Sunday, April 25, 2010

Financial workshop

PACC wants you to get your
"Credit Where Credit is Due" at our
free Financial Personal Finance Workshop!

Sessions begin Tuesday, May 4th, 2010 and
continue every Tuesday in May until June 1st from 6:30pm - 8:30pm

PACC's Community Room
226 Lefferts Place
at the corner of Franklin Avenue
Brooklyn, New York, 11216

Course Highlights:
Personal Financial Plan * Free Credit Report * Free Individual Counseling * Free Savings Account at a Credit Union * Personal Finance Course Diploma

This is a free event - refreshments will be served

For More Info: 718-783-3549
Charrisse Smith Ext. 15

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

The Big Gay Variety Show



The NYCLU Young Professionals invite you to
The 3rd Annual
BIG GAY VARIETY SHOW!

At the fabulous (le) Poisson Rouge,
158 Bleecker St. in NYC
Tuesday, April 13th @ 7 p.m.

Buy your tickets now!


Proceeds benefit the NYCLU's work to win marriage rights for lesbian and gay New Yorkers, transgender non-discrimination protections and safe schools for LGBT youth.

OPEN BAR ALL NIGHT!
Sponsored by Smirnoff, Red Stripe, Magic Hat and The Artisan Wine Company.

Plus chances to win incredible RAFFLE PRIZES including getaways, Broadway tickets with backstage tours, and dinner for two by a personal chef!

Featuring some of NYC's hottest singers, dancers, magicians, comedians and performers, including:

* Comedienne, chanteuse and "cabaret superstar" (NY Mag) Lady Rizo
* Actor and comedian Jesse Tyler Ferguson (ABC's Modern Family)
* Tony-nominated Celia Keenan-Bolger and NYC singer-songwriter Maddy Wyatt
* Magician Matthew Holtzclaw
* Songstress Our Lady J (one of Out Magazine's OUT 100)
* And many more!

For an updated list of performers, visit the NYCLU's website.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Update on local Bloggers

The Southern Poverty Law Center describes hate blogs as any blog that constantly try to "present (pick any group) in a bad light. They profile the Council of Conservative Citizens as being well known for presenting African Americans in a bad light. Some of the most recent headlines they point to was "Gonorrhea is now almost exclusively a black disease” and “Black thugs hold white teens captive while raping and torturing them" In similar faction the SPLC also profiles the Anti-Immigrant hate group "American Patrol" as taking the same approach.

The SPLC describes the American Patrol's report as a report that "endlessly maligns Latinos, especially those in the United States illegally. Some recent headlines on its website: “Mexican police chief decapitated” and “More than 100 illegals, others arrested at cockfight.” The SPLC also points out that "Not as well known, but equally racist is an Internet blog called White Watch. Its target: White folks." SPLC's hate report says that all these hate blogs and site have something in common. "They all have a fondness for posting what are seen as embarrassing news stories about the racial group they are skewering." At White Watch that means the worst and wackiest of white people. Headlines have included: “HIV Positive White Man Rapes Teenage Boy,” “Lazy Brit fined for walking dog from his car” and “White Woman Attacks Cop…With Her Breast Milk.” Of course she had nothing on “Germans Caught Having Sex In The Middle of a Busy Street” — with a photo of the amorous Aryans.


The Southern Poverty Law Center
is one of the most prominent civil rights organizations in the world. They don't take any sides. They call it how it is. With that definition of what hate looks like. Can anyone realistically believe that the Ditmas Park Blog does not fall into the category of a hate blog?

Some of the latest post on the Ditmas Park have been:

"Brooklyn Crime Rising" with questionable statistics about the supposedly crime wave in the 70TH precinct. Another says "Murder at the Parade Ground" this time skewing Dominicans. Another has the headline "Million $ Bucks" showing how much money is spent on prisons block by block. What is so strange about that last posting was that it is data from more then 5 years ago. There is no Rhyme or Reason to the "Million $ Bucks" posting. What exactly were they trying to point out? What this shows is clearly a problem. They've also been comments about how day laborers should be put into some type of holding center because "it would be good for the aesthetics of the Neighborhood"

This is not something recent. As far back as 2007 they were postings that showed the African American Community in the worst possible way. One of their supporters even wrote


"But look at the posts you put up that have engendered so much controversy.
Look at the posts regarding the Heather Louise Bennett dolls. Did you post an image of her “Bat Doll’s” with white or checkered faces? No you posted a black faced doll then feigned surprise at the reaction.
You work a political blog at http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/ so you know what provokes and what doesn’t.
I’m sorry you can’t be a professional blogger and think that no one will see that you are looking for controversy.
I, for one, think your blog is fun but if you continue to post about robberies, dead cabbies, black faced dolls, blood at Newkirk, the Pakistan forum, Stabbing on Westminster, Getting run over crossing Cortelyou, Shooting on Cortelyou, Sander Hicks as Jason Bourn, “Go Back to Park Slope”, Harasser on a Bike, Early morning shooting on Rugby and Newkirk, and the post office still sucks you will get strong comments.
It’s clear you know how this blogging game works, so be honest about the provocation and be ready for the reactions."


This is actually from one of their strongest supporter who has since had a change of heart. Obviously these people know what they are doing. They know how to manipulate the public. They know how to stir up enough controversy to keep their blog rolling. They also know how to use plausible denial by having posts about restaurant openings, new bars, dance studios in between skewing and showing Mexicans, Dominicans, Blacks and other minorities in the most embarrassing and worst ways. They can also have as many people as they want defending them. At the end of the day the truth will prevailed.

The SPLC has 10 ways a community like ours can fight hate.

There has been some questions as to who the realflatbush is.

We at the Realflatbush believe that humanity has always constituted one group, but that ignorance, prejudice and power-seeking have prevented the recognition of the oneness of humanity. We believe that there is Unity in Diversity. The Diversity of the human race should be valued and celebrated instead of being skewed. We believe that all humans have been created equal in the image of God, and that God does not make any distinction between people. We believe that the world of humanity is like unto a rose garden and the various races, tongues and people are like unto contrasting flowers. The diversity of colors in a rose-garden adds to the charm and beauty of the scene as variety enhances unity. The very diversity of the human race is, in fact, a means for creating a world based on unity rather than uniformity. It is not by the suppression of differences that we will arrive at unity, but rather by an increased awareness of and respect for the intrinsic value of each separate culture, and indeed, of each individual. It is not diversity itself which is the cause of conflict, but rather our immature attitude towards it, our intolerance and misconceptions of others. For these reasons we don't see eye to eye with the Ditmas Park Blog. We will continue to fight for Humanity. For too much of its history and in so many places the human race has squandered its energy and resources in futile efforts to prove the unprovable: that one portion of itself, because of separation by geography, a difference in skin color, or the diversity of cultural expression, is intrinsically distinct from another portion. The ignorance and prejudice on which such efforts are founded have led to endless conflicts in the name of the sanctity of tribe, race, class, nation, and religion. Paradoxical as it may seem, in the consistency of these negative efforts across the spectrum of the race, humanity has proved the exact opposite: it has affirmed its oneness. The proof is in the fact that, given the same circumstances, all people, regardless of ethnic or cultural variety, behave essentially the same way. As Ted Kennedy said "The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives and the dreams shall never die."

Open House

Pratt Area Community Council Events

Gates Ave Co-Ops
PACC invites you to an Open House at the
Gates Avenue Cooperatives this weekend!
A Sunny Spacious, Affordable Cooperative Building in Bed-Stuy
for incomes ranging from 50K - $84,480


*1 Bedroom Units from $134,550-139,500*
recently dropped to a lower price
&
*2 Bedroom Units at $167,253*


Showings:
Saturday, April 10th (11:00am to 2:00pm) and
Sunday, April 11th (1:00pm to 4:00pm)
at
566 Gates Avenue
(Throop and Tompkins)
Bed-Stuy Brooklyn

566 Gates Ave Exterior

Wideshot of Gates Unit

Gates Ave View

for more info, pictures and to obtain an application call 718-522-2613 x 15
or visit www.thegatescoop.org

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Savings in Brooklyn: Fab deals in Flatbush

Located in the heart of Brooklyn and home to a diverse community filled with plenty of resources, Flatbush is a fantastic place to live. If this is your home, or you want to move there, here are some cheap neighborhood staples:

Read more:

Saturday, April 3, 2010

ACLU big victory

Do not patent my genes
On Sunday night, CBS's 60 Minutes will present a profile about a recent victory in a ground-breaking gene patent case.
Please tune in and see the important work your support helps to make possible.
From ACLU

I wanted to let you know about a recent groundbreaking ACLU victory that the support of friends like you helped make happen.

For over 20 years, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has been issuing patents on human genes—giving corporations, individuals, and universities exclusive rights to test, study, or even look at specific genes.

Arguing that this practice violates patent law as well as the public's First Amendment rights, which protect the free exchange of ideas and information, the ACLU—along with the Public Patent Foundation—filed suit against the PTO and Myriad Genetics in May 2009. Myriad Genetics holds the patent on two genes linked with breast and ovarian cancer, BRCA1 and BRCA2.

I am thrilled to report that, on Monday, a federal district court judge ruled that human genes can not be patented. This is the first time a court has said that this practice is unlawful.

Myriad Genetics has already announced that it will appeal this decision. But, this is a tremendous first step in bringing an end to patents that restrict people's access to their own genetic information and interfere with their medical care.

I could not be prouder of the creative and hard-working ACLU attorneys who argued this case. While many have spoken out against gene patenting over the years, our lawsuit was the first to ever challenge gene patents on First Amendment grounds. The Genomics Law Report called the decision "radical and astonishing in its sweep."

It is only with the support of friends like you that we are able to take on groundbreaking cases like this to defend, preserve and expand individual rights.

Best,


Anthony D. Romero
Executive Director
American Civil Liberties Union

Free Trees

from Pratt Area Community Council:

On April 17-18, 2010, over 200 FREE TREES will be available for people to plant in their front yard... back yard... at their church... in the ground on any private property. It is part of the Million Trees initiative, and the FAB Alliance is proud to be co-hosting this event along with the FGA's "Green Fort Greene & Clinton Hill".

Where to Get your FREE tree

Come to the Putnam Triangle in Clinton Hill (Fulton St and Grand Ave) on Saturday and Sunday, April 17-18 from 10AM-3PM and leave with a FREE TREE to plant!

Tree Info

All you need is a place to plant and access to water. We will give you advice and lend a shovel. Trees will be available to individuals, families and community groups for planting on private property only. Trees will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis until supplies run out. Simple tree planting and care instructions come with your free tree.
For more info:
contact tree (at)greenfgch.com

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Future Writers

From the Brooklyn Public Library
If you're a writer, you should check out inkpop, a new site from Harper Collins Publishers. Set up a profile, and join this online community of teen writers. Work on your own writing, and help pick your favorite projects: the top five get reviewed by editors, and have a chance of being published!

Brooklyn Library

Learn how to deal with snakes
Monday, April 5, 2:00PM
Central Library, Dweck Center
10 Grand Army Plaza
Brooklyn, NY 1123

Erik's Reptile Edventures

Learn about and handle LIVE reptiles and snakes, lizards, turtles, frogs and salamanders

Job and Career fair

Where: East Flatbush Library (9612 Church Avenue)
When: Tuesdays, Mar 2 & 16, 1:30 PM
Tuesdays, Apr 6 & 20, 1:30 PM
Tuesdays, May 11 & 25, 1:30 PM
Tuesday, Jun 1 1:30 PM
Audience: For Adults

Explore career possibilities.

Drop in and meet with a trained STEP counselor for job and career help. Learn about Brooklyn Public Library resources. Get tips on improving your resume.

Update and Correction

The farm on Adderly has responded to this email. As the emailed said, the Farm on Adderly has been a great asset and a welcome addition to all of us. It is actually one of the jewels of Flatbush, along with the many other great businesses we have here.

Our email:
The Ditmas Park blog has been involved in a number of questionable and racially insensitive post on their blog. You are one of their advertisers. Your restaurant has been an added benefit to the neighborhood, it has serve many different patrons of many different races. It has made all welcomed in your establishment. I'm sure you would not want your good reputation and hard work in the community be sullied by being in association with hate. As such I would like to get a comment on whether you support the practices of the blog you advertise on. The most recent questionable post on this blog has been a post about a mugging where a number of hateful comments (including a hateful comment that either a pro-choice or pro-life person would find extremely atrocious)on the moderated comments section was allowed.

Their Response:
Hi The Real Flatbush,

The Farm On Adderley actually does not do any advertising of any kind with ditmaspark.blogspot.com. The Ditmas Park Blog does not appear to engage in advertising other than public service ads. Although that is really just a casual observation. Having read your post on realflatbush.blogspot.com I can sympathize with your argument and effort to expose racially fueled comments. I am not sure that we are being fairly framed in that post or that we are even in any way relevant. Since we do not advertise with the ditmaspark.blogspot.com it is factually incorrect to assert that we do. I hope that you consider our position and correct or rescind your post from March 30th.

Thank you and good luck,
The Farm On Adderley
1108 Cortleyou Road
Brooklyn, NY 11218
718.287.3101
www.thefarmonadderley.com