The Kings Theater in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Associated Press/Richard Drew/File
No MEC Kwanza – Holiday donations needed for needy
Caribbean Life, December 17-23, 2021 3
By Nelson A. King
The Mayor’s Office of Immigrant
Affairs (MOIA) Commissioner, Raquel
Batista, NYC Department of Social
Services (DSS) Commissioner, Steven
Banks and NYC Department of Correction
Commissioner (DOC), Vincent
Schiraldi on Wednesday announced
reforms to help formerly incarcerated
individuals to obtain identification.
To obtain an IDNYC, the city’s free
municipal identification card, applicants
must prove their identity by
showing several forms of ID.
But, on Wednesday, the city bean
expanding its list of acceptable documents
to include ID information and
photos maintained by DOC.
“The information already maintained
by DOC as part of the detention
process will serve as one point of
identification, easing the steps to get
an IDNYC card for formerly incarcerated
individuals,” said MOIA in a statement.
“At the Department of Social Services,
our top priority has been improving
social services delivery through a
range of reforms that make it easier
for New Yorkers in need to access the
resources to which they are entitled,”
Banks said.
“With basic proof of identification
needed to apply for and access many
government services and supports, the
IDNYC program has given more than a
million New Yorkers an effective form
of ID and made our city fairer and
more inclusive, but we knew we could
take that progress further,” he added.
“This common-sense reform will
help us better support more New Yorkers,
regardless of background, which
includes addressing the unique needs
of individuals who’ve experienced
criminal legal system involvement,
who deserve the same access to opportunity
and services as other New Yorkers,”
Banks continued.
By Nelson A. King
Mayor-elect Eric Adams announced
on Tuesday that the historic Kings Theatre
in Flatbush, Brooklyn in the heart
of the Caribbean community will be the
site of his inauguration ceremony.
Adams, the incumbent Brooklyn Borough
President, said the ceremony will
be held in conjunction with those for
Comptroller-elect Brad Lander and Public
Advocate Jumaane Williams.
The event will take place on the
evening of Saturday, Jan. 1 to support
New Yorkers who observe the Sabbath.
Adams said the ceremony will be held
in Brooklyn, instead of the traditional
location of City Hall in lower Manhattan,
“as a tribute to the election of three
citywide leaders from the borough.”
“It is symbolically impactful for me
to be inaugurated as New York City’s
110th mayor in the heart of Flatbush, on
behalf of this working-class community
and communities like it across the five
boroughs who have elected one of their
own to lead our recovery,” said Adams in
a statement.
“Kings Theatre has made so many
wonderful memories over its storied history;
and, on Jan. 1, we will make even
more history there together,” added the
Mayor-elect, who will become New York
City’s second Black mayor. The first was
the late David Dinkins.
Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants,
said he was “deeply humbled” to
begin his first full term as public advocate,
and “gratified that New Yorkers
have appreciated and affirmed the work
of our office for the last two years.
“On Jan. 1, New York begins a new era
with new citywide leadership, and I am
eager to partner with my fellow citywide
elected officials to work on behalf of
and for the betterment of New Yorkers,”
added Williams, who has also declared
his candidacy to oppose incumbent New
York Governor Kathy Hochul in next
June’s Democratic Primary.
“The oath we will take on Jan. 1 is a
promise — a promise to work in partnership
and in accordance with our
mandates to secure a better future for
New Yorkers,” New York City Councilman
Brad Lander.
“I look forward to making that public
promise alongside Eric Adams and
Jumaane Williams, and to working
every day to build a more just and resilient
city,” he added.
Kings Theatre, formerly Loew’s Kings
Theatre, is a live performance venue
opened by Loew’s Theatres as a movie
palace in 1929 and closed in 1977.
The theater sat empty for decades
until a complete renovation began in
2010.
It reopened in 2015 after an authentic
restoration of the original 1929 design
and new state-of-the-art building systems.
The theater has a seating capacity
of 3,000 people.
Adams said non-transferrable invitations
will be sent out to attendees, which
will include family members, community
leaders and “a diverse group of New
Yorkers excited for these newly-elected
citywide leaders.”
Attendance will require proof of
COVID-19 vaccination status, the Mayor
elect said.
Correction Commissioner Vincent
Schiraldi speaks during a news
conference at the Rikers Island
complex, Monday, Sept. 27, 2021,
in New York. Associated Press/Jeenah
Moon/File
Adams to hold inauguration ceremony
in heart of Caribbean community
IDNYC cards for
formerly jailed
persons
By Vinette K. Pryce
Another spike in COVID-19 infections,
another new variant and lingering
caution has again forced cancellation
of the annual Medgar Evers
College Feeding The Need community
dinner and gifts drive Kwanzaa celebration.
Reputed as one of the most anticipated
December treats in Brooklyn,
organizers explained that like last year,
the cultural holiday event “is again
put on hold but its purposeful mission
remains a holiday tradition.”
Nancy Lester said “we will not be
holding our annual Feeding the Need
community dinner and toys and gifts
drive and Kwanzaa celebration at
Medgar Evers College this December,
however, we are asking for donations of
new toys (unwrapped), new socks and
new gloves.”
In making a plea for specific items,
the spokesperson for Ancestors of the
Middle Passage Collective added that
“we will be visiting our participating
shelters to distribute these donations.”