Cayo [standing in photo] told the dozens of attendees at the early Saturday morning gathering, held at Brownstone Books on Lewis Avenue.

First came Tremaine Wright [seated far left] who stood and declared, "I believe I have a duty to my community."

She said she had served on the local Community Board for six years and that Bedford Stuyvesant residents "have an opportunity now to make some changes," to have "new energy, new ideas."

Wright, the owner of Common Grounds cafe on Tompkins Avenue, stressed that she wanted to see more affordable housing for "middle income people" in the neighborhood.

[Wright and the four other candidates are seeking to replace incumbent Councilman Al Vann, who Cayo said was invited to the forum but who "sent his regrets."]

Saquan Jones [second in photo], who is in his mid-30s, said he thinks of community youngsters who are facing uncertain, often bleak futures, in which jail is sometimes "a rite of passage."

He wants "a chance to bring Bedford Stuyvesant and Crown Heights to a level of prosperity," he told the group.

Jones pointed out that he grew up in public housing (in Queens, before moving to Brooklyn) and repeated his campaign theme of seeking now to "turn adversity into advantage."

Next came Robert E. Cornegy, Jr. [seated third from left in photo], whose dad was a prominent minister in Bed-Stuy.

Cornegy mentioned that he has been serving the community in a number of ways. He referred to his experience as an adjunct professor of marketing at Brooklyn College.

He said also that he'd been a campaign manager for State Senator Kevin Parker. Cornegy said that he is interested in crime prevention and making sure essential services are delivered to residents.

Next came Mark Winston Griffith [seated fourth from left],who has the backing of the powerful Working Families Party, and who said, "We need to look at someone who's got a lot of different skills."

He exhorted the audience to look at his "24-year career working in Central Brooklyn," notably at his time with the Central Brooklyn Credit Union, which he founded.

Griffith emphasized his tenant organizing past, particularly is work with NEDAP (the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project), which does advocacy regarding housing policy and its effect on local communities.

[According to City Hall News, Griffith is leaving his recent position as executive director of the Drum Major Institute -- of which former Bronx Borough President and mayoral contender Freddy Ferrer was once the director.

The ending paragraphs from that interesting City Hall News article are worth offering here:]

"Griffith’s race (against Al Vann), many progressives say, will be a bellwether for where the movement is headed in the next several years. And the activists and policymakers who fill the movement’s ranks are looking to him as someone who can help advance the progressive agenda in ways that Bloomberg has not.

"Griffith knows that the hopes of many progressive activists and policy wonks are tied up in his underdog campaign.

“'What I want to do, which is what DMI talks about, is build a real pipeline to new leadership in our neighborhood,' he said. 'And my position as a candidate can affect the progressive landscape in New York City.'"

[To read whole article, click here.]

Last of the candidates to introduce herself was Adrian Straker, who identified herself as a "third generation Brooklyn resident.

Straker said that Central Brooklyn is in the throes of a "health crisis," notably regarding HIV and diabetes.

She also noted community concerns about the Sumner Avenue (Marcus Garvey Boulevard) armory. Some residents complained earlier this year that city officials were using the facility to house homeless men.

Straker said she would respond to such day-to-day neighborhood concerns. "I will be present and accountable," she said.

"Where we are now is not where we need to be."

There was quite a bit more to the June 6 forum, as questions were allowed. But BrooklynRon has to run off at the moment and hope to continue this thread soon.

Black Journalists Criticize Their Group's Ties to News Corp. Hours Later, News Corp. Announces New 'Diversity Council'

It all began without any sense of impending controversy.

The president of the New York Association of Black Journalists, Gary Anthony Ramsay, sent a notice out on the organization's listserv, saying NYABJ would be hosting an event sponsored by the News Corp.

The June 24 event would honor "several journalists and supporters who have crossed significant landmarks in their careers as they continue to break barriers," the announcement said.

Then an energetic exchange erupted online after black journalist Eric Tait strongly objected to the relationship with News Corp., arguing News Corp. (which owns The New York Post and a ton of other media) "is not who this organization should be partnering with for anything."

Last night I noticed the back and forth and offered my thoughts -- which I've expressed previously on this blog -- especially about The New York Post and its cartoon showing a police officer shooting a chimpanzee, a chimpanzee that was generally viewed as representing President Barack Obama. [See image accompanying this post.]

My comment didn't show up for many hours on the NYABJ listserv, but I eventually saw it today, and soon thereafter I saw (posted by NYABJ) an AP piece about News Corp.'s new "external diversity council."

Read my listserv comment by clicking here.

Also read, if you like, a few previous BrooklynRon posts on News Corp. They are listed below:

1. "NY Post Editor Col Allan, Widely Viewed as Racist, Likely to be Fired, Media Critic Says
2. ""Oh, the Suspense. Will Murdoch Fire Post Editor Allan and Columnist Delonas?"
3. "Nick Perry Says Post Cartoonist and Editor Should Be Fired. Columnist Mike Daly Says Paper Must Apologize"

(By the way, today's New York Post lists Col Allan as editor-in-chief.)

Read the original NYABJ announcment about the event with News Corp. here.

Read the piece about News Corp.'s new "diversity council" here.

This is all very healthy. Thank you, NYABJ.

Democracy Alive in Bed-Stuy, as Candidates Speak with Community

Five candidates hoping to beat incumbent Al Vann and become Bed-Stuy's next City Councilmember kept their hope alive on Saturday.

They appeared at Brownstone Books and summarized their positions, essentially introducing themselves to those who showed up for the early morning event.

They also answered questions and were very civil with each other.

We will post more on the event, culling from our notes, but in the meantime we offer here a little slide show that is hopefully a visual taste of what occurred.

(In photo here, Frantz Cayo, president of the Stuyvesant Heights Parents Association, presides over the gathering, which included candidates, left to right, Tremaine Wright, Saquan Jones, Robert Cornegy, Jr., Mark Winston Griffith and Adrian Straker.)

See slide show below. (Please note that, in dealing with YouTube, the creator does not have full choice in selecting the opening image.)