More on the drummers of Marcus Garvey Park. [IHT]
Focus on the United House of Prayer for All People in Harlem. Check out the slideshow. [NYT]
White flight is a lie, according to Bill Sanderson. [NYP via comments (thanks!)]
Review of The Tenants of East Harlem. [The Indypendent]
I <3 DR shirts were out in force at the parade. [NYSun]
An autistic man from East Harlem is missing. [NYDN]
Photo Credit: Michelle V. Agins/The New York Times
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Posted in: The Scoop
Anonymous
August 14, 2007
The make up of an area will change over time. You have no control over it. Therefore, you can’t just assume and expect these newcomers to volunteer and get involved in your culture. Just because Harlem churches are important to Harlem community does not mean that newcomers should regard it as important. They come from other walks of life and will adopt and set up places that are significant to them. I think we should accept the fact that the future Harlem will no longer be predominately black. So, you gotta accept that these newcomers have different views towards situations and not see them as being racially or culturally insensitive.
Anonymous
August 14, 2007
I don’t think #1 is talking about church here. So you’re going off on a tangent. I think he/she is talking about the drumming. However, whether church or not, I think people should take into consideration others who are living in the area. If a church is loud, it should tone down in order to allow others to enjoy their surroundings too. Now, we’re talking about noise leve here in general.
anon
August 13, 2007
Harlem Girl has a good point that new comers should be aware of, the Harlem churches are a very important part of the fabric of the community. I recommend newcomers to volunteer some time / get involved, it really helps to understand an important part of Harlem.
Harlem Girl
August 13, 2007
Sorry.
I read the church article and thought you were talking about them doing the street baptism.
Hey moderator, you can delete my rant if you want to.
HG
anon
August 13, 2007
Harlem Girl….You managed to completely miss the point that #1 was making. #1 was talking about the Saturday drumming in the park, not Sunday church services.
Harlem Girl
August 13, 2007
*** I’m sitting here at a loss for words as I try figure out a way to explain something that is so basic and common to me and people from my culture. ***
You complain that many of the people probably don’t live in the neighborhood and that they are being inconsiderate because they come back to worship on Sundays.
For many, Church is not just a building it’s so much more.
It’s family, friends, employers, business associates, your future mate, your ex. boyfriend or girlfriend…..LOL.
It’s made of people who will visit you in the hospital and come to your house when you were sick…..and fed your family. It’s the place where you went once or twice a week as a kid and the place where you now take your kids.
Bible Study is where many Black kids learned to read and enhanced their public speaking skills.
When many couldn’t afford to pay for or send their kids to or money for college, it was the church scholarships that fed them, paid for books and got them back and forth.
Some people are connected to their “Home Church” for life. Especially Blacks who migrated from the south. Whenever they go to visit, they are sure to include a Sunday morning church visit.
Not only that, you want to talk about tradition and being connected to church, in my family, everyone who grew up in the south still considered the church “down south” as their church.
So much so, that every relative that I’ve had who has died has had double funerals. They had one where they currently lived (NYC, Baltimore, etc.)and a second funeral thousands of miles away at their “home church”. And, they were buried in the church cemetary right along with everyone else in the family.
Since YOU pulled out the race card in your comment, I’ll suggest that you do some reading on the siginificance of the Black church during slavery as well as during the civil rights movement.
Maybe then you’ll understand a little more why some people still continue to come to the neighborhood every Sunday.
Anonymous
August 13, 2007
It’s understandable for people to keep their tradition but not so much when they don’t take into consideration other people’s needs. Probably many of them don’t even live in the area any more but still feel like they should come every week to disrupt the peace and tranquility of the area. Wonder how they would feel if a bunch of people gathered outside their home to play heavy metal/rock/gregorian chants (whatever it is they please) all day long to the point it’s giving them a headache. They probably won’t like it either. But the second someone complains, they play the racial card. Again, black folks need to stop playing that racial card all the time. Not all situations call for that.