One of the things that makes me personally sad about Zinn leaving us when he did is that I’d hoped to, when Ain’t Marchin’ finally came out, introduce him to Garett Reppenhagen (left), president of Veterans Green Jobs and former president of Iraq Veterans Against the War. The latter had told me, when I interviewedContinue reading “Howard Zinn, part two”
Category Archives: Chelsea
Unstuck in time again, in a good way
It’s been forever, I know. I should have at least updated my other shop’s cheers as Sotomayor became a Justice, especially the soulful essay about how she, a wise Latina herself, felt during that confirmation ceremony. But given the demands of that other shop (go look! Make comments!) and that I’ve been writing the lastContinue reading “Unstuck in time again, in a good way”
For D-Day anniversary: the voice of one who knows (Updated 6/9)
I first met Knox Martin two years ago. For one of my first Chelsea Now stories, I wrote about his “Venus” mural on 19th Street and the West Side Highway, since obscured by Jean Nouvel’s 100 Eleventh Avenue condominium complex. When I learned Martin, still fighting for his new anti-war mural “Killing the Whales,” wasContinue reading “For D-Day anniversary: the voice of one who knows (Updated 6/9)”
A couple mornings after
Given what I’ve posted here, you were likely expecting me to be exultant tonight. And I remain heartened, thrilled cautiously hopeful, and glad for the national results. In case you were curious about my little corner of the swing state, Ward 58 went with the wave, 69 percent for Obama — though not precinct 26,Continue reading “A couple mornings after”
swing state notes: election day edition
_ The door of the house where I live now has a hand-drawn sign, drawn by my father-in-law: NO POLITICAL SOLICITATIONS. GO AWAY. It’s been a little brutal, here in the 58th Ward: the commercials are relentless, the mail, the phone calls even more so. No matter your sympathies, the cacophony is hard to take.Continue reading “swing state notes: election day edition”
the obligatory Pride Day post
.. which I’ll finish tonight, after the day’s over. But i spent much of this week reporting and writing this mellow profile of gay Chelsea, and I thought you might be amused by the results. And as everyone now knows, the whole day was dominated by thundershowers, and everyone — including me and Rachel, whoContinue reading “the obligatory Pride Day post”
is that an organizer's hand I see behind the curtain?
I should have realized last month, when I noticed that stream of articles about private equity and affordable housing, that some serious organizing had taken place to get their attention. Though god knows any reporter would have noticed the trend if s/he looked,it appears probable that behind that curtain were two fearless and dedicated advocacyContinue reading “is that an organizer's hand I see behind the curtain?”
valuable lesson for investigative reporters
As many know, I’ve kept poking around at the high school story I wrote about last month. And I’ve complained more than is probably seemly about the angst of it all – about how tiring it is to meet with numerous scared sources, dig through raw data, the tricky task of presenting the results inContinue reading “valuable lesson for investigative reporters”
Updated: When Wall Street uses Google for evil
Well, now that the investor-landlord meme I wrote about last week has finally caught on, the Village Voice and the Times note a brilliantly evil use of “the Google ” by these new owners, They find someone with a similar name somewhere else, and claim that the rent-stabilized apartment is not a tenant’s primary residence.Continue reading “Updated: When Wall Street uses Google for evil”
reasons to go get an MBA
Today, the NY Times’ business section finally noticed something that’s been glaringly obvious for some time, at least if you’d paid any attention to the past few years of landlord-tenant strife. No longer are tenants fighting the traditional landlord, who is penny-pinching to keep his profit-over-expenses margin healthy. Now, they’re facing companies with names likeContinue reading “reasons to go get an MBA”
I Ain't Marching Anymore 