Op-ed: New York City Parks Finds a New Way to Push SQPA out of Roy Wilkins Park

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New York City Parks Finds a New Way to Push SQPA Out of Roy Wilkins Park

Roy Wilkins Park. Photo by Tdorante10/Wikimedia Commons

By James Johnson

For more than 50 years, the Southern Queens Park Association has been the backbone of Roy Wilkins Park.

Since 1973, SQPA has provided afterschool programming and critical community services to families across Southeast Queens. It is more than a nonprofit – it is a trusted institution built by and for the community.

Today, that institution is being pushed aside.

New York City is constructing a $92 million, state-of-the-art facility in Roy Wilkins Park complete with a gym, pool, indoor track, and modern community space. These are long-overdue investments that our community deserves.

But the reality behind this investment tells a different story.

SQPA, the very organization that sustained this park through decades of neglect, will not have access to this new facility.

Originally, New York City Parks indicated that SQPA would be included. That promise has not been kept.

At this time last year, community leaders, stakeholders, and advocates were raising concerns, asking questions, and engaging in good faith about SQPA’s role in the future of Roy Wilkins Park. Several town halls were organized to get answers and ensure transparency.

The main question was simple: Why are two facilities being built in the same park?

There was a clear expectation that SQPA would be included, not sidelined.

The Souper Bowl Party Rocks Queens With Warm Food and Community Vibes

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The Souper Bowl Party Rocks
Queens with Delicious Hot Artisan
Meals and Culinary Treats

Article By Curator of the Souper Bowl Party Roni Anderson

Far Rockaway, Queens - Despite the blustery chill in the air on the last weekend of winter, it was a cozy, warm atmosphere inside the Conservation Coastal Center where many people came out for our second annual “Souper Bowl Party.”

Families and community members gathered around to enjoy a ladle of warm comfort in a bowl.

We had a variety of delicious soups this year, we had a vegetable pumpkin soup, provided by Beach Dunes Cafe restaurant, and vegetarian sandwich wraps, which were a big hit, compliments of Annie Mohan of Campaign Against Hunger.

Community member Miss Myrtle brought a vegetarian option of pasta chickpea curry soup, so yummy, and community organizer, member of the Feed My Sheep organization, and Eye For Decoration business, Aiysha Simon, decorated the space with soup-related decor, and brought her now famous super yummy broccoli cheddar cheese soup.

This year, I brought my Chicken Tortilla soup, with fresh homemade tortilla strips, I called the “Benito bowl” (a little nod to the NFL Super Bowl’s Bad Bunny performer), and I made an old favorite American-style creamy chicken and dumplings soup.. Scrumptious sweet treats were provided by TraOre Desserts.. and much-appreciated beverages were donated by newly retired EMS worker Mr. Ozzie, and photos by Rockaway’s fabulous photographer Mr. Darryl C. Madison and Qiky Kidz Rohn Boyd.

Get the Scoop On How The Long Island African American Chamber of Commerce (LLAACC) Looks To Expand Our Business Borders

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The Long Island African American
Chamber of Commerce (LLAACC)
Looks To Expand Our Business Borders

Ready to Expand Beyond Borders? Join us for a powerful Global Market Strategy Session designed to help entrepreneurs, professionals, and business owners scale internationally and compete in today’s global economy.

EVENT DETAILS

Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Time: 6:15 PM – 8:30 PM

Location: (See registration link below)

Theme: Navigating a Global Future

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN

How to enter global markets

Building strategic international partnerships

Accessing capital & cross-border opportunities

Leveraging AI & innovation for global growth

Positioning your business for scalable success

TSA Pay Crisis Isn’t Over: Back Pay Arrives, But Airport Workforce Still Struggling to Recover

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TSA Pay Crisis Isn’t Over: Back Pay Arrives, But Airport Workforce Still Struggling to Recover

Queens, NY — While Transportation Security Administration workers have finally begun receiving long-awaited paychecks after weeks of working without compensation, aviation experts and workers say the crisis is far from over.

The Transportation Security Administration workforce—critical to the safety and flow of air travel nationwide—has taken a significant hit during the recent government shutdown. And even with back pay now arriving, the ripple effects are still being felt at airports across the country, including here in New York.

Back Pay Arrives—But It’s Not the End of the Story

Following executive action tied to the ongoing shutdown, TSA workers began receiving back pay covering missed pay periods, offering some immediate financial relief.

However, this wasn’t a clean reset.

Many workers report:

• Partial or staggered payments
• Delays depending on banking and processing systems
• Continued uncertainty about future paychecks

👉 In short: Workers got paid—but stability hasn’t fully returned.

The Hidden Cost: Workforce Loss and Burnout

During the weeks of unpaid labor, thousands of TSA employees were forced to make tough decisions.

• Some called out.
• Some took second jobs.
• Some left the workforce entirely.

Estimates suggest:

• Hundreds of TSA workers resigned during the shutdown period
• Call-out rates surged into double digits in key regions
• Remaining workers were forced to cover longer shifts under stress

Because TSA roles require months of training and federal certification, these losses can’t be quickly replaced.

👉 That means even now, staffing levels remain below normal at many airports.

Could The Deadly LaGuardia Airport Crash in Queens NY Been Avoided?

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Tragedy at LaGuardia: Deadly Runway Crash Raises Questions About Warnings, Workforce Strain, and Airport Safety

Queens, NY — A tragic runway collision at LaGuardia Airport has shaken New York City—and now, as more details emerge, the incident is raising deeper concerns about whether this disaster could have been prevented.

The crash, which involved an incoming regional jet from Canada and an airport emergency vehicle, left two pilots dead and dozens injured. But beyond the immediate tragedy, investigators and aviation experts are now examining a broader and more troubling reality: Was the system already under strain—and were warning signs ignored?

What Happened on the Runway

According to early reports, the aircraft was in the process of landing when it collided with a Port Authority fire truck that had entered the same runway.

Preliminary findings suggest:

• Both the aircraft and the vehicle may have been cleared onto the runway
• Communication breakdowns occurred between air traffic control and ground crews
• Critical seconds passed before warnings could prevent impact

Federal investigators, including the National Transportation Safety Board, are now analyzing cockpit recordings and tower communications to determine exactly how such a dangerous overlap occurred.

Were There Warning Signs Before the Crash?

While the investigation is ongoing, some aviation analysts and internal reports had already raised concerns in recent months about runway safety risks and system strain.

These warnings included:

• Increased incidents of “runway incursions” (close calls between aircraft and ground vehicles)
• Concerns about air traffic controller workload and staffing levels
• Operational pressure at high-volume airports like LaGuardia

Although no single report predicted this exact crash, experts have emphasized that these types of conditions increase the likelihood of catastrophic errors.

👉 In other words: the risk environment may have already been building.

Get The Scoop On The Black Married Professors Calling Out LeBron James and Kevin Hart for Sports Betting

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LeBron James and Kevin Hart Called Out by Finance Professor and Therapist for Promoting Predatory Finance Through Sports Gambling

Dr. Boyce Watkins, a Finance PhD and founder of The Black Business School, and his wife, Dr. Alicia Watkins, a licensed therapist and Full Professor of Social Work at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, Illinois, are publicly calling out LeBron James and Kevin Hart for promoting sports betting as entertainment — when it is rapidly becoming one of the most dangerous forms of predatory finance in modern America.

Sports gambling is exploding at an alarming rate. Legal wagers in the U.S. have surged from under $5 billion in 2017 to over $120 billion in 2023, driven largely by aggressive celebrity-backed marketing and mobile apps designed to addict users. The National Council on Problem Gambling estimates 2.5 million Americans now suffer from severe gambling addiction, with millions more at risk. Young men are being hit the hardest, and families are paying the price through debt, depression, and financial collapse.

Get The Scoop On New Book Erased On Paper Who Was Left Out of “We the People” — And Why It Still Matters 250 Years Later

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Erased On Paper

Who Was Left Out of “We the People” — And Why It Still Matters 250 Years Later

In 2026, the United States will mark 250 years since its founding — a milestone that invites celebration, reflection, and national pride. Across the country, banners will fly, reenactments will unfold, speeches will praise liberty and democracy, and the familiar words of the Constitution will once again be recited with reverence.

“We the People.”

But as America prepares to commemorate its birth, a harder question deserves equal attention: Who, exactly, was included in that promise — and who was quietly left out?

The founders’ language was bold and aspirational, yet the reality of early America was far narrower. Millions of people living within the nation’s borders — enslaved Africans, Indigenous nations, women, and countless marginalized communities — were excluded from political power, legal recognition, and full citizenship.

Their labor built the economy. Their land anchored expansion. Their lives shaped the nation’s trajectory. Yet their names, rights, and identities were often missing from official records.

History books tend to frame this exclusion as a moral failing that was eventually corrected through constitutional amendments and civil rights victories. That narrative is comforting. It suggests progress resolved the problem.

The truth is more complicated.

Much of America’s erasure did not occur through violence alone. It happened quietly — through paperwork. Through census classifications that distorted identity. Through land deeds that erased rightful ownership. Through court rulings that redefined lineage. Through recordkeeping systems that valued some names while ignoring others. Over generations, these administrative decisions reshaped families, severed histories, and altered legal standing in ways still affecting Americans today.

This is precisely the question explored — and answered — by authors C.B. Deane and Venita Benitez in their manuscript Erased on Paper: How American Law Rewrote Identity and Left Us Out of “We the People.” Through legal analysis, archival research, and personal discovery, their work reveals how identity itself was rewritten not only by culture, but by law.