The most important thing you can do at home
POETRY FROM
THE READERS
“One Day Soon”
COURIER LIFE, APRIL 24-30, 2020 25
OP-ED
BY COLVIN GRANNUM &
LINDA JOHNSON
As New Yorkers face another
week at home, it can feel
like our civic obligation ends
at the front door. We’re here
to remind you that you need
to take one more, very important
step to protect our community:
complete the 2020
census.
Now, more than ever, we
must do everything possible
to be fully counted; the consequences
of an undercount are
dire and will negatively impact
our communities for the
next decade.
Thankfully, institutions
across Brooklyn and NYC,
including Bed Stuy Restoration
Corporation and Brooklyn
Public Library, are
spearheading initiatives to
increase participation and inclusion
in the census.
This is particularly important
in black and brown
communities, which have historically
been undercounted,
under-resourced, and denied
proper investment. Nearly 80
percent of Brooklynites live in
neighborhoods deemed “hard
to count”. In 2010, Brooklyn
had the lowest mail return
rate among counties with populations
over 500,000. Only 49
percent of Bed Stuy residents
mailed in their census forms.
Those who stand to benefi
t the most are most harshly
impacted by undercounting:
children under the age of
fi ve, older adults, and black
men. Over the past three decades,
blacks have been undercounted
in the census
by 2-4 percent, while whites
were overcounted by over 1
percent.
The direct result of the undercount
in the 2010 Census:
New York State lost two Congressional
seats, while Texas
gained four. If we are to pass
legislation delivering crucial
benefi ts to our community,
we must be appropriately represented
in Congress. An accurate
count would also mean
an annual investment of hundreds
of millions of dollars
into Brooklyn.
An accurate count can
also help close the racial
wealth gap. According to the
George Washington Institute
For Public Policy, a completed
census form is worth
$4,000 per person. Today, the
average net worth of a white
family is $171,000; nearly ten
times greater than that of a
black family at $17,150.
Predominantly white
neighborhoods, which already
have ten times the wealth, are
getting better resources as
a result of being overrepresented
in the census.
As we face the unprecedented
Coronavirus crisis,
a total count may also determine
the number of future
Coronavirus vaccines allocated
to Brooklyn.
Programs like the #Make-
BrooklynCount campaign are
expanding outreach efforts
for Brooklynites. Billions of
dollars are on the table for
critical programs that alleviate
the racial wealth gap such
as SNAP, Head Start, Workforce
Development and Medicaid.
Brooklynites must insist
on the full representation
they deserve and take action
to complete the census online,
by mail, or phone at 844-330-
2020. Together, we can make
sure our voices are heard,
our families are counted, and
black and brown New Yorkers
receive their fair share of
funding and benefi ts.
Colvin Grannum is president
and CEO of the Bedford
Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation
and Linda Johnson
is president and CEO of the
Brooklyn Public Library.
BY CHERYL GELIEBTER
Someone will block our view at a parade.
We’ll grimace as we shake a sweaty hand.
We’ll grumble when we see our fl ight’s delayed,
and fi ght to rid our bathing suits of sand.
We’ll pay an arm and leg in service fees
to sit in seats a mile up from the stage.
We’ll try to save our outdoor lunch from bees,
and navigate our cars amidst the rage.
We’ll trip over the tourists in Times Square,
and try to ditch the creepos in the bar.
We’ll curse at people texting on the stairs,
and squish into a crowded subway car.
We’ll give those dancing “Showtime” guys a fi ve,
and think how good it feels to be alive.
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SOUND OFF TO THE EDITOR
LETTERS AND COMMENTS FROM OUR READERS
RIP to Joe Joyce
Joe Joyce, owner of the storied Bay
Ridge tavern JJ Bubbles, died on April 9 at
the age of 74 due to complications caused by
the novel coronavirus, his family said.
At home in one of the most bardense
neighborhoods in New York City, not
much has changed about JJ Bubbles in its 42
years of operation — something Joyce’s son
Kevin attributes to his father’s dedication
to an old-fashioned way of doing things.
“My father was frozen in time,”
Kevin Joyce said.
Readers weighed in online:
We were both kids growing up together on
84th and Third Ave, with Dennis, Ray Ray,
and an a cast of fun misfits 60 years ago. God
bless Joe!
Joel Levine
Not all heroes wear capes
A Cobble Hill man has begun updating
neighbors about the line outside
Trader Joe’s Court Street outpost using
the Twitter handle @TraderJoesLine, allowing
would-be shoppers to assess the
wait time before heading to their beloved
emporium of discounted groceries and
Hawaiian shirt-clad employees.
“It was really just boredom, looking
out the window every day,” said Jacob
Shwirtz, who lives across the street fom
the Atlantic Avenue food seller. “At one
point I figured, why not make it a useful
service for my neighbors.”
Readers reacted online:
Any bored person making themselves useful
during these times is a pretty incredible testimony
to how wonderful humans can actually
be. Good job, Trader Joe’s line monitor!
Pamela Masters
Take your Trader Joe’s bags to Key Foods,
buy your grocery, put them in it and you can
still save face with your snooty self righteous
community.
Malea Sterling
LET US HEAR FROM YOU
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