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for the sons i fear of having. for trayvon.

7/14/2013

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dear womb, 

as you tick tock with expectations, let me warn you - this is not the place

you want to be.

we both know that if you are filled with innocence, it would be the color of brown, an earthly shade with a dark past.

if you are filled with gender, it would be phallic and tender, with no true way to protect it from harm.

our daughters are put through the ringer and can be molded into pillars despite tragedy, 

but our little boys are expected to come out fighting with no mercy; the casualties swept up into a pile of statistics.

a man is a man in the eyes of a man, despite mothers who try to hold on to their little boys every time the street lights came on.

those little boys are always thrown into the path of men, who don't remember what it's like to have scrapped knees kissed by their mothers.

they only remember their first encounters with manhood and how they were told not to cry 

where childhood was dropped on the ground like a bag of skittles, spilling fast into a battle of survival of the fittest

pieces of rainbows spinning aimlessly on the pavement, coloring a war unwarranted.

experience will teach the power hungry how to quiet their demons by suddenly making a mother bend over in pain, 

feeling her womb drain out of life as she waits for her baby to come. 

when she gets that phone call, that visit to her door, her womb becomes devoid of stars. nights suddenly become her worst enemy.

i do not want you to feel that kind of pain womb. 

i'll quietly wait for this world to learn what it's like to give birth and to see death before your time,

because i do not want you to tremble at the thought of bringing a son into this world, where a bag of skittles is considered a threat. 

please forgive me for letting you tick on. 

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Sandy Relief Guide

11/2/2012

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During the aftermath of Sandy, there is a great deal of information being thrown around all over the place.

The Write Queen blog would like to make things easier for everyone and give you a guide/page of links of need to know information.

If anyone has anything to add, please leave a comment below. More importantly, share this post!

P.S. I am trying to keep most of the links posted in their mobile versions for those who only have their phone as a source of information. If you need a desktop version, go to the sites via your computer (by the way if you can go on a computer, you are doing better than a lot of people so please help in distributing information).

NYC and Government agencies:

NYC's site: http://www.nyc.gov

NYC Severe Weather site: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/html/nycsevereweather/weather_home.shtml

NY State's site with information from the governor: http://www.governor.ny.gov/

The storm resources page: http://www.governor.ny.gov/storm-resources

General information on hurricanes: http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes?qt-view__field_tabs_view__default__166=2

FEMA and Hurricane Sandy:
http://m.fema.gov/
http://www.fema.gov/sandy

Google Crisis Map: http://www.google.org/crisismap/2012-sandy-nyc

Transportation:

MTA's general site: http://www.mta.info

Current map of working transportation: http://project.wnyc.org/mtatiles/embed.html

Transit Tracker to let you know of rules during this time:
http://project.wnyc.org/transit-tracker/embed.html

Supply distribution:

Food and Water: http://www.nyc.gov/html/misc/html/2012/foodandwater.html

Dry Ice: https://attachments.sendwordnow.com/Attachments.aspx?token=517c7db5-94f8-48e0-9ecf-339b54f13711

Shelters:

NYC Hurricane Shelters: http://www.nyc.gov/html/misc/html/2012/hurricane_shelters.html

Red Cross Shelters:
http://www.redcross.org/find-help/shelter

Donations:

Mayor's Fund: http://www.nyc.gov/html/fund/html/home/home.shtml

Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/hurricane-sandy?scode=RSG00000E017&subcode=paiddonationsbrand&gclid=CPucsNzmsLMCFdKd4Aod4lYAKA

Local information:

Request For Donations (Thank you Jamise Jones for this info!)

Please note - donations will be accepted from 10:00am thru 6:00pm daily (until further notice).

These supplies, while collected in Queens, will be distributed to ALL affected areas citywide.

At this time please do not bring donations to your local police facility, while much appreciated we need to ensure an efficient rapid distribution. Right now this central location is the most effective method as we continually adjust to the shifting conditions.

Resort World Casino (Former Aqueduct Racetrack)

110-00 Rockaway Blvd ; Jamaica, NY 11420

Next to JFK airport - Enter from 109th Street & Rockaway Blvd

Uniformed NYPD Community Affairs officers in marked vehicles will be present in the parking lot to accept these much needed donations.
--------------------------------------------------------
We are seeking donations of the following items (or similar):

Food - Canned goods; Non-perishable food items; Individual snacks (chips, cookies, fruit snacks, granola bars, pudding); Canned Milk; Bottled Water

Shopping List - Paper products (facial tissue, toilet paper, paper towels); Baby care products (diapers, formula, wipes) Trash bags; Aluminum foil, plastic wrap and sandwich bags; Cleaning products (bleach, sponges, dishwashing liquid); Bath and bedroom items (towels, sheets and pillow cases); Personal care products (deodorant, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, conditioner; feminine hygiene products); FLASH LIGHTS and BATTERIES; BACKPACKS.

Clothing - All types of clothing for all ages and genders, particularly clothing for the approaching colder weather.

Any questions can be directed to the Community Affairs Bureau at 646-610-5323 or via email at [email protected]

*Store owners, or other large businesses interested in bulk donations should contact the above number to coordinate logistics.

Gas:

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/11/01/get-and-share-information-on-where-to-get-gas-in-the-tri-state/

Electricity:

Con Ed's Storm Central: http://apps.coned.com/stormcenter_external/m.htm

National Grid:
https://www1.nationalgridus.com/PowerOutageMap-NY-RES

LIPA: http://mobile.lipower.org/mt/www.lipower.org

Central Hudson:
http://stormcentral.cenhud.com/mobile.html

Additional information on outages at: http://www.governor.ny.gov/

Volunteer:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycservice/home.html

Report Storm Damage:

Homes:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/html/nycsevereweather/damage_form.shtml

Trees: http://gis.nyc.gov/parks/forms/
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Have some common sense Bloomberg!

11/2/2012

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To have the NYC marathon is an insult to all of those in distress after Sandy.

I see Facebook pages popping up and unless you take the time to read them sir, I know that you are still going to go through with this. Hell even if you saw all of the comments, you would still do it.

That's not what a mayor does.

Your people are suffering. I am fortunate enough to be okay, but I know people who are not.

Resuming school on Monday? Great! So what are you going to do for the kids whose schools were damaged in the Rockaways? What is the plan for schools in lower Manhattan if you cannot restore power by then? Are kids going to be penalized for not coming to school next week because they don't know when they are going back to their homes? I would like to know that.

And Staten Island...what are you going to do for them? People are needed everywhere yes, but do you have a plan to get people to Staten Island to help. We can't exactly walk there.

Saying, "We are doing the best we can." is not easing anyone's mind, especially when the next minute, you are saying that the marathon will go on!

If I had the chance to talk to you, I would ask every question in this entry and more. If you cannot come up with a good answer for these questions, then guess what...you shouldn't be having this marathon!

Please use the common sense that the good Lord gave you (but is obviously hidden in the shadows of preparing for a marathon that should be postponed!).
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John Liu talking on WNYC (The Write Queen Typepad, Dec. 2009)

12/19/2009

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On November 3rd, John C. Liu made history by becoming the first Asian-American to be elected into a city office.

From previous posts on this blog, you saw that Liu was this blogger's number one choice for New York City Comptroller.

In the audio clip below, Liu speaks about how he envisions the future on WNYC with Brian Lehrer the day after the election.

You can find out more about Liu and his term plans on his website.

Enjoy the clip!

John Liu on WNYC
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She Stands Alone: Melinda Katz, The Only Female Candidate for Comptroller (From The Write Queen, Sept. 2009)

10/18/2009

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Melinda Katz, a lifelong Queens resident, is the only female candidate for Comptroller.

This doesn't mean that she is not a worthy contender in this race however. As always, it is refreshing to see a woman who is willing to take a risk and be the only one standing among the "big boys".  

Katz is running for one of the most important jobs in this city, to be the New York City Comptroller. The city comptroller is in charge of the financial health of the city. And during these recessionary times, we sure do need someone new in charge.

According to news reports, Katz seems to be one of the top two favorite candidates out of the four Democrats in this race (the other being John Liu). She is a candidate that has the support of women, the LGBT community and several of her fellow politicians.

Katz also an intriguing individual from a creative family. According to Gay City News: "Born and raised in New York, she is a single mom raising her 14-month-old son, Carter, in the same house in Forest Hills where she grew up, which she bought after the death of her father 22 years ago. Her father founded the Queens Symphony Orchestra, whose maestro he served as, and her mother, who died in an auto accident when Katz was just three, started the Queens Council on the Arts - there was, apparently some level of creative competition in the family from the get-go. Her three brothers, all older, have followed in their parents' footsteps - two of them leading performing arts programs, the third designing women's haute couture."

In this blogger's eyes, Katz may already have one vote, not only because of her intriguing life but because of this statement she gives on her website about why she is running for comptroller:

"People ask me why I'm running for Comptroller and three simple words come to mind: I get it."

"I get that New Yorkers are struggling to make ends meet during the economic crisis of our lifetime. I get that people are angry with Wall Street excess and the enveloping repercussions of its unchecked greed. I get that parents in every borough are worried about their children's education. And my approach to solving these vexing public problems is the same as any family's approach to solving its own private ones: common sense and accountability. I get that, for Comptroller, we need a no-nonsense New Yorker who will work for everyone."

Powerful words that certainly got to this blogger in more ways than one.

You can find out more about Melinda Katz at her website, http://www.melindakatzforny.com
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The Election Crunch: What are the Comptroller candidates doing? (From The Write Queen, Sept. 2009)

10/18/2009

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As we get closer to the September 15th elections, many candidates for various positions in the New York City government are on their election grind, talking to as many people as they can before the big day.

One of the most important races is the one for New York City Comptroller. This blogger's two favorite candidates are Melinda Katz and John Liu. What are they doing now, during the final hours?

John Liu is easy to track. Liu keeps updating his Twitter page with every move he makes during the day. About an hour ago, Liu tweeted that he was meeting Assemblymember Adriano Espaillat in Manhattan.

Liu is also willing to forfiet sleep. "Sleep is overrated. We've got to be out here, campaigning, talking to voters, talking about the issues," as Liu stated on NY1 News during Labor Day weekend.

Melinda Katz doesn't update her Twitter as often, though it would be nice. However Katz has been using her voice to woo voters. It was discovered eariler in the week that Katz is willing to sing to her potential voters. Katz sang "God Bless America" to patrons of the Haber House senior center last week.

Here is a video of Katz singing with the Queens Symphony Orchestra this summer:
Twitter and serenades make these candidates a little bit more human, but only the votes will tell if this will work to get them in the Comptrolller's office.
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Sweating out the race: John Liu for Comptroller (From The Write Queen, Sept. 2009)

10/18/2009

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John Liu is the other Queens candidate in the New York CIty race for Comptroller.

Revolutionaries seem to be a favorite for this blogger because Liu was the first Asian American to be elected to an legislative office in New York history. Quite a feat for this Flushing resident who has lived in Queens since the age of five.

As it gets closer to September 15th, when New Yorkers will get a chance to vote for who they want as comptroller, you see more of their campaign commericals show up on T.V.

Lui's commericals really show him as a person who is willing to meet his community and talk to individuals about what they want for this city. While this blogger leans more towards Melinda Katz, Liu does have his appeal.

Recently out in the news is the story of Liu working in a sweatshop as a kid. After an interview with his parents, who said that he didn't go to the shop, that his mother worked from home and that he helped her there, there has been a whole contraversy about Lui's memory. He still insist that he did work in the sweatshop, but this blogger doesn't seem too sure because of this blog entry and article found on Lui's website.

Overall, however, he does seem like a good candidate and would come a close second to Melinda Katz for this blogger.
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    Christina D. Rodriguez

    A Latinx poet and entrepreneur who blogs about poetry, music, writing, and life.


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