A third weekend of protests against police brutality in New York City saw some of the largest crowds to date, with calls for action only intensifying in the wake of the killing of Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta on Friday, and the killing of two black trans women, Riah Milton in Ohio and Dominique “Rem’Mie” Fells in Pennsylvania. More →
As New York was hunkering down for the Covid-19 pandemic on March 21, the city Department of Health released a statement advising New Yorkers on how to have sex while saying safe and healthy. The guide, which advised residents to abstain from rimming and to engage in virtual sex, circulated widely on social media. Now, as we’ve entered phase 1 of reopening and New Yorkers are looking to restart their romantic and sexual lives, the Department of Health has updated those guidelines. More →
When Kirsten Midura started Engines for Change in 2019, she was merging her love for motorcycle riding and environmental activism. The nonprofit started off hosting beach cleanups. But as times quickly changed and the coronavirus pandemic hit New York City hard, Engines for Change volunteers began using their motorcycles to transport groceries to those who are unable to leave their homes, and they delivered Personal Protective Equipment to hospitals and health care centers across the city. With times changing yet again, the group is once again shifting gears – this time to support New Yorkers protesting police violence against black people. More →
After scraping by during the Covid-19 shutdown, East Village businesses were looking forward to New York’s reopening when police-brutality protests broke out around the neighborhood. The looting that followed quickly became a talking point for conservative commentators looking to discredit protestors, but many local shopkeepers who experienced break-ins continue to support the ongoing protests even as they pick up the pieces.
“We support the Black Lives Matter movement, and it being a movement and not a moment,” said Laura Sewell. More →
Shortly after the 8 p.m. curfew on June 3, journalist Armin Rosen was following a protest that was making its way through Downtown Brooklyn. The NYPD had rushed the crowd a few times and made some arrests, but the demonstrators had continued peacefully until they got to Borough Hall. That was when the rain came. “It went from nothing to a monsoon in like 30 seconds,” Rosen recalled. “It was just total confusion. There were people flipping and running into each other.” More →
Wednesday of last week, as thousands of New Yorkers gathered and chanted at Washington Square Park and other locations across the city, a quieter demonstration went on in Elm Park, Staten Island. More →
After police officers around the country were seen using bicycles as weapons, thousands of people are demanding that bike companies stop supplying police forces and diversify their business practices. Some bike companies are listening. More →
Steven Radt, the owner of the Ducati Motorcycles flagship in SoHo, was initially worried for his business once Governor Cuomo ordered a statewide pause in mid-March. But Radt quickly adapted to an at-home delivery system, and the result was Ducati’s “best April yet,” he said. He sold 29 bikes, compared to 22 last April. More →
Monday, June 8, was one of the busiest days of The Mysterious Bookshop’s history. Ironically, though, the 3,000-square-foot room, with its high shelves holding the largest variety of crime books in America, was almost entirely empty save for employees preparing books and other mystery-related products for shipping and pickup. More →
On Sunday, 17 young Chinese people divided into eight teams and walked through the Chinatowns of Manhattan and Flushing, Queens. They visited Chinese vendors, inquired about their businesses in the midst of the pandemic and protests, and encouraged them to display Chinese For Black Lives posters in their storefronts. More →