If you grow it, they will thrive
To the Editor,
New York City is a place distinguished
for the scenery full of tall
skyscrapers, it is known for the fastpaced
vibrant life that consumes every
street. While living in New York
City yields many cultural benefi ts it
is becoming increasingly expensive
to live there putting at risk minority
populations. Increased rates of gentrifi
cation are continuously threatening
food security and establishing
food deserts in many regions of
Brooklyn. Food deserts are regions
in urban areas where it is diffi cult
to obtain affordable and good-quality
fresh foods. Counts of food deserts
have been increasing as a result
of gentrifi cation and higher prices of
food in expensive supermarkets have
left low-income minority populations
with unhealthy eating alternatives.
A growing solution to the threat
of food security in low-income urban
regions has been has been urban
farming. Over the past few
years, urban farming in New York
City has been a key in sustaining
and providing healthy food at low
costs to populations with limited access
to healthy food. Oftentimes, the
costs due to transportation and distribution
are what infl ate prices of
produce and other foods which then
cause inaccessibility to low-income
households. The hyperlocal production
of food in urban farms offer
food at lower prices because the
transportation costs are cut, therefore
healthy fresh produce no longer
become a luxury to people in low-income
urban areas.
Many predominantly Latin
American and African American
neighborhoods have witnessed a
transformation in the access to
food thanks to the practice of urban
farming. The Bedford-Stuyvesant
neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY was
once a food desert with little access
to fresh produce, but it has quickly
seen a tremendous boom in access
to fresh foods thanks to the efforts
of urban farms like Myrtle Village
Green. Myrtle Village Green has
been successful in fostering a community
while providing food to lowincome
people of color in the greater
Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood.
The plot of 20,000 square feet has
seen over 50 varieties in vegetables
and fruits that have provided the
community with 1.3 tons of food
per growing season. Supplying the
community with access to fresh and
healthy foods has mitigated the impacts
of gentrifi cation in the community
of Bedford-Stuyvesant. Myrtle
Village Green utilizes the plot
of land that would otherwise have
been purchased and converted into
luxury apartments and gives back to
the community by providing fresh
produce grown locally.
Urban Farms like Myrtle Village
Green, that use abandoned land plots
to increase food security by providing
fresh foods to communities in
need. Urban farms, along with other
projects like GrowNYC and Gotham
Greens, have been establishing
and successfully providing food for
many New York City residents at
low-cost. Urban farming practices
are currently tackling the growing
food security crisis in urban regions
and increasing such practices will
especially prevent low-income communities
from consuming foods detrimental
to their health.
Christian Madrigal
Bedford-Stuyvesant
Voice your concerns
To the Editor,
In response to Elaine Kirsch
(“Nix red and blue,” Letters to the
Editor, Nov. 30), I agree that the nation
is in a precarious position, and
I agree with the reforms you’ve proposed.
It would be great to abolish
parties, though that’s not about to
happen, as you said. We may be able
to do an end run around the Electoral
College if enough states agreed
to have their electors required to
vote as the national popular vote
dictates. Not easy in the small states
that feel unrepresented, but it’s a
goal to work toward.
Now that new blood is coming
into the House, voting reforms and
election reforms will be proposed,
and some may pass. Until that happens
the citizen’s job is not to merely
vote — though that is crucial. We
need to stay on top of the issues that
matter most to us, and see to it that
our representatives and senators, as
well as state and local elected offi -
cials, know our opinions.
I call my elected offi cials so frequently
COURIER L 40 IFE, DEC. 14–20, 2018 M B G
that when they hear my
name, they don’t even ask for my
contact information any more. It’s
nice to be recognized, but that says
to me that so few people take advantage
of the right to call and express
our opinions, that the person who
does gets to be a fi xture. More people
should be calling every day, to make
sure our elected offi cials hear what
we want and know they will only
be re-elected if we are pleased with
their performance.
Writing to the editor is another
good way to get our voices heard. If
every voter who cares about preserving
democracy and having an equal
say did these things, I believe we’d
have a lot more infl uence. Working
on campaigns, calling, writing, etc.,
are essential tools of citizenship, in
addition to voting every year, not
just in presidential elections.
It’s my sincere hope that we can
also bring back the study of civics
in schools, beginning at the elementary
levels and all the way through
high school. If enough Americans
knew what their rights really were,
we’d all make sure to fi ght for them.
Celeste Leibowitz
Sheepshead Bay
War on Christmas
To the Editor,
I see that the anti-Christmas, politically
correct gang is at it again.
Over the past few days, since Thanksgiving,
all aspects of the season have
been referred to as the “holiday.”
Holiday lights, holiday decorations,
and in Rockefeller Center, the “Big
Tree” lighting ceremony occurred.
I guess if one says Christmas, one
would immediately turn into a gelatinous
glob.
I cannot see why so many people’s
noses are out of joint. We are supposedly
a free society, able to pass happy
Hanukkah greetings and happy
Kwanzaa wishes along. If we err saying
Merry Christmas, we are looked
at like we were hooligans.
I think this modifi ed paragraph
from Dickens, is apropos:
“If everyone goes about with
Happy Holidays on their lips, they
should be boiled in their own Christmas
pudding, and buried with a
stake of holly through their hearts.”
Merry Christmas to all and may
God bless us — every one!
Robert W. Lobenstein
Marine Park
Old-fashioned treat
To the Editor,
It is refreshing to hear that the
Metropolitan Transportation Authority
has begun running a series
of nostalgia trains and buses to help
celebrate the holidays in December.
The “Shoppers Special” consisting
of eight cars from the 1930s runs 10
am and 5 pm on the F train between
Second Avenue, and A, C, D Harlem
125th Street stations in Manhattan
Sundays though Dec. 24.
Riding the old subway cars reminds
me of a time when it was common
to fi nd both penny gum and
soda machines dispensing products
at many subway stations. Clean and
safe bathrooms were readily available.
It was a time when people respected
authority and law. Previous
generations of riders did not litter
subway stations and buses by leaving
behind gum, candy wrappers,
paper cups, bottles, and newspapers.
No one would openly eat pizza,
chicken, or other messy foods while
riding a bus or subway. Everyone
paid their way and there was no fare
evasion.
Previous generations of subway
riders survived daily commutes
with no air conditioning. In 1967,
city transit introduced the fi rst 10
air-conditioned subway cars operating
on the old IND system (independent
municipal built, fi nanced,
and operated A, C, E, F, and G lines).
It was not until 1975 that air-conditioned
subway cars were introduced
on the old IRT (the city’s private
franchised Independent Rapid Transit
system operated 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,
Franklin Avenue and Times Square
shuttle lines). Subsequently, this
also included the old BMT (the private
franchised Brooklyn Manhattan
Transit system B, D, J, L, M, N,
Q, R, and Z lines). It took until 1982
to retrofi t all the original IRT “Redbird”
series subway cars. By 1993,
99 percent of the city’s 6,000 subway
cars were air conditioned with the
exception of a handful running on
the 7 Flushing line.
Fast forward to today, and you
can see how public transportation
is still one of the best bargains in
town. Riders can count on air conditioned
buses, subway, and commuter
rail cars working close to 99 percent
on a daily basis. Larry Penner
Great Neck
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