Author Archives: Katti Gray
Students: Not Working is Not an Option
By Aniya Greene Staff Writer A student asked her for a roll of toilet paper. “Sure,” Ra Carroll answered, from where she sat behind the welcome desk at Palladium Hall dormitory. For handing out toilet paper and door keys, pointing summer guests at that NYU dorm toward the best pizzeria and performing other duties, Carroll […]
Young Adults Tackle Justice Reform
By Zegale Talmadge Staff writer Eight years ago, when he was 17, Alex Davis was convicted of robbery and assault. Instead of being sent to prison, he spent a month at Rikers Island Correctional Facility and, afterward, began seven years on parole. “I was really depressed when I came out,” Davis said. “I had a […]
Soccer for City Kids
By Ryan Marrus Staff writer Instead of continuing as a Wall Street stockbroker or an English teacher in Italy, Paul Jeffries, who’d played soccer as a kid in Britain, chose to work full-time in a youth soccer program in New York. “What was the problem that I could help solve?” Jeffries asked himself as he […]
Peddling Poetry–On Demand
By Mikaela Querido Staff Writer Mira Rosenkotz’s handwritten sign, made of poster board and Magic Marker, announces what she’s peddling. “POEMS …Your topic…Your price.” A customer asks Rosenkotz to convey her first impressions of the stranger standing in front of her. Rosenkotz pauses, getting her bearings. She begins, her fingers working the keyboard. Tch-tch-cha-tch-tch-cha … […]
Sidewalk Booksellers Still in Business
By Shreya Paul Staff writer At the start of his workday, on the corner of East 14th Street and Irving Place, Carlos Espada transfers books from cardboard and plastic boxes to a folding table and upside-down milk crates he’s arranged on the sidewalk. The books are for sale. He and his wife, Karina Gushiken, have […]
Galleries Fight to Stay Open
By Samantha Alzate Staff Writer Sitting at a work bench in his West 10th Street art gallery, sandwiched between an alley and a hair salon, Numan Jalallari takes in the view of the people passing by. He waits for someone to come inside. “I don’t see what I used to see,” said Jalallari, owner of […]
“Rising Leaders,” a Peer-to-Peer Project
By Olivia Chen Staff writer The 15 trainees, aged 11 to 14, listened and learned as their three instructors, aged 18 to 19, schooled them on how to debate the pros and cons of a topic. That day’s make-believe topic was vanilla ice cream. What, asked Abigail Neely, 18, if vanilla was the color and […]
Youth Show “God’s Love” For Puerto Rico
By Lelah Tekhna Staff writer Before leaving Manhattan to help rebuild some of what Hurricane Maria tore down in Puerto Rico, 11 youth from Middle Collegiate Church researched what they might expect to see. Even so, Christian Unthank, 13, said nothing prepared those kids from that East Village congregation for what they saw. “This was […]
College-bound, but Forging My Own Path
By Samuel Hyland Staff writer I’ve seen it for myself. Anxious and fretting, a college applicant—a high school senior who’s related to me—ran down a flight of stairs, flung open the front door and searched the mailbox for an important letter about where she’d spend the next four years of her academic life. The letter […]
After Hurricane, Teens Build New Lives in NY
By Marcos De Paula Staff writer After Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, high school students Nestor Ortiz, 17, and Abdiel Miranda, 19, moved to New York City with their families. In their new city, life has been full of surprises and hardships. “It was a blessing,” Ortiz said recalling his thoughts when he first landed […]
Performers Ease Subway Commute
By Wilmer Ortiz Staff writer Benjamín Schnake Gálvez sat on a chair, playing a six-stringed guitar at the Union Square station. Into a microphone, he sang a mellow song in Spanish that was broadcast through a small amplifier. He is one of the performers sanctioned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority Arts & Design project. Its […]
“Colorblind” Church Wants Diversity
By Samuel Hyland Staff writer Since the Bible Crusade Assembly of God opened its East Village branch in the 1970s, the core of its mission has been to make sure its membership is racially diverse. It’s still working to reach that goal. “We don’t want this to be a black temple or a white temple,” […]
Litefeet Dancers Part of Hip-hop Lineage
By Grace Oladunni Staff writer “Clap your hands, clap your hands … ” Those lyrics were thumping hard out of a loud speaker. A solo dancer, encircled by a crowd of other dancers, was showing off his new skills. He wasn’t this good when he started out doing Litefeet, one of the latest forms of […]
Handball Thrives Still on West 4th Court
By Aidan McHenry Staff Reporter Eric Santiago started playing handball in the streets of his native Brooklyn, with his four brothers, back in the 1970s. Though the 50-year-old retired from playing professional handball he’s still enjoying the sport, competing along a snatch of West Fourth Street that is better known for basketball. “To get […]
Doctors Protest ICE Detention Centers
By Swathi Kella Staff writer “Migration is a human right.” “We see cruelty.” “Deportations are taking our neighborhoods away.” That’s how signs read during a mid-July protest in Foley Square over the deaths of seven children at Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities on the nation’s southern border. Critics have condemned the facilities as unsanitary and […]
Indian Eateries Duel for Diners
By Amal Khateeb Spectrum staff The two men stood in front of the respective doorways of their side-by-side restaurants, beckoning diners. “Come in, come in,” the first guy said, waving at people passing by. “No, no, no, this is the one,” the other said, waving, too. From the steps of the single stairway leading […]
Iconic Theater Aims for New Audiences
By Hannah Hur Spectrum staff Since May, Film Forum, one of the nation’s handful of non-profit movie theaters, has been outfitted with tiered stadium seating to give its ticket-buyers more leg room, comfort and better sight-lines. These and other improvements are part of a $6 million renovation that Film Forum directors hope will provide a […]
A Performance Space of Their Own
By Samhitha Saiba Spectrum staff Four women glide across a black floor, bodies twisting and leaning into one another under a pink glow of light. Audience members watch from the edges of the room, some rising every now and then to drift to a different corner. Their eyes stay trained on the dancers. It’s closing […]
Tackling Anti-Muslim, Anti-Immigrant Bias
By Vanessa Handy Spectrum staff The sound of feet shuffling toward seats subsides. The lights dim. The chit-chat of a waiting audience goes silent. The piercing screech of the sole microphone on stage fills the room. The first performer, a woman wearing a hijab, steps to the mic, sighs and opens her mouth. I am […]
Off B’way Playhouse Crowdsources Funds
By Juliana Guarracino Spectrum staff Money has gotten so tight at Off Broadway’s Theatre 80, which doubles as an East Village performance space and a community meeting house, that it has launched a Go Fund Me campaign to raise $70,000. “When you kill the entertainment industry here, when you turn New York into a cultural […]
Entrepreneurs Want to Spread Positivity
By Christian Richardson Spectrum staff Nia Imani Wellman, 21, designed a mobile app that’s all about hair. R’chelle Ayanna Boyce, 24, designs clothes imprinted with Christian messages and scripture. Every item in the apparel line that Ty’leib Redd, 18, launched is imprinted with “fly,” which stands for “first love yourself.” These young entrepreneurs said they […]
Food Vendors Balk at Styrofoam Ban
By Dan Hu Spectrum staff Some food cart merchants are concerned that a Styrofoam ban, taking effect on Jan. 1, will lower their take-home pay. The higher costs of paper, aluminum and other allowed food containers will cut into their earnings, they said. Halal food cart merchant Mia Lat said his cart will be switching […]
The Changing Face of “West Side Runners”
By Daniel Han Spectrum staff Faded photos of athletes from years past, wearing red tank tops expressly made for runners, are strewn around a bedroom. In the kitchen, yellowed race bibs bearing the numbers that identified past runners, and ribbons some of those runners won, fill a poster board. A map of Central Park is […]
Selling Chess Sets, Creating a Community
By Ryan Kim Spectrum staff Chess pieces clack against tabletop chess boards with peeling paint and scratched wood. The sound of orchestral strings streams in. Seated on opposing sides of the boards, the chess players murmur. They ponder their next move. Standing behind what doubles as a display case and sales counter at Chess Forum, […]
A Global Contest for Hip-Hop Ladies
By Andrew Najjar Staff writer Sunlight poured through the window and onto the mural, an abstract splash of colors, in the main entry and hallway of the Knockdown Center in Maspeth, New York. A group of dancers occupied the hallway. Some were sitting on the floor, eating, stretching and socializing. Some had headphones in their […]
Activists: “Families Belong Together”
By Isabella Calix Spectrum staff Lee el version del Espanol aqui The woman’s story silenced the room. She is a wife, a mother of two and a registered nurse studying for her masters degree. She has built a life in the United States. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents already took her passport. They have […]
Activistas: “Familias Unidas, No Divididas”
Por Isabella Calix Spectrum escritor Read the English version here. La historia de la mujer silenció la habitación. Ella es esposa, madre de dos y enfermera que estudia para su maestría. Ha construido una vida en los Estados Unidos. Los agentes del U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE, Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas […]
A “City of Gold” that Doesn’t Shine
By Ashley Quinonez Spectrum staff Valentin Peralta eased the Sidewalk Tacos food truck into a space on West Fourth Street, put the gear in park and began doing what he does at the start of every workday. The boxes of avocados, tomatoes, cilantro, tortillas and other ingredients for cooking Mexican dishes were the first things […]
New Grads Navigate Job Market
By Juan Vargas Staff writer Job prospects for new college graduates have improved since the Great Recession, but still haven’t returned to previously higher levels. An improving job market however, doesn’t stop the job search from being difficult. “Technological skills, analytical and data science skills have really emerged in really profound ways and shifted everything […]
Instagram Wants News on Vertical Video Channel
By Sarvani Nori Spectrum staff In addition to being a platform for its existing celebrities and non-celebrity trendsetters and personalities, Instagram’s recently launched vertical video app aims to add news organizations and journalists to its list of users. Instagram executives, however, are in the early stages of figuring out how IGTV, that new video app, […]