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In its profile of Crown Heights, “Unease Lingers Amid a Rebirth in Crown Heights,” the New York Times just asked the question: “How did a neighborhood famous for its riot become a hotbed of change?”
The article “is like Outer Borough Mad Libs,” said streetsblog founder Aaron Naparstek, while Dana Goldstein of the Daily Beast called it the “platonic ideal” of a New York Times article about Brooklyn. And the reception was even chillier in Crown Heights.
“The article used the 1991 riots as a lens for current changes in the neighborhood, with a bit of help from some poorly-labelled photos of new businesses on Franklin in 2012 juxtaposed with police in riot gear on Utica Avenue from 1991,” says I love Franklin Ave.
Kevin Phillip, a Crown Heights native and owner of local business The Candy Rush, was quoted way down in the article: ”I don’t think anybody really thinks about what happened here … It’s more what’s happening here.” So Kevin put his quote on a t-shirt, and the result is this amazing photo collage, here on Brooklynian’s Crown Heights forum, featuring everyone from local merchants and community leaders to residents up and down Franklin Avenue.
Buy one of these shirts at Candy Rush, About Time Boutique, or online. Then take a photo of yourself, and post it here on the Brooklynian Crown Heights forum, where the story continues to unfold.
One Response to “What’s Happening Now:” Franklin Avenue Fires Back on NYT Portrayal of Crown Heights