Some of the city’s cultural establishments are facing a deep reckoning, as New Yorkers speak out against institutionalized racism within the arts. More →
Curators, Critics and Artists Demand ‘Real Change’ at City Museums
Sunnyside Restaurants Slow to Warm to Sidewalk Seating
Outdoor dining is becoming the new normal as New York City enters phase 2 of reopening. But in residential areas like Sunnyside, Queens, restaurants are resuming business in ways that don’t necessarily involve putting out tables on a sidewalk or roadway. More →
New Yorkers Flock Back to Restaurants as Outdoor Dining Springs Up Everywhere
Drivers or pedestrians who passed by Second Avenue between 48th and 49th Streets couldn’t help but notice the balloons where cars used to park. “Welcome back to outdoor dining,” read a colorful sign belonging to Barnacho, a Mexican restaurant. Behind the balloons, there were six tables on the asphalt where customers will be seated, in addition to seven tables occupying the sidewalk. Welcome to phase two of New York’s reopening. More →
Juneteenth Kicked Off Another Weekend of Massive Protests
New York City saw a fourth weekend of protests and demonstrations against police brutality this weekend, kicked off on Friday during Juneteenth, the holiday celebrating the emancipation of all slaves in the United States on June 19, 1865. More →
Arcade Project Pushes For ‘Real Change’ During the Art World’s Moment of Reckoning
As protests for racial justice continue, the art world has responded by featuring the work of black artists and exalting the influence of the Black Lives Matter movement on the art industry. Almost overnight, Twitter and Instagram has become flooded with lists of black galleries, black artists, and black musicians whose projects you can support. However, one black art dealer and critic, M. Charlene Stevens, remains suspicious. More →
Remember the Democratic Debates? This Theater Group Thinks You Should
Between the pandemic, economic uncertainty, and civil unrest, it might be easy to forget that this is an election year, and the New York Democratic primary takes place Tuesday. If you need to refresh your memory with some of the events that lead to Joe Biden being the party’s last remaining presidential candidate, you can count on Theater In Asylum. Well, kind of. More →
Juneteenth in NYC: Where to March, Mourn, Picnic and Dance
Dating back to 1865, Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. Though the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by President Lincoln in 1863, technically ended slavery, the minimal number of Union soldiers stationed in Texas and the slow pace of news meant that slaves in Texas were unaware that the executive order had been issued and little could be done to implement the order. However, with General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at the Battle of Appomattox Courthouse, substantial numbers of Union troops finally arrived in Texas. On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger announced to the public that all slaves had been freed. More →
City Council Committee Passes POST Act, Bringing Oversight to NYPD Surveillance
On Thursday morning, the New York City Council’s Committee on Public Safety passed the POST Act, a bill that creates civilian review of the NYPD’s wide-ranging digital surveillance.
The POST Act, which passed 12-1, requires the NYPD to publicly report and describe which surveillance techniques it uses, guidelines and policies surrounding the use of that technology, and what will happen with the data collected from digital surveillance. More →
Protesters, Politicians Testify About NYPD Brutality
Witnesses are speaking out against violence committed by the New York Police Department during over the course of three weeks of protests against police brutality.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is conducting an independent investigation into the NYPD’s actions and has asked any member of the public with pertinent information to submit testimony, including video or photo evidence. The testimony started Wednesday and, due to a large number of people eager to speak out, continues today, June 18. More →
In Virtual Dungeons, Less Flogging and More Key-Logging
I first met dominatrix Charlotte Taillor in February at her home in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, where her male submissives were curating pastry spreads and rolling her spliffs. While she usually sports a leather catsuit, this day she wore sweatpants and a t-shirt reading “sex worker rights are human rights.”
Charlotte runs The Taillor Group, a feminist kink collective that encourages explorations of BDSM and other fetishes. The operation is entirely female-centric, comprised of about 30 dommes, and rather an anomaly in the world of kink; dominatrixes usually fly solo. “BDSM is the only way I’ve found for women to achieve the agency we’ve been striving for,” Charlotte told me confidently, before bellowing at one of her subs: “Roll me more spliffs!” More →