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The Greenburgh Housing Relocation Crisis Update

AJ Woodson
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The Greenburgh Housing Relocation Crisis Update

Okay, once again, it’s time for some REAL TALK!

The Greenburgh Housing Authority’s Executive Director, Raju Abraham, sent a strongly worded email, Thursday afternoon to the Greenburgh Human Rights Advisory Committee that if they continue with their scheduled Rally, Sunday, August 22nd that they will be arrested.

Ms. Goodman

Please be informed that 100 Greenvale Circle is owned by Greenburgh Heights LLC, a private entity, which is managed by the Greenburgh Housing Authority. I have been informed via social media and other sources that an organization named “ Greenburgh Human Rights “  and Greenburgh Human Rights Advisory Committee chaired by you, is holding a Tenant rally on this property on August 22, 2021 at 6 PM. We don’t allow, and we have not given permission for such rallies and gatherings to be held on our property and it will be construed as trespassing on private property . We have informed authorities on this matter. We request you to take necessary actions to prevent this rally from taking place on our property.

Sincerely,
Raju Abraham
Executive Director
Greenburgh Housing Authority
9 Maple Street, White Plains, NY 10603.
Ph. 914 946 2110

The Greenburgh Human Rights Advisory Committee – that serves as a resource to help facilitate better understanding among the diverse groups in the Town of Greenburgh. NY. – agreed to refrain from holding a committee-sanctioned rally. But several individuals acting on their own tell Black Westchester they refuse to stand down, vowing to continue with the rally Sunday from 6-8PM as scheduled to advocate for the residents being relocated. They say they will be there letting the residents know their rights and that they have resources like the Westchester Residential Opportunities.

“Black people are free,” Housing Advocate, Mechelle Brown, and Stephanie Swann, who is a resident of Greenburgh Heights LLC, shared with Black Westchester. “People that live in the Greenburgh Housing Authority are entitled to invite people to their homes to exercise their First Amendment – which guarantees freedom of expression and the right of citizens to assemble peaceably. We were invited by the residents and fully plan to be there for them.”

Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner stated in a follow-up email that he would be happy to participate in meetings with tenants and to use my office to help the Housing Authority make the temporary move as stress-free as possible.

“I like the idea of having individual meetings in different complexes with as many tenants who would like to participate. Town officials, the housing authority, the housing action council and tenants can all meet together. Hopefully, we can help find housing within or very close to the school district,” Feiner wrote. “And we could ease some of the anxiety that many of the tenants have.  I’m hopeful that at the end of the process the tenants will feel that we all tried hard and fought for a good quality of life for them while construction took place.”

This is where I am a little confused. If the Town Supervisor likes the idea of having meetings at the different complexes, why is the Greenburgh Housing Authority threatening to have those scheduled to rally behind the tenants arrested? Aren’t the GHA appointed by the Town Board? A quick Google search revealed that the Board is comprised of four Council members, who are elected for a four-year term, and the Supervisor, who is elected for a two-year term. Are the officials of Greenburgh taking out of both sides of their mouths?

According to their website, “At the Greenburgh Housing Authority, the tenant matters!” Their Customer Care Service Pledge states that Greenburgh Housing Authority commissioners and employees are dedicated to providing you with excellent service. We thank you for being our clients. Our goal is to completely satisfy your housing needs. That’s all sounds good, but from the tenants we have spoken to, they do not feel like they matter and are receiving anything but the excellent care the GHA pledges on their website.

So for those keeping score or playing catch, allow me to go back to how Black Westchester first got involved. Black Westchester received a letter to the editor alleging that seniors are being displaced. We received several calls and emails from residents for about three weeks about he situation, mostly in support of the allegations in the letter asking me to help shed light on what’s going on. Then we started receiving emails from Raju Abraham, the Executive Director of the Greenburgh Housing Authority (GHA), and were provided with links to a video of a meeting where members of the GHA stated that the letter to the editor was full of misrepresentations of the facts. We received calls about residents being silent when trying to speak up, including a senior or two.

So, after many calls for Black Westchester to look into what’s really going on, we scheduled a special edition of our weekly talk radio show, People Before Politics. Friday, March 19th and Dr. Bob and I held a forum to open up dialogue to try to bring out some solutions. We invited the Chairman of GHA’s Board Bishop Wilbert Preston – who says the letter by Greenburgh Housing Authority’s Federal Sites Commissioner Renee Robinson was misleading – Town of Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner, Executive Director of Greenburgh /Ceo Greenburgh Housing Authority, Raju Abraham (who did not appear on the show), Greenburgh Housing Authority’s Federal Sites Commissioner Renee Robinson, Former Greenburgh Housing Authority State Site Commissioner Clifford Abramson (who did not appear on the show), Town Supervisor Candidate Tasha Young (who has been advocating for those relocated) and a few others including one senior, Mrs. Lorraine Frazier who came of to backed up Commissioner Renee Robinson’s letter, as well as share her experience (no heat and broken toilet that keep backing up) and the experience of other seniors (who are without food and ended up in a nursing home) who feared retaliation and did not want to appear.

We scheduled a special edition of PBP Radio, five months ago today on March 19th and we are no closer to getting to the bottom of things and have not received any responses to our follow up emails requesting updates spoken about during the show. We promised then the show wasn’t going to be a one off and we weren’t going anywhere. You can watch the recording of the radio show here, and see what was said and promised five months ago. As promised on the show to all involved Black Westchester will be following this situation all the way through and continue to shed light on what’s going on with the Greenburgh Housing Relocation Crisis and will report back what happens Sunday evening at the rally. We invite all involved to contact us for a follow up interview because

Blacks Winning For America By Brother John Morrison

Black Westchester
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Blacks Winning For America By Brother John Morrison

24-year-old Simone Biles is the most decorated American gymnast and is considered one of the greatest and most dominant gymnasts of all time. Those who attack or question her decision to step down, you could never survive a day in her shoes.

Like the Federalist.com’s John Daniel Davidson who wrote “Sorry, Simone Biles, The Olympics isn’t about you, It’s about winning for America.”

What do Black People gain by winning for America? Let’s see!

1936
Jesse Owens won 4 Gold medals representing America, returning back to America, he was still forced to enter through the back door of a Reception held in “HIS HONOR”.

1960
Muhammad Ali known then as Cassius Clay, won a gold medal in the Rome 1960 Olympic Games. representing America. After returning home and being declined service at a “HOMETOWN”
restaurant in Louisville KY, because he was an African-American, Cassius Clay was so angry that he threw his gold medal into a river.

1968
John Carlos Bronze Medalist and Tommie Smith Gold Medalist, track and field winners in the 200 meters at the 1968 Summer Olympics, and their Black Power salute on the podium caused them to be Black Bald and Ridiculed. “Niggers need to go back to Africa!” and, “I can’t believe this is how you niggers treat us after we let you run in our games.”

The Olympic Commission has made sure something like this will never happen again, you must sign a waiver now, whatever the Commission considers inappropriate actions will not be demonstrated or you will be immediately suspended.

2012
Allyson Felix is the 2012 Olympic gold medal winner, and a three-time world champion – maintaining the title from 2005 through to 2009. She’s the only Olympic female track star to win six gold Medals Representing America.

Allyson Felix said her “stomach dropped” when she was asked to participate in a female-empowerment ad for Nike while negotiating maternity protections with the company.” I was like, this is just beyond disrespectful. She was eventually dropped.

2012 – 2016
Gabrielle Douglas won the 2012 Olympic all-around champion and the 2015 World all-around silver medalist Representing America. Returning home her biggest Obstacle was her “HAIR”. She was humiliated because her hair wasn’t acceptable to America. Remember the statement, “She is cute, but my God look at her HAIR” That phrase elicits in every American black woman a particularly dehumanizing and existential dread — a fear, a state of mind, a poison distilled from over 400 years of not having “good enough” hair.

2021
Simone Biles member of the 2016 Olympic gymnastics team referred to as the “FINAL FIVE”, where Simone won her 25th World Championship Medal that fall. She now has a Combined 30 Olympic and World Championship Medals. Simone has announced she will be dropping from the Competition due to Mental Issues.

Some believe she’s faking, she just doesn’t have tough skin, how dare you let America down. Again she has nothing.to prove or really explain to anyone. Some want to know exactly what Mental illness she is dealing with. America should be looking at the many Athletes who are dealing with Mental illness and start addressing it. Some black people will say, well we have come a long way. How far exactly have we come?

We are still getting crumbs and acting like, yes we are moving forward. Yet we are still being Disrespected, Targeted, and Separated. But, hey to some It’s getting better. We’re moving in the right direction.

“SHUT UP AND PLAY”
“SHUT UP AND PLAY TENNIS”
“SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE”
“JUST SHUT UP PERIOD”

It’s now 2021 and we still represent America with Pride, but still fighting for the same exact thing, Equality, Justice, and Human Rights.

John Morrison Aka Brother John is the Head Coach of the YO.K.O Boxing Team, which has produced 5 Golden Gloves Champions, 3 Ringside Champions, and 10 Junior Olympic Champions. He is the Co-founder of Brother 2 Brother Radio, bringing information to the Community, and is the President and co-founder of the 100 Black Fathers for Change Organization.

Yonkers Reacts to LOX – Dipset Verzuz Battle

Dennis Richmond Jr
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Yonkers Reacts to LOX – Dipset Verzuz Battle

(Picture above – The Memorial of Juelz Santana’s Bandana on Palisade “The Strip” Avenue in Yonkers)

On the night of Thursday, August 3rd, 2021, two American Hip-Hop groups, The LOX, out of Yonkers, New York, and The Diplomats, otherwise known as Dipset, out of Harlem, New York, went head-to-head at Madison Square Garden. The two groups participated in a Verzuz battle. The Verzuz series, created by producers Timbaland and Swizz Beatz, brings two musicians or groups of musical artists together to highlight their discographies. This battle was one for the Hip-Hop history books.

My niece Alajah Whitehead, my nephew Tracy Meighan, Jr., and I all went down to The Garden for the event. Though we were not inside for the function, we saw celebrities like Fabolous, Jim Jones, French Montana, and Takeoff outside of the building. I saw expensive cars, Mercedes Sprinter Vans, and what had to be millions of dollars worth of jewelry. New York looked beautiful.

When the Verzuz battle began, I was one of what would become over 640,000 people who were in attendance virtually. The event was in-person, and Madison Square Garden seats over 20,000 people. The battle began with the introduction of American ring announcer Michael Buffer. After members of each group went back and forth for a while, The Lox started it off. The night was nothing short of spectacular. Rappers Sheek Louch, Styles P, and Jadakiss not only represented The Lox, but they also represented Yonkers.

The Verzuz battle was playing everywhere. It was playing in Manhattan, it was playing on a television screen at a business in Yonkers, even though the store was closed, and I had it playing when I was driving my niece and nephew home. The Lox won the battle without hesitation. Yonkers was in the house, and I loved it.

The Lox knew their lyrics, helped each other, and they had enough comebacks for Dipset to make the night feel like true Hip-Hop in New York was supposed to. Sheek Louch, Styles P, and Jadakiss had a major and beautiful stage presence. They brought energy, movement, and a plethora of hit songs. Technician The DJ was on cue with the group so much that anybody who saw the battle knew what time it was. Dipset rapper Juelz Santana purposely bumped into LOX rappers Styles P and Jadakiss, so Jadakiss took Juelz Santana’s bandana off his head and threw it on the floor of the stage. Iconic.

The day after the battle, I decided to go from neighborhood to neighborhood in Yonkers and ask people how they felt about the event. I started filming on Riverdale Avenue in Yonkers. On foot, I made my way to Palisade Avenue, Elm Street, Spruce Street, Cliff Street, Oliver Avenue, Ashburton Avenue, and Warburton Avenue.

I had a lot of people tell me not to film them. A group of people on Palisade Avenue permitted me to film The Memorial of Juelz Santana’s Bandana. In less than four days after the completion of the video, Yonkers Reactions To The Lox VS. Dipset Verzuz Battle, it now has over 232,000 views and almost 4,000 likes on YouTube. I gained well over 500 subscribers on YouTube too. People from across the world are commenting on the video and are looking at my channel. All I did was ask people in my community how they felt.

Eric Adams Interview

AJ Woodson
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Eric Adams Interview

On his path to victory, New York City Mayoral Candidate Eric Adams joins Damon K. Jones, AJ Woodson, and Robert ‘Dr. Bob’ Baskerville

Infinite Henry: The 22-Year-Old She-EO Making Herstory

Dennis Richmond Jr
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Infinite Henry: The 22-Year-Old She-EO Making Herstory

At just 22 years old, Infinite Henry is a salon owner in New Rochelle, NY.

When asked who she is, Infinite Henry (@Envy_Infinite) describes herself as an entrepreneur. With thousands of friends and followers across social media, she comes off as a social butterfly. Infinite is outgoing, hard-working, and well-rounded. I had the privilege of interviewing her a few weeks ago, during Women’s History Month. When asked why she works so hard, she told me simply, “I want more for myself… for the lifestyle that I want to live.”

A young woman who celebrated her 22nd birthday on February 13th, Infinite is the daughter of Jamaican parents. Her family decided to settle in Westchester County. Born and raised in Westchester, Infinite attended high school in Yonkers. She began to explore New York upon turning 16 years old and working her first job. “That’s when I started to go outside,” she said. Infinite was never afraid of hard work. As a teenager, she worked multiple jobs across the Cross County Shopping Center in Yonkers.

After graduating from high school, purchasing a car, and driving 8 hours upstate for college, Infinite was ready to spread her wings. As a young woman who took out $10,000 in loans, a friend suggested selling hair as a way for her to make money. People always complimented her hair when she was in Buffalo. Infinite embraces support and love, and she knows how to tune out naysayers and drama. She’s too focused on her career and her future goals to worry about negative energy.

She began selling hair in Buffalo, New York and she was a hit! With a logo and ambition, she decided to become a hairdresser. Hesitant at first, too many people would buy her hair and then need someone to install it, for Infinite to pass up the opportunity. People would say, “Who’s supposed to put it in for us,” she told me. Infinite began to perfect her craft. With wigs selling for over $500 and with house visits raking in hundreds of dollars, Infinite took the next logical step. “Buying a suite for her business.”

After searching Westchester far and wide, it was Main Street in New Rochelle, that Infinite decided to open her business. She’s looking to hire close to a dozen people for her business. All of this, and she’s in school for occupational therapy.

Forever Hair Salon is opening next month, and I’ll be there to cover the story. Stay tuned!”

Address: 985 Main Street, New Rochelle
Tel: (914) 685-3145 – IG: forever.hair.by.infinite/
Mon-Sat 11 am-7 pm, Closed Sundays

The Greenburgh Housing Relocation Crisis Update

AJ Woodson
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The Greenburgh Housing Relocation Crisis Update

A special edition of Black Westchester presents the People Before Politics. Friday, March 19, 2021, hosted by AJ Woodson and Robert ‘Dr. Bob’ Baskerville. We held a forum to open up dialogue to try to bring out some solutions. We invited the Chairman of GHA’s Board Bishop Wilbert Preston – who says the letter by Greenburgh Housing Authority’s Federal Sites Commissioner Renee Robinson was misleading – Town of Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner, Executive Director of Greenburgh /Ceo Greenburgh Housing Authority, Raju Abraham (who did not appear on the show), Greenburgh Housing Authority’s Federal Sites Commissioner Renee Robinson, Former Greenburgh Housing Authority State Site Commissioner Clifford Abramson (who did not appear on the show), Town Supervisor Candidate Tasha Young (who has been advocating for those relocated) and a few others including one senior, Mrs. Lorraine Frazier who came of to backed up Commissioner Renee Robinson’s letter, as well as share her experience (no heat and broken toilet that keep backing up) and the experience of other seniors (who are without food and ended up in a nursing home) who feared retaliation and did not want to appear. See the video below to check out the whole conversation.

People Before Politics Radio, Giving You Real Talk For The Community Since 2014!

Black Westchester presents the People Before Politics Radio Show every Sunday night, 6-8 PM, simulcasting live on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, and archived on BlackWestchester.com. Giving you that Real Talk For The Community since 2014.

To support the Black Westchester and the People Before Politics Radio Show, which provides the News With The Black Point Of view and gives you the real talk for the community for free, donate via PayPal. In the words of Ray Charles, “One of these days, and it [might not be] long, You’re gonna look for [us], and [we’ll] be gone.” Support independent, Black-owned, Free Media!

Subscribe, hit the notification bell, and join the conversation this Sunday. At Black Westchester, we always put People Before Politics!

As always, you can follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube

Contributions and Donations can be made via PayPal.

Congressman Mondaire Jones advocating for Black Westchester at Friday, March 12, 2021 hearing

AJ Woodson
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Congressman Mondaire Jones advocating for Black Westchester at Friday, March 12, 2021 hearing

Congressman Mondaire Jones advocated for Black Westchester and other independent and free press outlets at a congressional hearing on Friday, March 12, 2021.

Letter To The Editor: Greenburgh Housing Authority Relocation Crisis

AJ Woodson
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Letter To The Editor: Greenburgh Housing Authority Relocation Crisis

My name is Renee Robinson, and I am the duly elected Federal Housing Commissioner with the Greenburgh Housing Authority (GHA). 

This is a letter regarding the removal of 30 residents from the Manhattan Ave. site.  26 of these residents are senior citizens and/or disabled people. 

The residents have been forced to move out of Greenburgh public housing in the middle of the Coronavirus health crisis.  

GHA has also decided to do the same to approximately 100 more families living in federal HUD housing.

The nation’s most vulnerable population was relocated during a global health epidemic so that a three-story, 70-unit tower could be built.

There is absolutely no planned return for the seniors and disabled outside of a ‘potential’ section 8 voucher.

This project was not well managed.  The seniors were removed between the months of September 2020  through December 2020, during a global pandemic. 

They were relocated throughout Westchester to places with no heat, some are on floors in buildings with no elevator, and have limited mobility, others are living in substandard living conditions during a harsh winter.

The relocation team that was hired did not do their due diligence.

The housing authority did not tell the truth to the residents. 

The seniors were told that:

1. The rent would be the same as they were paying

(A heating subsidy was being applied to their rent on Manhattan Ave, but once they relocated, it was no longer applicable, thus increasing their rent anywhere from $65-$100. The seniors have a fixed income, and because of this increase in adult protective services was called to help ensure food provisions.)

2. Rent would be paid as usual to the GHA

(The invoice for rent payment is to be made payable to Greenburgh Development Corp.)

3. They would receive Section 8 vouchers

(They did not, and some actually received another bill for $2050. These vouchers are not widely accepted in Westchester County in any event.

The Manhattan Ave seniors in a July 2020 meeting made it clear to the chairperson of the board that they no longer want the present board or the executive director in place because of how they were being treated. They actually issued a petition ( to the GHA and the Greenburgh Town Board) requesting that everything be put in writing, but to no avail.

I stated in a public meeting that the executive director should send a letter to the seniors explaining the rent increase.

He agreed, but didn’t comply and would not enter my oral statement in the monthly minutes, even after several requests to correct the minutes. The GHA board has not made him do so.

Now, the board and a consultant want to relocate the rest of the residents to federal housing.  

5 federal sites are remaining.

They are located in Elmsford, Hartsdale, Tarrytown, Ardsley, and Greenburgh (Greenvale Circle).

The GHA board initially selected one resident from each site last year to meet with the consultant, who was to explain the Rad relocation process.

Last year, a company was hired to inspect the residents’ units, and they even took pictures of their homes.

The summary was that the structure wasn’t that bad, and they could renovate the homes with the residents being displaced for two weeks at the most. 

Now, a year later, there is a whole new agenda.

Inspections were done against our protest (some residents were ill or quarantined).

It was determined we would be displaced for two months to a year.

GHA personnel dropped recertification papers at our doors( they are normally mailed) and only gave us a two-week notice in which to comply with an interview ( a date normally assigned within a two-month period.

The interviews were conducted by an outside company (normally done by the GHA Federal personnel), and if you did not comply with any of their new procedures, threatening letters of eviction were given.

All this during a Pandemic!!!!

The consultant who did the senior Manhattan site has also been commissioned to oversee the other 5 sites. He is getting paid very dearly.

Why weren’t bids sought under the procurement process?

Why have we gone from a two-week displacement to a year-long displacement?

Rad went to section 18 and then to section 22.

What does this entail? And why weren’t the tenants apprised of this change?

What are the pros and cons of getting us away from HUD?

These questions have been asked of GHA and the consultant, but they will not answer.

The GHA board members have been in place for so long that they are unresponsive to the tenants’ needs.

Only one member speaks out against the injustice being done to Greenburgh and its residents.

I have apprised the town board of this ongoing situation.

Help to save us, please!!!!!
Renee Robinson
914-625-6847

The Frank Figliuzzi Interview

AJ Woodson
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The Frank Figliuzzi Interview

Former FBI Assistant Director for Counterintelligence and MSNBC’s National Security Analyst Frank Figliuzzi joins the People Before Politics Radio Crew on Sunday, February 21, 2021, to discuss The FBI and the Black Panthers—Then and Now, Judas & The Black Messiah, his new book THE FBI WAY: Inside the Bureau’s Code of Excellence, and much more.

#FrankFigliuzzi #BlackWestchester #FBI #BlackPanthers

Yonkers Councilwoman Shanae Williams Announces Candidacy for County Clerk

AJ Woodson
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Yonkers Councilwoman Shanae Williams Announces Candidacy for County Clerk

Yonkers City Councilwoman Shanae Williams announced her candidacy for Westchester County Clerk at a meeting of the Yonkers Democratic Party Executive Committee held Thursday, December 17, 2020. Councilwoman Williams has served on the Yonkers City Council since her appointment by Mayor Mike Spano in 2018, and won a full term in 2019.

Councilwoman Williams holds a Bachelors in Sociology and a Masters in Business Administration, with
a focus in Leadership.

“Westchester residents deserve a County Clerk who will view the office through the lens of affirmative
access and equity,” said Councilwoman Williams. “My campaign is about breaking down barriers and
bringing new energy, new ideas, and a new voice to county-wide government. As your next County
Clerk, I will deliver new levels of transparency and access to county government, ensure equitable access
to government services, and promote commerce and entrepreneurship throughout the county.”

“During my tenure on the Yonkers City Council, I have fought for increased affordable housing options,
improved services and resources for the homeless population, and created dialogue and action on police
and criminal justice reform,” continued Councilwoman Williams. “I am proud that I have never backed
down from tough, under-addressed issues during my time on the City Council and will bring that same
commitment and energy to the Clerk’s Office. I am well qualified to manage and optimize the County
Clerk’s Office having worked in both the public and private sector. However, I will use my unique
background and commitment to efficient, transparent government to re-imagine the work of the Clerk’s
Office, optimize procedures and practices, and make the Clerk’s Office user-friendly for all residents and
businesses.”

“The County Clerk’s office is a large and important component of county government and deserves
energetic and forward thinking leadership. My opponent promised voters four years ago that he would not
run for a fifth term, yet plans to run for re-election to pad his pension after receiving a huge political pay
raise. We deserve elected officials who are in government for the right reasons, stick to their word, and
deliver for taxpayers, not just themselves.”

“I am a young, educated, immigrant, woman of color who is experienced, innovative and observant. My
campaign for Westchester County Clerk is an opportunity to bring true representation and diversity to

county government. Westchester residents have shown in recent years that they are ready for change, and
a new generation of leadership in government. Together, we can bring this change, and build a Clerk’s
Office that truly represents and works for our community.”

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