Tag: New York CIty

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9/11 Personal Evacuation Kit

After the 9/11 attacks, we were given by our employer, Scudder Investments, now Deutsche Bank, a personal evacuation kit.

The months after the attack, many of us working in NYC office buildings thought another attack was imminent. I felt a bit safer with my personal evacuation kit. With my trusty kit under my arm, I would get out of a burning building unscathed.

Twenty three years later, I still keep my kit next to my desk at work. Fortunately, I have never needed it.

Yesterday I finally opened it.

Personal Evacuation Kit
Kit Ingredients

It’s funny what we think will keep us safe.

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First-Generation NYC Students Develop Business Skills to Help Harlem Business Owners

In a time when anti-immigration rhetoric is scaling new heights in the US and the EU, there is a bright spot in the U.S. migration story. A New York City pilot program teaches first-generation high school students financial literacy and entrepreneurship. It is a win for all communities involved.

First-Generation Entrepreneurs Trailer
Continue reading “First-Generation NYC Students Develop Business Skills to Help Harlem Business Owners”
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The Genius of New York City

Or how to change your bad mood by celebrating the creativity of your fellow NYC travelers.

Moussa, Columbus Circle, New York City

It was that type of morning.

The meditation, coffee and two-three mile run wasn’t working.

The existential dread of work, life, city, was still there.

Until.

Crossing the street in a sea of black town cars ferrying the fancy from the east side to the west side, and vice versa, there in his #pedicab splendor, is Moussa, from #Senegal.

The morning dread evaporates as we laugh with each other.

#newyorkcity#newyork

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Tiffany: A Day in the Life of a NYC Black Transgender Woman

Tiffany and Nate.  Black, homeless, queer and trans they have survived on the streets of New York City for years. 

As race continues to engulf our nation it is important to look at basic human needs of shelter, education, healthcare, and so much more, that often elude this population. Until we address the systemic racism baked into every institution in our country, we will never move forward.

We first meet them in a Harlem shelter for queer youth.  Six years later we meet Tiffany after she has broken up with Nate.  We spend a day with her as she navigates her life on the lower east side of Manhattan.

We post two seasons that consist of twenty six, 60-second video segments on certain aspects of their life. 

Warning, this is an unvarnished look into their lives with language and topics that might not be for everyone.

Season Two: Tiffany, A Day in the Life.
Transgender Woman Surviving on the Streets of New York City
Continue reading “Tiffany: A Day in the Life of a NYC Black Transgender Woman”
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What Do Kids Learn By Making Videos?

Our students at Brownsville Collaborative Middle School address their peers on what they learned about making videos at The Campus, an after-school program that teaches tech and media skills to kids in the Howard Houses in Brownsville, Brooklyn.  It is the first computer lab developed in public housing in the US.

Founded by Senator Jesse Hamilton (D),

Emoni Talks To Her Peers at P.S. 156

to address this systemic problem of inequality, Senator Hamilton assembled teachers and community leaders to bring tech resources to Brownsville.

We spent an academic year teaching kids about storytelling through photography and video.  Their stories and observations can be seen on their blog: Brownsville Visible

In addition to the blog,  check out the video below to learn what Emoni, Tyrese, Isiah and Kymani learned in making their stories.

To see the student videos, click on the links for the Brownsville Barber Guru and the interview with Local Hero, Brownsville Collaborative Middle School  Principal, Gregory Jackson.

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Brownsville Media Lab Screens Films On Identity, Poverty and Police.

The Brownsville Community Justice Center and Reel Works screened films from the recent piloted Brownsville Media Lab program.

https://instagram.com/p/4B2w1CAFZd/?taken-by=jaycorcoran

The screenings took place at the
New York Institute of Technology Auditorium
1871 Broadway @ 63rd St.

The filmmakers tackled tough issues they are grappling in their young lives like identity, beauty, race, police, violence, poverty and grief.  They felt a great sense of accomplishment and a stronger connection to the community by sharing very personal things they thought only they grapple with.

When asked what was the key thing he learned from the filmmaking process, Ray Graham said, “Patience.  I wanted to quit the lab two times because I didn’t think the film was coming together.”

Judging from the audience’s supportive response, Graham’s patience and the gamble to open up paid off, they learned they are not alone with their feelings and perceptions about living in Brownsville Brooklyn in these volatile times.

The Brownsville Media Lab runs simultaneous with other tracks that include the Young Adult Entrepreneurship track, Community Benefits Projects track and the Mark Morris Dance Group track. All tracks are to develop our youth and provide new career opportunities that at one time seemed unimaginable.

Missed the screening? Check out the videos below.

Continue reading “Brownsville Media Lab Screens Films On Identity, Poverty and Police.”