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Conversation at Good Shepherd Faith Presbyterian Church
No full textConversation between VART 2222 Art of the Interview students Sage Rochetti, Amanda Forte, Ayden Suber, Eleanor Kinney, Kylie O\u27Toole, Lauren Vaughn and Phillip Costello, led by professor Catalina Alvarez, research assistant Matthias Lai, Lincoln Square community members Ronald Woods, Michael Nelson, Evelyn, and Neal Matticks, and teachers and historians Sean Khorsandi and Todd Melnick at Good Shepherd Faith Presbyterian Church in New York City
Abdul Qadir Askia
No full textSixth poll mark of the Kappa Alpha Psi (KAP) Fraternity, Abdul Qadir Askia is an African American man who is an accomplished professional in investment operations. He describes his early life as being nurtured with other cultures as he moved around New York City.
His father came to Brooklyn after migrating from California, where he was a member of the Black Panther Party, and where he would meet his mother. Askia lived in Brooklyn until he was seven, when he was sent to a boarding school in Senegal. When he came back, he moved around from place to place, from The Bronx to Brooklyn to Queens to Harlem. His childhood was characterized by experiencing different cultures such as East Asian, Carribean, Latino, and Black culture.
His educational journey officially started when he attended Frederick Douglass Academy, an experimental public high school in Harlem. This school would end up pushing Askia to attend Lincoln University, where he pledged to be a member of KAP. His father disapproved of his decision and he ended up walking away from the fraternity since he believed it conflicted with his commitment to Islam.
Once he left the fraternity, his financial mentor came to him with an opportunity to work at Citigroup in Delaware but he would need to drop out of school. He took the opportunity and it ended up being the thing that launched his career. Once he was done with Citigroup, he would then become the most senior Black person at the firm, Sculptor Capital, where he controls two-thirds of the firm; around $30 billion.
While he was successful in his career, Askia still felt incomplete about the fraternity. In 2012, he went to John Jay College to finish his education and he wanted to rejoin the fraternity but was rejected since they believed he wasn’t a good fit, so they sent him to The Bronx chapter instead. He thought the chapter was a joke since he claimed they were dressed down, when he first met them.
Despite this, he stood with the chapter and it flourished. It would become one of the most dominant in NYC. KAP emphasized service for the community, and Askia showed it in his mentoring program he ran. The Bronx is where he gained his grit, encountered a different level of poverty, and showed his growth with the chapter.
Through his work in the chapter, he was recognized as a powerhouse there and he was going to be promoted as the vice poll mark, then the poll mark. He has clear goals as the poll mark and where he wants to take it. He wants to find a physical location for the chapter, create more connections for it, make large-scale events for the community, and create more funding to give back to the community; namely, scholarships and meals.
Askia, a man who traded his education for his career, managed extraordinary feats to become an accomplished figure in investment operations. Despite this, he came back and helped his community with KAP.
Link to Video Recording: https://cdm17265.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/baahp/id/61/rec/
Crystal Isom
No full textCrystal Isom is a New York native and the eighth president of the Bronx chapter, also known as the family chapter, of Jack and Jill of America, Inc. Jack and Jill works to improve the quality of life for African American mothers and their children through providing them easy access to new opportunities such as scholarships for college and other job opportunities . Isom was raised within a small family dynamic. Her mother was a seamstress who raised Isom on her own. Isom lived in an apartment in East Harlem with her mother, aunt, and grandmother. Her childhood was filled with a supportive family and teachers that taught her a hard work ethic. This hard work she put in led her to becoming a student at Brooklyn Technical High School as an electrical engineering major. Each morning she would take the 4 train on her commute, where she was introduced to her husband by a mutual friend on the platform. After her years at Brooklyn Tech, she attended Clark Atlanta University, completing a bachelor’s degree in Health Information Management in four years instead of five to achieve a tuition free education. Isom then moved back to New York City and found a job in medical records. She moved in with her husband to West 137th Street. They soon got married at St. Luke Baptist Church in Harlem and had three children together. Isom and her family were deeply involved in community service at St. Luke Baptist Church. She and her husband became officers at the church. Isom entered the church as a single woman and came out with a community, a strong Christian identity, and became a leader in the community. It was through this passion for community building and family that led her to the Bronx chapter of Jack and Jill. She originally found out about the non-profit organization through her friend Danielle who she met through her son’s little league team. She also thought
that it would give her daughter Gabrielle good opportunities. The power of Jack and Jill was created by the mothers that were committed to advocating for their children to gain as many opportunities as they could. Isom followed suit by leading as Jack and Jill’s sitting president for four years. Her greatest passion has been mental health, especially children’s mental health in the Bronx community. While Isom was president, the Bronx chapter of Jack and Jill gained a five star rating for the first time ever. This rating, given by Charity Navigator, is based on the level of support and opportunities the chapter gives to the community. In the next few years, Isom wants the chapter to grow even bigger, eliminating stereotypes about the Bronx community as well as making a direct change within the area. Isom wants Jack and Jill to always be known for having made a big difference in the community. Isom utilized her passion for family and public outreach through being the president of the Bronx chapter of Jack and Jill, and she continues to obtain fulfillment from this work today.
Link to Video Recording: https://cdm17265.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/baahp/id/66/rec/1
Charlotte Dickerson
No full textOral history recorded for the Bronx African American History Project on August 26, 2020 with Charlotte Dickerson, who grew up in the United Workers Cooperative Colony, or the Allerton Coops, during the 1950s and 1960s. Her mother, Dr. Angie Dickerson, was an African American human rights, peace, and African independence activist as well as a member of the Communist Party U.S.A., the Civil Rights Congress, the World Peace Council, the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women, and other organizations. In her oral history, Charlotte speaks about her childhood in the Coops with her mother, father Buddy, and brother Steven. She has particularly vivid memories of her mother, who by all accounts was an unforgettable woman, both publicly and at home. Charlotte speaks about her mother\u27s activist and professional career, the ways that growing up in the Coops shaped her own life, FBI surveillance of her family, and much more. The interviewers are Mark Naison, director of The Bronx African American History Project, and Steven Payne, director of The Bronx County Historical Society. The Bronx African American History Project is a community-based oral history project of Fordham University and The Bronx County Historical Society.
Link to Video Recording: https://cdm17265.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/baahp/id/68/rec/1
Marion Tiny Frampton, Wildman, and Mike Sherman - Part 1
No full textPart 1 of an oral history with former Black Spades members Marion “Tiny” Frampton, “Wildman,” and Mike Sherman. All three are now leaders of TBS New Direction, a community safety nonprofit founded by Frampton that works with former gang members to make a positive impact on the youth. The interview was conducted by Dr. Steven Payne, Director of the Bronx County Historical Society, and Dr. Mark Naison, Director of the Bronx African American History Project.
Tiny, Wildman, and Mike talk about the conditions in the Bronx in the late 1960s and early ‘70s that led them to join the Black Spades, highlighting the realities of racial division in the Belmont and Patterson communities. Wanting to be part of a Black collective was a key motivator, as well as the necessity of protecting Black communities in majority white or Puerto Rican neighborhoods. They talk about what made the Spades so successful, emphasizing the family aspect of the gang and its universality. The impact of community centers and the relationship between the Spades and other organizations is a major topic. Wildman recalls their connection to the Black Panthers, and Tiny talks about how a sit-down at St. Mary’s started to bridge divides with the Puerto Rican community and the Bachelors.
They also bring up the problems that continue to plague Bronx neighborhoods today. Tiny points out the importance of the community centers and churches which have now closed, cutting off lines of support for today’s youth. Turf wars, which involve more and more different groups in small areas, make it so that kids from different projects cannot benefit from community initiatives outside of their homes. The work of TBS New Direction is seeking to reach these kids and help them to “imagine” a life beyond gangs. They highlight asking questions, listening, and encouraging youth to use their phones as a tool for research as important strategies in this work.
Link to Video Recording: https://cdm17265.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/baahp/id/71/rec/1
Building a New Dream: Mohammed Mardah and the Making of West African Community in the Bronx
No full textThe life of Mohammed Mardah, as demonstrated through his interview, is more than just a personal immigration story. Instead, it is seen as a view into the lived realities of West African migrants in the late twentieth century. His path from a young man looking for opportunity to becoming a community leader symbolizes how African immigrants in the 1980s and ‘90s influenced the Bronx not only by surviving hardship, but also by building networks and institutions that reshaped the cultural and social life of the borough. Mardah’s story enunciates that immigration is not a straight path toward individual success; it is a collective project rooted in obligation, resilience, and the reconstruction of identity in a new world
Mark Po Dean
No full textDean, first exposed to music through his mother’s occasional record playing, would attend parties and occasionally dance against other b-boys. Upon watching DJ Kool Herc continually unload equipment, Dean found himself immersed in hip hop by first helping DJ Kool Herc move his equipment. He reminisces on the free park parties that these sound systems were taken to, and the ability of the people across the river to hear the sound. Continuing, he discusses the difference between b-boys and breakers, the profound influence of MC’s on hip hop, and the necessary contributions of graffiti to the overall culture. Each part of this culture serves a crucial part in the story of his childhood, from a strict early upbringing to a creative trajectory that would ultimately lead him to bring the music he experienced in the Bronx to Philadelphia years later. For Po Dean, the pivotal time he grew up in is a conglomerate of memories, strength, love, family, and rugged consistency that ultimately describe his fond experience with the Bronx.
LINK TO VIDEO INTERVIEW: https://cdm17265.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/baahp/id/98/rec/5
“I’m Not Belgian, I’m European”: Ontological Security, Common Security & Defense Policy, and Evolving Identity Dynamics within the European Union
No full textIdentity dynamics worldwide continue to impact global integration and defense policy. This study aims to fill a gap in scholarship: how political science research can zoom in on the individual and produce effective research at the singular level through ontological security theory. Drawing on Eurobarometer studies and social media comments, this study delineates the evolution of European identity dynamics from 1975 to 2024. The study considers how the idea of ‘Home,’ the othering of outside peoples, and perceived physical security contribute to the constituent perception of defense policy. Furthermore, this study examines various European Union policies that have impacted collective opinion on further European integration and the Common Security & Defense Policy. Ontological insecurity, rising right-wing governments, nationalism, and the migrant crisis are various obstacles facing further European integration in the modern age. Viewing the European Union through the lens of ontological security theory can provide a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of the constituent identities and emotions on Union security and defense policy