I-81 Challenge Public Meeting
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, attributed to king Nebuchadnezzar II, were one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. If the Rev. Craig French gets his way, Syracuse’s South Side could be seeing a modern version of the gardens, which were purportedly built in the 6th century BC. French, the lead pastor of the [...]
Ready to Soar
Calmesha Givens keeps her acting dreams alive while also working at On Point For College Actress Calmesha Givens sits in a room with three other people — waiting — anxious to hear who made the cut. The room is silent as the tension builds. Everyone in the room seems on edge, except Calmesha, better known [...]
Theater Revival
New artistic director brings back Paul Robeson Performing Arts Company The new artistic director of the Paul Robeson Performing Arts Company says it’s all about community. His first project proves it. The PRPAC’s comeback production is a cabaret for the African-American students that were not cast in Cicero-North Syracuse High School’s musical production of “The [...]
Second Chances
Syracuse advocacy groups want to ‘Ban the Box’ on job applications Anyone who’s applied for a job is familiar with it: the section of the application inquiring about criminal history. Many pass over this check box quickly, checking “no” and moving on. Yet others dread this box, considering it a death sentence for their chances [...]
South Side Achiever
Returning president of 100 Black Men of Syracuse continues to offer hope Sitting at his desk in the South Side Innovation Center, Vincent B. Love, 59, describes how he isn’t perfect. The Syracuse native — who grew up just down the street in Pioneer Homes — points out that he made some wrong decisions in [...]
Unfolding a Community’s Prison Stories
In the quiet upper auditorium of Beauchamp Branch Library, a little more than a dozen neighbors and a criminal justice class from Onondaga Community College gathered Tuesday, March 26, for an intimate and sensitive dialogue sharing their ties to what has become a common American experience: prison stories. Calmesha Givens, Syracuse native, and Shannon Fernandez, [...]
City Offers Stop the Violence Forum
A call to action with a little help from Hollywood Mayor Stephanie Miner’s office, along with a number of various organizations including Mother’s Against Gun Violence, held a panel discussion featuring notable Syracuse figures and Hollywood actor Khalil Kain at the historic Landmark Theatre Thursday, March 21. The issue at hand? How to help prevent [...]
Director's Blog
Summer Issue
This Summer Issue features four profiles of community members. We take this opportunity each year to offer this special profile series, which expands on The Stand’s regular “Achiever” feature.
The Stand is all about people who are contributing to the South Side community. If you have a nomination for our regular “Achiever” profile, please let us know.
Our reporters also spoke with HOPE for Bereaved, a center offering support to individuals and families suffering through the loss of a loved one; explain the newly developed Land Bank, and highlight some of the winners of the Afro-Academic Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics.
Events
Upcoming Event
100 Black Men, Crouse Hospital Host Community Health Walk on June 8
100 Black Men of Syracuse, Inc., in partnership with Crouse Hospital, is sponsoring the fifth annual Winston Gaskin Community Walk for Wellness & Stroke Awareness on Saturday, June 8, at Thornden Park on Syracuse’s University Hill. Registrations, including a $10 registration fee, will be accepted from 8:30 to 9 a.m. the day of the walk and in advance online. Participants will walk a designated one-mile, two-mile or three-mile course inside the park.
Hometown News
Volunteers Conserve Creek at Kirk Park
In the tangled green smell of trees and dirt, the cracking snaps of twigs and the chirps of robins and neighborhood children running through Kirk Park, students dug, planted and pulled at the expansive roots and shoots alongside Onondaga Creek in an effort to spread their message of making the world a better place for people, animals and the environment.
Roots & Shoots, a chapter of Western Connecticut State University, Onondaga Creek Conservation Council and a few helpful local children from the park, planted nearly 40 trees and shrubs and nearly 400 wildflowers to rehabilitate Onondaga Creek’s Riparian zone Saturday, May 18.
