Lighting the Park for Dominique Alexander
Trigger Warning: Mention of violence, death, and lynching to a BIPOC individual. On June 9, 2020, a pedestrian found 27-year-old Dominique Alexander hanging on a tree in Fort Tryon Park. Given a long history of lynching in the U.S., coupled with the hanging of Robert Fuller in California a few days earlier and the fact that nooses were found in Van Cortlandt Park, many speculated that Alexander – who went by the nickname “Domo”– had been lynched. After conducting a 66-minute investigation, local authorities declared Alexander’s death a hanging by suicide. The quick investigation left his family and community members confused and full of questions.
Read full storyTake a walk through the Middle Ages at Inwood’s hidden gem
When people think about places to visit in NYC, the Met is always at the forefront. Known for its extensive collection of art, The Met features over two million works that span time and place. What most people do not know, however, is that just 100 blocks north, “picturesquely overlooking the Hudson River in Fort Tryon Park,” lies The Met Cloisters, the only museum in the U.S. featuring art exclusively from the Middle Ages.
Read full story‘In the Heights’ and the Debate on Representation
In the Heights, the film adaptation of the 2008 Broadway musical created by Lin-Manuel Miranda, written alongside Quiara Alegría Hudes and directed by John M. Chu, is an homage to the predominantly Dominican neighborhood of upper Manhattan: Washington Heights. “I started writing ‘In the Heights’ because I didn’t see a way forward for myself as a Latino who wanted to be in musical theater. I didn’t see our stories being told so I wrote what was missing” Miranda told NBC News.
Read full storyNYC Public School teacher profile: Meet Isvette Filpo
The last year and a half has affected everyone in extremely different ways, and without a doubt it has changed the “traditional” educational experience for parents, students, and teachers. Overnight, educators across the country had to adapt their curriculums to online platforms and reimagine teaching: Zoom and Google classrooms, online forums, virtual testing, etc. But virtual learning also exacerbated some of the challenges many public school educators have been experiencing long before the pandemic ever occurred.
Read full storyNYC Mayoral Campaign
Here’s what NYC voters need to know about this year’s primary elections. With the NYC mayoral primary coming up on June 22, voters will use a new method to select candidates — ranked choice voting (RCV). Ranked-choice voting was a ballot measure voted for in NYC in 2019 and will be implemented for the first time for the June primary election. The new voting system will allow New Yorkers to rank up to five candidates on their ballots. RCV will also be used to elect the city’s comptroller, who oversees the city’s financial and accounting management, public advocate, a non-voting member of the city council who can introduce legislation, borough presidents, and city council members.
Read full story