How Many are Homeless in New York City?

The Department of Homeless Services (DHS) conducts an annual survey of the homeless in the city, known as the Homeless Outreach Population Estimate (HOPE). Volunteers walked around the Bronx on Monday, January 28th, for the sixth annual HOPE count. They surveyed people living in the streets and offered help to them, in streets, parks and subway cars. There are still concentrations of unsheltered homeless in sections of the Bronx. Some homeless prefer not to use the shelter system. The HOPE count involved some 2,500 volunteers, who walked approximately 8,000 miles.

The annual survey helps to reach out to the homeless. Volunteers will be offering people a way into the shelter system, and other programs available to them. HOPE 2008 serves as a gauge to determine if measures currently in effect are working to help the homeless. Other measurements of homelessness include the Citizens Advice Bureau’s (CAB) weekly efforts, in which it makes over 1,200 yearly contacts with the homeless, and works to place them in permanent housing. The CAB has offices at 1130 Grand Concourse and other locations in the Bronx. DHS and CAB members participated in Monday night’s count. In addition, CAB has a program, Homebase, to help people avoid becoming homeless. They can be reached at Homebase, 391 East 149th Street, Suite 507, (Corner of 3rd Avenue & E. 149th Street), Bronx, NY 10455, Phone: (718) 402-2244.

Department of Homeless Services (DHS) Commissioner Robert Hess said "It’s unacceptable for so many of our fellow New Yorkers to be living on the streets." The department recruited volunteers, who received a special HOPE 2008 T-shirt. HOPE 2008 employed the same methodology used in previous counts. Volunteer teams canvassed all areas identified to likely have street homeless individuals. In addition, a random sample of those areas not identified as likely to have street homeless individuals also will be canvassed.

"Decoys," or trained individuals posing as homeless individuals, are planted as a quality assurance measure. This shadow count helps to gauge the accuracy of the total estimate and allows adjustment of the final count estimate accordingly. This is the fourth year HOPE has included a shadow count.

The count is part of the city program called "Uniting for Solutions Beyond Shelter." HOPE is critical to helping evaluate the effectiveness of current strategies to overcome street homelessness as well as developing appropriate housing resources for the most vulnerable New Yorkers currently living without shelter. The count of homeless out on the street is in addition to those New Yorkers who already sleep in shelters. In an average night, 35,000 people are in city homeless shelters, according to the non-profit organization, the Coalition for the Homeless. According to a Coalition spokesperson, they give out 1,000 meals a night, free, to the homeless and the needy. The homelessness problem is made more difficult by an average 8-percent increase in rents over the last 3 years, and declines in median income.

This article is sponsored by the T-Shirt Queen and I Love Harlem Apparel.

Tears Go By as We Watch the Elections

A little political commentary today, in the form of a spoof on the Rolling Stones Song, As Tears Go By:


It is the evening of the day;
I sit and watch politicians play;
Financial crash is all I see, but it is not me;


I feel the bust, and crash go byyyyy;
Lowering interest rates is not so slyyyyy;
This will hit the dollar, right in the hearttttttt;
Free market solutions will not work;
Don't be a jerk; Two-Tiered credit window, points the wayyyyyyyyyyyy;

As we watch the idiots at the Fed lower interest rates again, their desperation fools no one. Why not admit that the "total free market system" is DEAD DEAD DEAD as a door nail? Then we can have HIGH interest rates, at least higher than Europe's ECB, and low rates for special projects that are deemed in the national interest. Don't wait for the mortgages to go bust, and the banks too. Oh, and is some one still interested in reviving the American System of political economy?
We congratulate Hillary Clinton for her 50-percent win in Florida, even if this may not yield any delegates. (Florida has been penalized by the DNC for having its primary so early). Harlem, NY and all of New York get to vote in the primary next Tuesday, so Vote Early, and (ha ha) Vote Often!

Frocks, Rocks and Cocktails in Harlem, NY

Latest from t-shirt queen.



The new in spot for Harlem Girls and Fashionistas is frocksrocksandcocktails.com . The kick-off party took place on Jan 16th in Midtown Manhattan at Phyto Universe. Guest speaker Shaye Strager, the Trends Tracker for CBS 2 News, gave a presentation on the top ten fashion for 2008. Rose Murdock, the co-host is with the Development and Finishing Institute. She's an etiquette expert, and has been featured in Oprah Winfrey's "O" Magazine. A portion of the event's proceeds will go to the non-profit and tuition free Development and Finishing Institute. For more of Frocks and Rocks events, click on their website.

The event wasn't terribly expensive, a mere $52 for the evening at Phyto's, located at 715 Lexington Avenue, by East 58th St. Check out the 3,000 square foot vertical garden at this beauty spa.

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High and Low Fashion

An "I Love Harlem" Spaghetti Tank top (click the pix) at $19.97 is not a bad deal, especially if we look at the competition. But, let's look at what some of the high fashion houses are offering.

The Versace line is truly beautiful, though the prices are in the stratosphere. I guess just the name recognition does that. A long sleeve t-shirt has an all over floral print in light gold, with a secondary color or lilac. It has a v-neck, with the material being 94-percent viscose and 6-percent elastane. Available at raffaello-network.com for only $259.00, on sale. Now I know why guys rob banks.

Run Around in a Women's Track Suit

If you get that I Love Harlem tracksuit, above, you too, can be Run-Around Sue.

The Art of Sportswear

Sportswear can be an art form, even a simple statement like a sleeveless t-shirt with a MALCOLM X icon on it. It's available for $15.99, at I Love Harlem.

Let's look at a rival website, that of the Red Lotus brand. For $28.00 one can buy a woman's sheer t-shirt in white, with the RED LOTUS CLOTHING icon, sort of an old NBC peacock, with the lettering underneath. Their t-shirt EAT MEAT is a funny one, with the slogan underneath in red, on a pastel pink background, with a group of vegetables having a little protest over it. They seem to be a corn, eggplant, cucumber, carrot and a tomato, with little sayings attached.

On a more serious note, we should think about Malcolm X as we go into, soon, February, which is black history month. Malcolm was assassinated in 1965, right here in Harlem, at the Audubon Ballroom, right north of Harlem, at 165th St and Broadway, New York, NY. He died February 21st, 1965. He freed a lot of people, in their state of mind. His Autobiography meant a lot to me, in the state of the development of ones mind and character, even from a criminal past.

What about Social Images on your Clothes?

The point about the "Save the Shack" sweatshirt, is to show a nice image, and identify a social cause. The Record Shack in Harlem is in imminent danger of closing after a long fight. This is not unique, to use t-shirts and other sportswear as a place to write social and political slogans and images. An innovator in this type of sportswear is KatherineHamnett, who already in the late 1980s was making statement clothing around opposing Sweatshops in the clothing industry. See the link with some of her images. From her website, katharinehamnett.com, here is a quote:

"It's amazing, and the slogan t-shirts are being worn all over the place: KT Tunstall Live Earth, Bloc Party Live Earth, Lily Cole London Fashion Week, Peaches Geldof and Dirty Pretty Things are all wearing them.

There's an increasing trend for consumer driven ethical and environmental purchasing.

People are realising that how we consume decides the future of the planet and they're doing something about it."

Ms. Hamnett's slogan shirts are quite general, but have uplifting themes, albeit at a slightly pricey pricey. I liked the "Choose Life" both in big white letters on a tan background, and in big black letters, on a white background. Perhaps I should try putting in some larger letters on my shirts.

Boston Proper versus I Love Harlem

Boston Proper does have some cute stuff, even though obviously it is not from our Harlem Homeboys. Here is the link to the Yoga shirt. This is stuff I could see a woman wearing at ease, and it costs only $39.00 plus shipping. It has a mystical white design on a black background. The Scroll Tank top is also nice at the same price, with a design over the whole thing, not just the top.

The smooth sailing warm-up suit is very cute for a woman who is exercising, but is it really worth $139.00 plus shipping. You might be better off in a soul-filled I Love Harlem Women's Tracksuit for only $42.99 plus shipping.

Let's be fair and admit that the Boston Proper styles can be neat and sexy. A Navy blue warm-up suit with a zip-down front and a red stripe all the way down from shoulders to feet is $149.00, called the Athleisure Warm-up. A groovy swirl tunic can be had for $59.00. See the comparable styles at I Love Harlem, and T-Shirt Queen.

I Love Harlem and Valentine's Day

Here is an eBay auction you can try to get some of those cute Valentine's Day buttons that are on the market:

Valentine's Day Buttons

Then there are some I Love Harlem Buttons, I Love Harlem that you can get too.

And check out the buttons for I'm Excited, Hug Me More.

Harlem Sportswear and other Sportswear Notes

The Scusa line is very nice, even though we here at “I Love Harlem” apparel still prefer our homeboy and homegirl line, including the new t-shirt above, "Live at the Apollo." The “I Love (heart” Harlem” t-shirts, long t-shirts, and hoodies can go great with your jeans, both for men and women, and really show that you got soul, as James Brown would say. And if you look at iloveharlem.net, you will see the new graphics with some of Harlem’s most beloved sights. This starts with the world famous Apollo Theater t-shirt, and goes to the “Record Shack”, an icon on West 125th St, Harlem, NY, that is now threatened with immediate closure. Then, we have a Malcolm X line of goodies too. The prices are low, and can be made even lower, if you request special bulk prices, from the T-Shirt Queen.


Fashion bug has a few nice entries, including sportswear with a message. There’s the “Bobby Jack” hoodie, with the message, “I Love (Heart) Being Me”, red, that is bound to create a smile both to the wearer and the beholder. At only $29.99 plus shipping, it is not that expensive and it is definitely fun. Then Bobby Jack has another cute item. Bobby Jack™ "whatever I want" hoodie, at $29.99 as well. The hooded zip front jacket reads "I get whatever I want!" with a Bobby Jack monkey face patch on front. Back reads "cause I'm spoiled". It has studded kangaroo pockets. Cotton/polyester. Machine wash. Imported. It’s nice to have that materialistic message, without paying over $100.

Getting back into more of a t-shirt fashion and jeans line in a pure form, let’s look at the products of SCUSA, which has an Italian inflected line, known as Capo Di, and Capo Di II. It has a simple overlapping print of its SCUSA logo, in a variety of pastel colors, including on some rather risqué fashion models, male and female. A young male makes an attractive fashion statement, with a whirling dervish type of icon, a black stamped female face, surrounded by three dancing legs. Good that it didn’t have four dancing legs, otherwise it might have looked like a Swastika! Next in this little fashion show is a red hoodie with a zip down in the middle, and the SCUSA trademark. The material is a cotton or mixed material velour. Another male is in a black t-shirt, with a simple cut-out letters, CAPO DI and small solid letters underneath, made by Scusa.

Live at the Apollo!

Get the new groovy t-shirt, and you too can be "Live at the Apollo" a t-shirt available at I Love Harlem as part of the new line. Get it, for your 15-minutes of fame.

The Shadow of Leonora Fulani and Mayor Bloomberg

As the possibility of an independent run for President by NY Mayor Bloomberg gets closer, some of his old friends come back into the picture, starting with Leonora Fulani. Ms. Fulani got her start as allegedly one of the "Merry Five Wives of Dr. Fred Newman." That may sound like a Shakespeare play, and indeed, Ms. Fulani's mentor, Fred Newman has been in the play writing business for the last 30 years or so. However, since 1994, Ms. Fulani has been a leading player in the Independence Party, and offshoot of the political campaign of Ross Perot in 1992.

Why does Bloomberg need Fulani? To get on the ballot in about 13 states, one needs a huge amount of petition signatures, or the sponsorship of an existing political pparty. Fulani has the shock troops to petition in places like New York State, with her various psychotherapy clients and brainwashed victims, the participants and graduates of her friend's "All Star" play and political program, and various other fun and games. The various ventures of Fulani, Newman, and others in this network have literally received millions of dollars in cash and favors from Mayor Bloomberg and former Governor Pataki, just because of their ability to rope various unsuspecting dupes in their fascist, anti-working class fun and games.

Fulani had a big problem with being kicked out of the Independence Party in 2005, over various statements on the 9/11 attacks (that America deserved them for being Imperialist) and that Jews practiced genocide against Blacks, but these problems may have been resolved by now. Good timing, because Bloomberg will need her services pretty soon. Fulani operates in Harlem, but has her various offices on the West Side and East Side of Manhattan, and her friend's All-Star Theater on West 42nd Street.

picture from New York Times, 05/28/2005, Bloomberg, with Fulani:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/28/nyregion/28party.html

And don't forget to look good and feel good with I Love Harlem apparel and the t-shirt queen.

Hillary Clinton in Harlem, NY

It was great to see Hillary campaigning in Harlem NY at the Abbysinian Baptist Church in Harlem, NY. She had a great reception. Having protesters from the Barak Obama campaign was just the ordinary course of business.

The gauntlet has been laid down. Hillary would like to help people, but she is probably also aware of Lyndon LaRouche's webcast on January 17th, 2008, where Mr. LaRouche spelled out that the banks must go through a bankruptcy protection reorganization as well. We at harlemface.com seriously doubt that this is top-secret information. This is also a huge threat with what is going on to the insurers of the municipal bond markets, toward a big hole in the $2 trillion municipal bond market.

So enjoy the fun for now. Luckily I Love Harlem apparel is cheap and nice and affordable and stylish, so it may be the perfect fashion for the economic depression. See also the tee shirt queen, and the I Love Harlem video, by Struggle Shop, on blip.tv

The pix and more are at http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/ny-ushill0121,0,6894207.story?coll=ny_home_rail_headlines, Newsday.

WHEDCO- actually in the Bronx

WhHEDCO is located at 50 East 168th Street, Bronx, NY 10452 v: (718) 839.1100 f: (718) 839.1172. It is at the old site of the Morrisiana hospital, which after being abandoned for a number of years now houses WHEDCO and also housing for at least 128 people. There is a new building for low income housing which has a green roof.

Nancy Biberman is the founder of WHEDCO. It also has a Food pantry and after school programs. Actually I found out about the program while writing a story about a 10-year old girl named Aminata, who was honored at a nearby program on the Grand Concourse for successfully writing "a book", actually captions to illustrations in a children's book form put out by thinkitinkit.com. Aminata had been in headstart programs at WHEDCo, and later at after-school programs there, where the program for writing a story met her.


Urban Horizons I

Eleven years ago, WHEDCo converted the abandoned Morrisania Hospital to homes for 132 low-income and previously homeless families, exploding the myth that affordable housing can’t coexist with design excellence.

Urban Horizons II now under construction, demonstrates that green construction isn’t just for high-end homes. Offering apartments for 128 low-income families and supportive housing for 46 young adults aging out of foster care, it’s being built with energy-efficient technology and healthy materials. A park and green roofs will improve air quality in the neighborhood, and to break down the digital divide, apartments will be wired for high-speed, low-cost internet access.

WHEDCo’s social workers help families overcome the multiple barriers to opportunity that poverty presents. Each year, we offer mental health support to roughly 600 families, enabling them to meet their basic needs—shelter, food, and clothing. Last year, we helped over 200 homeless families find affordable homes and navigate the City’s complex housing system, ensuring that the transition to a new home is the first step towards a stable life.


WHEDCo’s Kitchen Incubator is a 4,500 square foot state-of-the-art commercial kitchen that provides a safe, efficient environment for small-scale New York food manufacturers to make and package their products. The kitchen is currently home to four growing businesses that provide upwards of thirty jobs.

Their head start child development program serves 104 pre-school children from 18 countries, in turn helping their parents enter the workforce.

They work with students in our neighboring schools to raise aspirations, boost academic success and develop self expression and social responsibility.

Cute Items for Valentine's Day

Yes, we have some cute items for Valentine's Day at the I Love Harlem, and you ought to take a look at them. an "I Love Harlem, for Valentine's Day" thong.

The Struggle for the Record Shack!

The struggle to keep the Record Shack open is emblematic of the continuing struggle against gentrification. We are being told that to live, work and sell in New York City, first downtown, and now Harlem too, you must be rich. This is the busting up of neighborhoods in the name of the so-called Global Village.

In the face of the collapsing real estate bubble, are all these plans for turning Harlem into another Disneyworld going to work anyway? To get this sweatshirt, or t-shirt, etc., please visit the I Love Harlem or for bulk orders (of 100 or more pieces) go to the t-shirt Queen. The system is bankrupt, and any attempt to arbitrarily price people out of existence will ultimately make things worse for all. Either we all hang together, or we shall surely hang separately, as our Revolution forebears told us.

Developing an Afrocentric Theme for the T-Shirt Queen

We are really developing an Afrocentric line of sportswear products. Here is the Malcolm X t-shirt, ready for black history month, February. You can order this product at the I Love Harlem store, in single, or small quantities. Or for lower prices on bulk quantities (over 100 pieces) go to the t-shirt queen Store.

This is a great addition to the "I Love Harlem" logo, and the Apollo Theater t-shirt. Please tell us if these items, as t-shirts, sweatshirts, etc, or either thong underwear interest you.

Other elements of the line will be presented soon. Under consideration is a "Save the Shack" teeshirt. See more on Vanishing New York at the link. Other landmarks that may disappear soon include Manna's Soul Food, and Bobby's Happy House across the street from the Shack.

Harlem Tees Hit the Apollo Theater

The above picture of the Apollo Theater, on 125th St in Harlem NY, is now going to be gracing my next t-shirt and sportswear group, see them at I Love Harlem.

There are so many beautiful landmarks in Harlem, all threatened in the fascist fanatic real estate assault of Michael Bloomberg and company. Not only in the Apollo theater about to be swamped in "development," but the Cotton Club by the West Side Highway is slated for elimination in the greater Columbia University gentrification.

These t-shirts, made by the T-shirt Queen are all American made and mass items are silk-screened in New York City, in Harlem, so that is local jobs for local people. Potential other images adorning sportswear to come are: the Cotton Club, Harlem Hospital, and Bobby's Happy Place (Record Store), slated for shutdown by March.

The Tee Shirt Queen on TV

The t-shirt queen now has her own television clip and interview at blip.tv/file/576910 or I Love Harlem Show. She tells a bit about the sportswear line, and shows it off, in terms of a tennis dress, sweatshirt, a headband, and of course, an I Love Harlem t-shirt. And it should be noted that not only are the t-shirts American made, but the printing and silkscreening is done right here in Harlem, NY. That is right, we are creating jobs right here in Harlem USA.

Chitra Desai is the t-shirt queen, and she appears in the show herself.

More on the New York Hearings on Wall St., Jesse Jackson

New York City Council Hearings, Jan. 5th, 2008, starring Jesse Jackson

Councilman Leroy Comrie, from the 27th Council District led the hearings. They featured Jesse Jackson of PUSH, Sheila Jackson Lee (D- Tex) and John Conyers (D-Mich).

John Taylor of the NCRC later gave a long speech, which highlighted the “we need cash” portion of the meeting. He said that renters are also being impacted, being forced to leave foreclosed buildings within a month. Seniors are victimized through “reverse-mortgages.” The market is “securitized” and pension funds will lose money as well as international investors. He said they want a national bill to outlaw “predatory lending” and that “Senator Dodd (Ct.) has a strong bill.” He then said that, we need massive amounts of cash, presumably to bail out the mortgages, and re-write them at fixed rates and lower monthly payments. He recommended the book, by Bob Kuttner, “The Squandering of America.”

The general scam of sub prime mortgages was discussed by Sheila Jackson Lee and Lou Fidler and others. ARMs are adjustable Rate Mortgages. They start at 0% or a low percentage. Then they jump after a year or a couple of years to 12.5% or more, and monthly payments also increase. Last year, nearly 1/5 of the mortgages issued in New York City were sub prime. Now, housing prices are down 3.8% in New York City and 9.7% in New York State as a whole. There are huge losses on property taxes. The tax base is collapsing in many towns across the nations, and this is hitting Afro-American and Hispanic neighborhoods the hardest.

An anti-predatory lending bill was passed several years ago by the NY City Council, but was struck down by the Federal Court. Pres. Bush has a program to deal with changing high mortgage interest rates to lower fixed rate mortgages, but it will help only about 10-percent of people if they apply. That is too low to make a difference. The industry has to be re-regulated.

Jesse Jackson continued the spiel. He said that whole neighborhoods are being driven into depression. Banks have an $80-billion dollar write-down that is going toward $500-billion. The Saudi and other foreign interests are bailing out Citibank and other large banks (at least Jesse claims to think this). The rural economy is being poisoned. This went on and on, but it had the quality of militant begging.

Jesse referred to the “greed factor” of Alan Greenspan, Bush, etc., and their ideology of tax cuts, and deregulation. There was also much talk of targeting by “race and zip code”, and getting people into sub prime loans that could have gotten fixed rate mortgages. Other people mentioned in their “coalition” were Ms. Madigan (State Attorney Gen.? Michigan) and NY Lt. Governor Patterson. Christine Quinn (Pres. NY City Council) was thanked for making the city council chambers available for the speak-out.

John Conyers next spoke. He mentioned that 2.5 million homes are going into foreclosure, from 250,000 per year in “normal” years, in the USA. He is planning to meet with US Attorney General Mukasey.


Four victims spoke out, who had been selected by the ACORN organization. One man, Mr. Dawkins, spoke how he bought a foreclosed house for $375,000, worth $525,000 on the market (at that time). He got an ARM loan; he was probably “flipping” houses, buying them, fixing them, and re-selling them. A year later, he was living in the house, and he couldn’t get a new fixed mortgage, and the loan “ballooned up” in monthly cost. A second man had a $3300 mortgage on a similar house, that he was able to pay, but then it readjusted to $5800. Another woman lost $300,000 in equity, and may lose her home, after refinancing when she was ill, and couldn’t work. The session ended breaking in smaller groups, mostly looking for aid for homeowners through refinancing with cheaper fixed mortgages. Many of the people affected by the scams are from South Queens and Brooklyn, though some are from Harlem, Bronx and other areas.

Jesse Jackson at the NYC City Council Hearings

The hearings, starring Jesse Jackson, famous operation Push guy, were chaired by Councilman Leroy Comrie from South Queens, NYC, NY. Though this is a city-wide problem, this is hitting Harlem too. This is beginning to hit everyone, the foreclosure and subprime mortgage collapse. As this hits the owners of multi-dwelling buildings and apartments, tenants are being thrown out with a months notice.

Also headlining the event were Congressman John Conyers (D- Mich.) and Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.). This has been, and was played at these hearings as a predatory lending, but it really is the collapse of the financial system. More on this later.

And don't forget the t-shirt queen and I Love Harlem. Give us a click.

Cultural Cafe Closes in East Harlem

Unfortunately, the real estate boom has killed a lot of small stores and cultural institutions in Harlem, particularly East Harlem. Carlitos is closing because its neighborhood is becoming too expensive. It's 4 story brownstone is on the market for $2.5 million. This real estate bubble is not worth it. And then it will all collapse one fine day. And will the nearby East Plaza mall do well, with the bankruptcy of Levitz Furniture, and the construction of the nearby Gateway Mall in the South Bronx, on the Harlem River.

So join the fight. And wear I love harlem apparel, also from the t-shirt queen.