“Air conditioning is the best way to stay safe and healthy when it is hot outside, but some people at risk of heat illness do not have or do not turn on an air conditioner,” reads an official press release by NYC Emergency Management. “People without air conditioning should identify their Cool Options, which are indoor air-conditioned places open to the public like libraries, malls, and museums.”
In addition to the public spaces, the city has also opened 500 cooling centers around town that are accessible by all. The destinations will stay open through Thursday at least.
How to find a cooling center near you
There are a few different ways to locate cooling centers around you, starting with calling non-emergency service 311.
The city has also recently revamped its cool options map, which you can find right here. Input your address and the map will be populated with all cool-down options around you.
The Cool It! NYC map is also a good resource, one that includes outdoor destinations like drinking fountains and spray showers in addition to more “traditional” sites.
A similar map that spans the entire New York State region can also be found here.
How to keep your pets cool during the heatwave
We can’t forget about our furry friends when dealing with the incessant heat. They, of course, need to be protected from the weather as well.
According to Pix11, the Brooklyn Museum is currently serving as a pet-friendly cooling center.
The above-mentioned maps also list a bunch of locations that will let you hang out with your animal in tow.
Finally, the below Petco addresses have announced that they will be serving as cooling centers during opening hours:
“Those who created the System created it to persist.” Without question, these words which are a paraphrase of a spoken advisory given to me in the spring of 2021 as I began serving as Chair of New York City’s Racial Justice Commission, are sage counsel and stern warning for anyone committed to justice work. Said to me as the work of our commission was getting underway by former counsel for South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission following the dismantling of Apartheid in South Africa, these words served as an ever-present reminder throughout our deliberations that the work of overcoming systemic racism and inequity must be enduring and relentless if the fruits of our labor are to prevail.
Sadly, it didn’t take long for counsel’s caution to be realized. In the days, weeks and months following the killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, promises to advance and uphold racial equity in every pillar of our society were made by just about every sector and every segment of the population. It is estimated that nearly $50 billion in programming, grantmaking and loans was collectively committed by America’s 50 largest public companies and their foundations alone. Yet here we are just four years later with the visual of the horrific and brutal killing of George Floyd still fresh in our minds and the “System” persists. It has been reported that since 2020 only $4.5 billion has been contributed by these big businesses to nonprofit, community-based efforts aimed at advancing equity .
They aren’t the only institutions that have come up short. In fact, other institutions—the judicial and legislative branches of government chief among them— have moved further from the goalpost of fair and equal access and opportunity, taking a sledgehammer to the levers of equity that were stood up across the United States better than a half century ago.
The Supreme Court’s decisions ending affirmative action in higher education and providing pathways leading to the further erosion of voter protections for African Americans; lawsuits seeking to block grantmaking investments earmarked for Black, female-led businesses that often struggle to access capital, and to enjoin reparations for Black Americans harmed by institutional racism in housing segregation making their way through the courts; laws passed in 27 states since the 2020 election restricting voting rights; legislation in several states making it illegal to teach Black history; and mounting attacks on DEI in corporate America and higher education with both schools and companies ending decades’ long commitments to ensuring people harmed by racism have seats in both the classroom and at the table all provide evidence beyond any standard of guilt or liability that those who created the System created it to persist.
Fortunately, here in New York City in 2022 the electorate demonstrated foresight and wisdom in taking actions that have the greatest chance of withstanding direct and veil threats that would undermine the pursuit of equity at the municipal level of government. By voting in 2022 for racial justice measures put forth by the NYC Racial Justice Commission to change the City Charter to mandate the dismantling of structural racism in government functioning, New Yorkers called for a reset and made equity foundational law.
A substantial majority voted to include in the Charter a preamble that acknowledges the “grave injustices and atrocities” first experienced by indigenous people and enslaved persons and subsequently by marginalized people and communities, and that commits the City to remedying these harms and reconstructing government to promote justice and equity for all. In so doing New Yorkers made the pursuit of fairness and opportunity for all the law.
By declaring New York City a multi-racial democracy where all residents should have the opportunity to live fully and with dignity and requiring that the City be held accountable in perpetuity for governing to that end, with their votes New Yorkers evidenced their sincere commitment to this vision.
Lastly, by voting overwhelmingly to mandate that the City calculate what it truly costs for individuals and families to live here and adequately meet their daily needs, plan for their futures and save for rainy days, they signaled that no New Yorker, particularly those who disproportionately have lower incomes and less assets due to structural racism, should have to struggle all their lives because of structural economic deprivation that inhibits their ability to build wealth and achieve economic security.
By changing the Charter, New Yorkers changed the structure that has long upheld the systems that enable racism to persist. Now, our city government is perennially tasked with implementing the people’s mandate, and we, the people, must ensure they do. New York City can be a beacon in the darkness of these times, but only if we live up to and fulfill the promises contained in the Charter revisions.
Jennifer Jones Austin, Esq., is Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director at FPWA. Her guest column is sponsored by the Community Service Society of New York (CSS), the leading voice on behalf of low-income New Yorkers for more than 175 years. The views expressed in this column are solely those of the writer. The Urban Agenda is available on CSS’s website: www.cssny.org.
He lived on West 155th Street and the Harlem River Drive in Harlem after Willie Mays moved from where he was born in Westfield, Alabama. The baseball legend who began his career with the San Francisco Giants at the nearby Polo Grounds. The SF Giants called the baseball great just a few days after his…
Desperate to improve his status with Black voters, Trump dropped into the 180 Church in Detroit on Saturday, a day after his 78th birthday, with the hope of convincing the congregation—and perhaps 180 is representative of the size of the congregation—that he’s the candidate they should choose in November. According to several reports, it was another mission in mendacity with him claiming to be the best president Black folks have had since Abraham Lincoln.
The church, on Detroit’s west side, offers no denomination on its website, other than “The Church is God’s solution to complex problems of Urban America.” To Trump’s way of thinking, it was a perfect place to hold a roundtable over the weekend and to dispense his manna, dripping with interposition and nullification, to recall Dr. King;s famous dictum. As usual, Trump inflated the numbers, never noting that half those in attendance were white, nor suspending his claim that Biden’s victory four years ago was a stolen election.
His session at the church was the first of two events in the city, and the second one in downtown Detroit was more reflective of his white following and overflowing with MAGA-dorned worshipers. Even so, there was no difference in the lies he fulminated: He launched into his rhetoric of misinformation about Black people losing their jobs to an “invasion” of immigrants. He repeatedly bashed the Biden administration and its “left-wing ideology.”
Curiously, Trump’s new voter coalition includes Kwame Kilpatrick, Detroit’s former mayor, free from prison after serving time for fraud and racketeering convictions, giving them a common experience. Sharing the rostrum with Trump was Lorenzo Sewell, the church’s pastor, and Byron Donalds, a Trump vice-president hopeful. The Rev. Wendell Anthony, leader of the NAACP’s chapter, said that Trump “did not articulate any policy. He articulated the fact that he wanted to come and get some Black votes.”
In response to Trump’s visit, the Biden campaign released a statement from Rev. James Perkins of Detroit, blasting Trump for having “the nerve to waltz into our city and act like he wants to understand the struggles Black Detroiters face, but the reality is he doesn’t care. Every time Trump opens his mouth to talk to Black folks, he demonizes us, insults us, and makes empty promises he’ll never keep.”
One reality that is clear to Trump: Biden won Detroit by nearly 95 percent in 2020, and no number of lies can dispel this fact.
“Those who created the System created it to persist.” Without question, these words which are a paraphrase of a spoken advisory given to me in the spring of 2021 as I began serving as Chair of New York City’s Racial Justice Commission, are sage counsel and stern warning for anyone committed to justice work. Said to me as the work of our commission was getting underway by former counsel for South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission following the dismantling of Apartheid in South Africa, these words served as an ever-present reminder throughout our deliberations that the work of overcoming systemic racism and inequity must be enduring and relentless if the fruits of our labor are to prevail.
Sadly, it didn’t take long for counsel’s caution to be realized. In the days, weeks and months following the killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, promises to advance and uphold racial equity in every pillar of our society were made by just about every sector and every segment of the population. It is estimated that nearly $50 billion in programming, grantmaking and loans was collectively committed by America’s 50 largest public companies and their foundations alone. Yet here we are just four years later with the visual of the horrific and brutal killing of George Floyd still fresh in our minds and the “System” persists. It has been reported that since 2020 only $4.5 billion has been contributed by these big businesses to nonprofit, community-based efforts aimed at advancing equity .
They aren’t the only institutions that have come up short. In fact, other institutions—the judicial and legislative branches of government chief among them— have moved further from the goalpost of fair and equal access and opportunity, taking a sledgehammer to the levers of equity that were stood up across the United States better than a half century ago.
The Supreme Court’s decisions ending affirmative action in higher education and providing pathways leading to the further erosion of voter protections for African Americans; lawsuits seeking to block grantmaking investments earmarked for Black, female-led businesses that often struggle to access capital, and to enjoin reparations for Black Americans harmed by institutional racism in housing segregation making their way through the courts; laws passed in 27 states since the 2020 election restricting voting rights; legislation in several states making it illegal to teach Black history; and mounting attacks on DEI in corporate America and higher education with both schools and companies ending decades’ long commitments to ensuring people harmed by racism have seats in both the classroom and at the table all provide evidence beyond any standard of guilt or liability that those who created the System created it to persist.
Fortunately, here in New York City in 2022 the electorate demonstrated foresight and wisdom in taking actions that have the greatest chance of withstanding direct and veil threats that would undermine the pursuit of equity at the municipal level of government. By voting in 2022 for racial justice measures put forth by the NYC Racial Justice Commission to change the City Charter to mandate the dismantling of structural racism in government functioning, New Yorkers called for a reset and made equity foundational law.
A substantial majority voted to include in the Charter a preamble that acknowledges the “grave injustices and atrocities” first experienced by indigenous people and enslaved persons and subsequently by marginalized people and communities, and that commits the City to remedying these harms and reconstructing government to promote justice and equity for all. In so doing New Yorkers made the pursuit of fairness and opportunity for all the law.
By declaring New York City a multi-racial democracy where all residents should have the opportunity to live fully and with dignity and requiring that the City be held accountable in perpetuity for governing to that end, with their votes New Yorkers evidenced their sincere commitment to this vision.
Lastly, by voting overwhelmingly to mandate that the City calculate what it truly costs for individuals and families to live here and adequately meet their daily needs, plan for their futures and save for rainy days, they signaled that no New Yorker, particularly those who disproportionately have lower incomes and less assets due to structural racism, should have to struggle all their lives because of structural economic deprivation that inhibits their ability to build wealth and achieve economic security.
By changing the Charter, New Yorkers changed the structure that has long upheld the systems that enable racism to persist. Now, our city government is perennially tasked with implementing the people’s mandate, and we, the people, must ensure they do. New York City can be a beacon in the darkness of these times, but only if we live up to and fulfill the promises contained in the Charter revisions.
Jennifer Jones Austin, Esq., is Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director at FPWA. Her guest column is sponsored by the Community Service Society of New York (CSS), the leading voice on behalf of low-income New Yorkers for more than 175 years. The views expressed in this column are solely those of the writer. The Urban Agenda is available on CSS’s website: www.cssny.org.
One of our favorite seasonal traditions is seeing what over-the-top theme the Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge at the Moxy Times Square will take on next. Over the years, the sky-high spot has transformed itself into a Barbie-inspired beach club, a glittering après-ski lodge and a Halloween-themed pumpkin patch. And now for summer, it’s cranking up those Cowboy Carter jams for a Magic Hour Surf Club takeover that combines beachy-cool breeziness with Wild West motifs.
Launching today, June 18, and running through fall, Magic Hour’s summer pop-up will be all done up in coastal cowgirl style. The rooftop’s east terrace will feature decorative surfboards, accents of sunflowers and seagrass, comfortable cabana seating and a neat-o vintage bus, to serve as a photo opp with the Empire State Building directly behind it. The west terrace is similarly festive with retro beach chairs, fringed umbrellas and the rooftop’s revolving carousel, which will be festooned with vibrant florals. And the venue’s putt-putt area has been transformed into Sandy Boots Beach, with rustic Western touches like wildflowers and cacti.
To go along with that decor theme, the menu has been overhauled by Senior Beverage Director Nikki McCutcheon and VP of Culinary Operations Chef Jason Hall. Cocktails include the “This Ain’t Texas,” a frozen margarita made with Volcan Blanco Tequila, Vita Coco coconut water, lime, agave and served in a cowboy-boot cocktail glass ($20), as well as zesty Tajin-rimmed micheladas ($14) and “beeritas” ($18). You can also get pina colada pitchers to share with your howdy-partners, made with Su Casa Mezcal, pineapple and Vita Coco coconut water, and priced at $85 per jug. And daily from 5pm to 7pm, you can purchase a bar pass for $45 for a complimentary open bar.
Food is comforting stuff: think oversized pretzels with nacho cheese sauce and spicy mustard ($18), lobster corn dogs with Old Bay mayo and corn nuts ($24), grilled rum-splashed pineapple served right out of the fruit’s hull ($19), and two footlong Coney Island-style hot dogs with yellow mustard, relish and sauerkraut ($35, feeds four).
Check out the rootin’, tootin’ good time that is Magic Hour Surf Club below, plus the pop-up’s new food-and-drink offerings below:
Photograph: Dan Nilson Photography | Magic Hour Surf ClubPhotograph: Dan Nilson Photography | Magic Hour Surf ClubPhotograph: Dan Nilson Photography | Magic Hour Surf ClubTao Hospitality GroupMagic Hour Surf Club
Photograph: courtesy of Tao Hospitality Group | Footlong Coney Island Hot Dog at Magic Hour Surf ClubPhotograph: courtesy of Tao Hospitality Group | Grilled Boozy Pineapple at Magic Hour Surf ClubPhotograph: courtesy Tao Hospitality Group | Jumbo NYC Pretzel at Magic Hour Surf ClubPhotograph: Tao Hospitality Group | Beeritas at Magic Hour Surf Club
Photograph: courtesy of Tao Hospitality Group | This Ain’t Texas at Magic Hour Surf Club
Staff from the Legal Aid Society rallied in front of Brooklyn’s 111 Livingston Street on Wednesday, June 12, during what they called their “nonwork time” in a coordinated effort to picket in front of each of the city’s Legal Aid Society offices––at 260 East 161 Street in the Bronx; 120-46 Queens Boulevard in Kew Gardens, Queens; Manhattan’s 49 Thomas Street; and Staten Island’s 60 Bay Street––and show that they are still fighting for a new labor contract.
Workers included clerical, paralegal, and social work staff. Members of 1199SEIU said they have continued doing their jobs even though their last labor contract expired on June 30, 2022.
In a press release, the union said negotiations with management have only led to a proposal of a “1% raise for fiscal year 2025 for all members with some step increases and a wage reopener.”
The current labor contract is two years old, but Legal Aid management pointed out to the AmNews that 1199SEIU members have been able to get salary increases during this time period. “We have and will continue to advocate for additional resources so we can pay our staff the wages they deserve for their invaluable work,” The Legal Aid Society said in a statement. “We remain in bargaining and will continue to discuss these topics together around the bargaining table.”
The workers picketing in front of Brooklyn’s Legal Aid Society claim the contract that management is pushing is not what the majority of 1199SEIU members want. The current salary system proposal would leave them thousands of dollars behind what other legal service providers earn.
1199SEIU members showed up to picket. They demonstrated and chanted “The workers––united––will never be defeated!” and “I’ll tell you what democracy looks like: This is what democracy looks like!” while circling the front entrance to 111 Livingston Street. “We’re not on strike,” one of the staff members explained. “We first have to determine if we’re on a strike or not, and we didn’t get there yet.”
One speaker at the rally said, “While we fight tirelessly for our clients every day, management is showing us they are not on our side…At the end of the day, we know that they cannot run Legal Aid without us.”
Veronica Leventhal, a social worker with the Legal Aid Society, said one of the items 1199SEIU members want is the opportunity to continue telecommuting for some part of their jobs. Staffers had been providing some legal services to clients remotely for the last three years. Now, office management wants all workers back in the office five days a week. Leventhal said staffers are asking for the ability to work remotely at least two days a week. “We just want a little bit of flexibility, and they’re only offering us maybe one day.
“Management has come to the table, and they’ve been negotiating with us in good faith, but they’ve been very firm with both us and the lawyer’s union that they will not support telecommuting for the most part. They’ll give us maybe one day a week––if management decides that our job is eligible for that one day. But speaking for myself as a social worker, I am in court almost five days a week: I do not have time to come to this office. When I’m not in court, I need to write…I think that’s the point of a hybrid schedule: It’s whatever works for you so that you can get your job done; that’s what we’re asking. And if people are not doing their job, that can be addressed on an individual basis.”
