It’s World Keffiyeh Day, and in the little city town of Beacon, this is being greatly celebrated by the Palestinian restaurant, Ziatun on Main Street. Owner Kamel Jamal’s sister, Khitam (who used to go by Kate and reverted back to her Palestinian name last year after Palestine was particularly annihilated in the escalated conflict with its occupier Israel last May), contacted ALBB to spread the word that the keffiyeh scarf, which started as a farmer’s scarf for protection against the sun but was adopted as a resistance scarf to occupiers, was being celebrated today, May 11th.
You can buy keffiyeh scarves at Ziatun, or order online at Handmade Palestine, who still has a factory in Palestine. Many Palestinian businesses are destroyed or strangled by Israeli forces by way of cutting off water or electricity or limiting shipments, so supporting local business in Palestine matters.
Says Kamel about what the keffiyeh means to him: “Every day the keffiyah means something different. Today the keffiyeh means ‘unapologetically Palestinian’”
The Embassy for the State of Palestine - South Africa, commemorated World Keffiyeh Day with this statement: “Today is World Keffiyeh Day, a global movement to bring awareness and show solidarity with the Palestinian cause and struggle. The commemoration educates the world about the ongoing occupation of Palestine, by wearing a Keffiyeh. #FreePalestine #KeffiyehDay #worldkeffiyehday”
While there is an embassy and many official records recognizing Palestine, Kamel says that sometimes people walk into his restaurant, take a look around at his homages to his homeland of Palestine, and then tell him that Palestine does not exist. He shared this reality in passing the other day while sauntering down the sidewalk with ALBB after giving us a tour of the new building he just bought (!!!). “People come in and tell me that Palestine doesn’t exist. They ask why we show it on the walls.”
It’s a confusing statement to receive, as Kamel was born there and left at the age of 2 when his family was sponsored by a friend to come to America. Listen to his podcast here to learn all about it. But in online reviews for Ziatun, there was a person who left a bad review because they were so offended by the Palestinian decor. They stated that they preferred Israel only for that region. Israel is generally viewed as an occupier of Palestine, who encroaches on Palestinian land over the years.
In an unexpected and tragic turn of events, Al Jazeera Arabic’s iconic journalist, Shireen Abu Akleh, was shot in the head today while covering the current escalation in the West Bank. Word has been spreading to Western media outlets, as outrage in social media swells. Especially after the New York Times ran the headline of her simply having “died.”
According to fellow reporters who were with her, as reported by Al Jazeera: “We were four journalists, we were all wearing vests, all wearing helmets,” Hanaysha said. “The [Israeli] occupation army did not stop firing even after she collapsed. I couldn’t even extend my arm to pull her because of the shots being fired. The army was adamant on shooting to kill.”
The New York Times that outraged many for its neutered headline.
During Ramadan as Muslims prayed at Al-Aqsa Masque in Palestine/Israel, journalists released videos of themselves being shot at as they tried reporting on Muslim people praying at that mosque being dragged away by Israeli forces. A source to find those videos is Muslim Daily on Instagram.
“Abu Akleh, who was a dual Palestinian-American national, was one of Al Jazeera’s first field correspondents, joining the network in 1997.
“Grief and sorrow filled the Al Jazeera offices in downtown Ramallah as the news quickly spread and dozens of colleagues, fellow journalists, friends, and Palestinian figures poured in, including Palestinian politicians Hanan Ashrawi and Khalida Jarrar.
“Palestinian MP Khalida Jarrar said that Abu Akleh was the voice of Palestinians and was killed by ‘the monstrosity of Israeli colonialism and occupation’.
“Shireen was always my voice from the prison cells,” Jarrar told Al Jazeera, adding that a month into her last detention by Israel, Shireen was the first person she saw at her court hearings.”
Local Beaconite and blogger Linsey Gatto shared in the Beacon Moms Facebook Group about a screening at Story Screen on May 24, 2022 of the documentary“And So I Stayed,” a portrayal of Nikki Addimando, who in September 2017, in her Poughkeepsie apartment, fatally shot her abusive partner to save her own life. She was taken from her two young children and put into jail. The screening is a fundraiser for Nikki in the continuation of her legal battle to end her sentence. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased here.
Nikki is one of many domestic violence survivors who is incarcerated after defending themselves. However, she has one of the biggest platforms to bring the spotlight to this issue for all incarcerated domestic violence survivors, thanks in part to a grassroots group like Community Defense Committee, of which Linsey Gatto is a part of.
According to Nikki’s website, in February 2020, Nikki was sentenced by Judge Edward T. McLoughlin to 19 years to life in prison. “After securing national media attention and a new legal team at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, the NY State Supreme Court’s Appellate Division (Second Department) decided that Nikki should have been sentenced under the Domestic Violence Survivors’ Justice Act, and resentenced her to 7.5 years.”
According to the film’s website: “‘And So I Stayed’ is an award-winning documentary about survivors of abuse fighting for their lives and spending years behind bars. This is the story of how the legal system gets domestic violence wrong. It is a moving portrait of Kim, Tanisha, and Nikki, three survivors whose strikingly similar stories are separated by over 30 years. None of them were believed, and each of them was criminalized for fighting back.”
After the screening at 8pm, a Q+A will take place with the film’s directors Daniel A. Nelson and Natalie Pattillo, and Nikki’s sister, advocate and writer Michelle Horton and previously incarcerated DV survivor and advocate Kim Dadou Brown (who are both in the film).
This article also contains coverage of another abortion-rights protest that took place in October 2021 in Memorial Park as a local extension to the Women’s March on October 2, 2021 in response to Texas’ ban on abortion after 6 weeks, which kicked off with a speech from this blogger, followed by a march down Fishkill Avenue. Scroll down and you’ll see and read it.
And finally, there is a never-before-published video protest march in the summer of 2021 against a known letter writer and longtime Beaconite and past Dutchess County legislator, Richard (Dick) Murphy, who targets homes with rainbow flags on them with hand-written or typed anti-LGBTQ messages, as well as anti-abortion letters, which sometimes contain graphic images. Children often live at the homes to which he mails or drops off these letters to.
October 2021 Speech On The Right To Abortion
On October 2, 2021, I said words out loud for the first time about abortion. A reader of A Little Beacon Blog, Karen Finnegan, asked me to speak at a rally she had organized the night before in response to the national Women’s March for Abortion Justice, and I said yes. I spent the next day writing and writing notes. Pages of sentences. Too long. In last ditch efforts to edit, a friend pulled me back from several emotional ledges. I thank them for that.
Below is the 2 minute speech that I condensed 20 minutes before the delivering it while sitting and hiding behind a pillar of the Memorial Park Pavilion near the porta-potty. After delivering the speech, I switched back into reporter mode to cover the protest march in video for A Little Beacon Blog. That video is below.
I want to thank Karen aka the Beacon Hood Chicken aka Chickens With Attitude for organizing this opportunity for us in the Beacon and Hudson Valley regions to participate nation-wide in defending the right to our bodies and to access safe and effective abortions.
I would like to give space an acknowledgement to those marching, rolling, watching and listening who made the choice to have an abortion, and to honor you during these times.
To give you context, I am a mother of three children who I had through my own pregnancies.
Abortion is one of the biggest boundaries a person can put up for themselves to protect their lives.
We sacrifice pieces of our bodies with each pregnancy.
We sacrifice pieces of our lives with each child born.
Yes, there are rewards from having children, but it is not all cotton candy and glitter.
Every single egg in our bodies does not need to be fertilized.
And if it is unintentionally, the world does not get to come down on us to force us to garden.
To explain the WHY of why the choice is ours of when we get to fulfill responsibility for a child born is demoralizing.
A condom breaks.
Someone takes a condom off.
Ovulation cycles get forgotten about. "Oh - I missed the signs this month."
Missing the ovulation signs this month does not mean that our lives need to change. It means now is not the time if that is what we know to be true for our lives now.
A woman skips a pill. Her life can change.
A man takes a pill, he can change the life of a woman forever while he walks away.
Yes there are laws to bring responsibility.
Financial Foundation is not there. Don't be fooled.
The Child Tax Credit is already being discussed being taken away for higher income earners.
The Child Tax Credit advance is not free money. It is an advance. That freelance workers are going to need to be aware of and possibly pay back, because it is used to offset how much we owe at tax time. Usually the Child Tax Credit is offset against a freelance or gig worker's 1099 work that did not have taxes taken out.
Right now, the Child Tax Credit is an illusion of help.
There is no one helping us financially to have children.
People who have abortions need to know we support them. Their mental health is key, and their physical health during and after a procedure is paramount.
Thank goodness our cycles give us some birth control, in that we can't get pregnant every day of the week. There are the number of hours a month that we can get pregnant.
Thank goodness these people trying to make this into something that can be taken from us - at least they can't take our eggs for the half life that each offers. But we control them in the garden.
Keep educating ourselves and our children with sex education, so that we at least know how everything works, what is inside of our bodies, and what is best for our bodies and our lives.
Thank you for showing up today, and thank you for listening.
After the rally, three women arrived from different parts of the Hudson Valley. They were protestors during the original battle for Roe v Wade, and were summoning their strength from that time to fight this time. Take a listen to what they had to say.
Last spring of 2021, the anti-LGBTQ and anti-abortion letter writer, Richard (Dick) Murphy, pinned a 3-foot doll into the yard of Donna Minkowitz. She threw the doll away after the Beacon Police said they had no use for it when she reported Dick to them as a complaint. His letter-writing campaign had gone too far. Enough neighbors were upset about it, that Donna organized a silent protest march through their neighborhood, ending up at his house. He did come out onto the front porch to get his mail, and seemed tickled that the protest was occurring, as he is a forever fan of free speech.
This article is 1st in a 3-part series that covers in the incident at Key Food Beacon on March 2, 2020, that was written about and published in the Highlands Current on March 25, 2022, after a settlement was reached on March 15, 2022 between a customer who was injured in what Key Food Beacon maintains was self-defense. This article takes a Deep Dive into that incident by relying on hundreds of pages of court documents, 3 police reports, multiple interviews, texts, and questions asked of people in authority who did not respond.
This article includes lots of dialogue in Q&A form so that you can get a feel for how people were feeling and how they described the situation. Not how a reporter could describe it. This article also includes a lot of explanation about why it was written. But sure to read. till. the. end.
Mo Dabashi (left) and Emad Dabashi (right) pictured in 2022, after the ordeal. Emad actually works somewhere else now, but you may notice his other brother working the deli. Not twins, but they look like twins. Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin
Please note: after the newspaper article published, and before this blog article did, some fellow business owners felt protective of Key Food Beacon, and wondered if a second article was in their best interest. Feeling in solidarity with Key Food, knowing that dealing with rude people in the public is unpredictable. They asked if Key Food would want this spotlight, again. The owners have told me yes.
After the newspaper article, Key Food Beacon began receiving threats from some Beacon community members by phone, email and in person to their family members. Key Food did not ask for this blog article. But has voiced approval in telling more of this story than what is shown in a picture and 20 second video.
This is that story.
Resources Used For This Article:
3 Police Reports (incident happened on 3/02/2020): According to Mo Dabashi (manager), JB Said (co-owner) the police were “divided” in how the police responded to the first verbal altercation of the customer. A second verbal altercation happened hours later, which resulted in the customer’s injury.
Beacon Police Report 3/3/2020 Report Numbers: BL - 001734-20 CR-00232-20 Notable about this report: 1. Police Not Stopping Alvin: This Police Report states: "HQ advised units that the male inside the store was removed from the store earlier in the day and told not to return by the store owners. This agency was contacted about the previous incident and the male fled from the area prior to officers arrival." However, as seen in the parking lot video, and testified by the customer himself, the customer did not flee, and walked past the first officer who arrived. According to Emad’s testimony, when Emad asked the officer to tell the customer not to return, the police officer told Emad that there was nothing he could do, and that Emad would need to go to the station to file a report. Additionally, video and the customer’s testimony tell that he was not removed from the store, but had walked out after buying groceries. The customer stated in his lawsuit testimony that he and his mother “kept walking as if nothing happened” (Alvin had been verbally abusive in the store, causing the employee to ban him from returning). 2. Alvin’s Notable Intoxication: That the officers interviewing Alvin after he was put on the floor by Emad could not get much information from Alvin because he appeared to be “under the influence of alcohol,” which Alvin later identified which prescription medications he had taken with beer later in his testimony during his lawsuit.
3. Damaged Property: In this report, “officers did observe multiple grocery items damaged and on the floor of Keyfoods aisle.” This is notable because in co-owner JB Said’s Police Report that pressed charges against Alvin Medina two days later was allegedly tossed out by Detective Sirrine because after seeing the 20 second video of the physical altercation, Detective Sirrine allegedly decided that since he did not see damaged property in the confined space of the video, and that JB was not there that day but was filing on behalf of his employees, Detective Sirrine told JB that his Police Report was “incredible” and could not be used, as described by JB in his testimony during Alvin’s lawsuit (see below). According to Alvin’s testimony, he wanted to press charges two days after his incident, but the police advised him that they would have to arrest him if he came to the station. Later, according to Alvin, they called him to pick him up to take his report. It is unknown if they did this after discounting JB’s filing of charges, and telling JB his Police Report was deemed “incredible.”
Key Food Franchise Co-Owner JB Said’s Police Report Against Alvin Medina 3/4/2020 Report Numbers: BL - 001734-20 CR-00238-20 In this report, JB files to press charges against Alvin. In it, he stated that Alvin damaged store property and called his employees “terrorists.” This report was later allegedly tossed out by Detective Sirrine.
Alvin’s Police Report pressing charges against Emad 3/4/2020 Report Numbers: CR-00232-20 Blotter/CC No: BL-001734-20 Arrest Number: AR - 00082-20 In this report, Alvin had returned home from the hospital and had medical records to support a serious injury to his face. In this report, Alvin never admits to cursing or flipping the bird to Emad in response to not getting his combined deli salads, and accuses Emad of calling him a “faggot,” which Emad later denied in his testimony. In Alvin’s testimony, he admitted to saying “f-you” in response to not getting his deli salads in his testimony, and giving a hand gesture. Alvin allegedly said other threats such as “punch you in the face” but he did not mention those in this report.
4 Testimonies From Alvin’s Lawsuit: Emad Debashi, Alvin Medina, Mo Debashi, and JB Said.
Court Documents that the Highlands Current sent over.
Interviews with Mo Dabashi, JB Said and Junior Dabashi.
When the front page of a local newspaper that brands itself as “Beacon’s Hometown Newspaper” splashed a photo of a local Key Food Beacon employee, Emad Dabashi, in the final and most graphic seconds of a bad customer situation, that photo could have sealed his fate in ink as people wrote their own stories of what happened in their minds and out loud when gossiping with each other days and weeks after it was published.
As a frequent shopper of Key Food Beacon, I was taken aback by the photo, in the sense that seeing the 3 employees shown in this situation was highly unusual and out of character for them. At six o’clock on Friday morning, I read the article on my phone. I subscribe to the free newspaper as a monthly $10 donor, in order to support local media. I value their reporting. Which gets me the digital edition early.
From the article, I learned that this altercation happened two years ago in March 2020, and this month, on March 15, 2022, Alvin Medina, who was injured by Emad who maintains it was in self defense to Alvin’s alleged repeated threats and angry swinging of milk, filed a lawsuit days after his injury and was paid $95,000 by the insurance company of the local family business who owns the franchise of the Key Food Beacon.
After the settlement was signed on March 15, 2022, the customer started posting the video of his injury to his social media, making more verbal assaults. According to several people who saw his postings, he would publish the video, take it down, then publish it again with more angry words, one of which included a racial Arabic insult (see screenshot below). Seeing this bubbling in social media, the Highlands Current decided to run an article about it, according to Junior Dabashi of Key Food, who said that the reporter approached him with questions.
After reading the article, I was taken aback for a second time that the newspaper selected the photo that they did to represent the article. Not only that, but on the member-only digital edition of the newspaper that gets delivered via email on Thursdays at midnight, before the paper drops into newsboxes on Friday morning, the editor had issued a warning that the photo was graphic. The editor also noted that a second photo of a building demolition was disturbing. See more details about that here.
The Highlands Current editor hardly ever issues warnings like that. It was odd. As if he were excited to be publishing such a graphically disturbing photo to the expense of the people involved, with a researched yet abbreviated article to describe it.
A Little Beacon Blog’s Research Of The Key Food Story
This article here at A Little Beacon Blog aims to give space to the voices of both Emad and Alvin, to be heard to express how they were feeling in their own words in the 2 different times Alvin came into the store - the first time, and then the second time where he defied the ban he earned for allegedly cursing at Emad so loudly and consistently, and was not stopped by police the first time as Emad had requested. Their testimonies during Alvin’s lawsuit show what happened in a way that cannot be told from the final 20 seconds of a silent surveillance video clip.
Quotes from their testimonies, as well as from manager Mo Dabashi who was there that day and in the newspaper photo, and co-owner JB Said who was not there that day, have been used to tell more of this story that is being discussed in the Beacon community. More details have been added, including the restraining order Key Food filed and was granted against Alvin, as well as how the police were allegedly “divided” about how they responded during the first time Key Food called the police about Alvin, asking for the help of the police for him to not return to the store.
A spotlight is placed on Alvin’s testimony during his lawsuit that the police possibly protected Alvin from being arrested after JB pressed charges against Alvin on behalf of Key Food, as reads in Alvin’s testimony below. ALBB reached out to the detectives mentioned, but neither they nor the City Administrator responded.
Several details are cross referenced across depositions, police reports, and interviews. This article has been broken up into chapters so that you can take your time with it.
During Interviews With Key Food
Hours after the newspaper article published, I went to Key Food to speak with Mo and JB directly. We stepped outside to the parking lot so that I could listen to the first bits of what happened two years ago, and what was happening right now. Because of the newspaper article and the customer circulating the 20 second video of the most heated moments and his allegations of homophobia, some members of the Beacon community began calling and emailing the store, threatening and speaking their angry minds.
As I sat on the railing of the shopping carts, a customer pulled in, a white older man, and sneered at JB and Mo as he walked in to store. Or was he squinting at the sun? But the sun was behind him. Hours later, as I returned to the store to shop for my weekend snack-supply, an older white woman praised my fashion while I was in the back of the store near the chips. Speaking in smiles, we happily discussed where she too could buy it. Later, we ended up in the checkout line together. JB and his brother-in-law Max were behind us, speaking in Arabic. The large and extended family who owns this Key Food Beacon franchise is from Yemen. That’s in the Middle East.
From the checkout line, my new friend turned around to look at JB and Max as they conversed in Arabic. She made a sneering face as she leaned in toward me to tell me something quietly. Before hearing what she had to say, I promptly turned around to step out of line to interrupt JB and Max to ask them in English where to find the chocolate covered cookie sticks (Arabic is not currently in my Babble app, as it has so many dialects, but I am working on my Spanish and do speak in Spanish to the Car Wash Guy across the street when asking for the Super Wash).
Max and JB jumped on my request right away to find the chocolate covered cookie sticks. Max looked on the bakery table by the bread, and JB looked in the snacks by the toilet paper. By the time I got back to the checkout line, the woman was leaving, and we happily waved goodbye to each other with smiles
2 Different Altercation Events This Article Covers
There are 2 different encounters with the customer and the Beacon Police. Then, there are events involved with each party filing Police Reports against each other, one of which seemed to have gotten tossed out. The Highlands Current reported that Key Food did not file charges against the customer. But what the newspaper did not report was that the Key Food Beacon franchise co-owner JB tried to press charges against Alvin on behalf of Emad, but his filing seems to have been tossed out. Additionally, days after the incident, JB filed and was awarded a restraining order against the customer on behalf of the store. The customer must now walk on the opposite side of the sidewalk.
The customer and plaintiff, Alvin Medina, who cursed at and threatened an employee, Emad Dabashi, at Key Food, causing him to be scared and call the police to have the customer banned from the store.
Threats Made To Key Food
The newspaper article and the social media posts of the customer triggered a swell of discourse and community chatter about Key Food Beacon. The public became the jury in a case they knew very little about, deliberating amongst themselves. While many members of the community came to Key Food’s defense in social media comments and out on the street, some people called and emailed the local owners of Key Food with threats. Those threats extended to personal comments made to the children, spouses and siblings of the Key Food Beacon family. Most women in the Dabashi and Said families wear the hijab (head scarf), and are easily identifiable. Read what JB expressed about that here.
PREFACE: The Alleged Anti-Arab Racial Insults
While the alleged racial insults are not the reason for feelings of fear that Alvin created in Emad and Mo (they said they responded more when they said Alvin would punch them in the face), everybody knows that some people in the Beacon community have expressed anti-Arab Muslim sentiments aimed at the Yemeni families who own the Beacon franchise of Key Food. One could argue that anti-Arab insults have become normalized in this country and around the world, and go unchecked.
In the police Incident No. BL-001734-20, Case No. CR-00238-20, filed by JB with Detective James Sirrine of the Beacon Police, JB described that when the customer “was turned away from the deli he became verbally abusive towards his staff, and began calling them profanities and terrorists.”
In the depositions of the court documents, both Emad and Mo stated that the customer did not call them “terrorists” when asked directly by Alvin’s attorney.
However, when I interviewed Mo for this article, Mo without question told me that Alvin used racial insults. The reason why both Emad and Mo answered the way that they did in the lawsuit depositions is explored later in this article.
Alvin Medina’s racial insult to the employees of Key Food posted on March 28, 2022, calling them “dirty,” which is a racial insult towards Arabs, who observe hygiene into their prayers, which they practice 5 times a day and wash before each prayer.
Upon the signing of the Stipulation of Discontinuance With Prejudice on March 15, 2022, which ended the lawsuit two years after the incident, and after agreeing to a payment of $95,000, the customer began expressing his discontent in social media, starting a fresh batch of verbal abuse, and used an anti-Arab racial insult on March 28, 2022, calling the employees of Key Food “dirty.” He deleted it in April after the check was mailed to his attorney. As of the taking of this screenshot, the customer’s Facebook was public, and posts could be viewed.
A screenshot of his insult was preserved by A Little Beacon Blog and published here. Several other members of the Beacon community have also preserved screenshots of the customer’s recent posts on Facebook and Instagram after the lawsuit ended.
Being called “dirty” as an Arab Muslim is one of the lowest Arab insults. Arab Muslims wash themselves before each prayer. Hygiene is extremely important to them, and is incorporated in guidance for their Friday prayers, the holiest day of the week for Muslims (like Sunday to Christians, or Saturday to Jews). Many Muslims pray 5 times per day. Key Food uses a room in the back of the store as a prayer room, as described in Mo and Emad’s depositions in the court documents.
CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR OVERVIEW: A History Of Prior Insults Allegedly Made By Alvin
Key Food has a loyal following of customers and happy shopping experience. As with anywhere, a handful of customers feel entitled to take out their frustrations on employees. Most businesses on Main Street can attest to this as they deal with the public.
During a time prior to this incident, JB recalled a different time the Alvin was upset in the checkout line, and used the profanity: “F***ing A-rabs,” (pronounced with a sharp A). Said JB to A Little Beacon Blog in an interview: “He scared our cashier so badly. We sent her home that day to recover.”
According to lawsuit testimonies from Mo, Emad and JB, the police have had to be called over the years for unruly customers. As discovered in those testimonies, the the approach with an aggressive customer is to be patient, try to understand the customer’s level of understanding, and to call for help of other managers to help diffuse a situation.
While Alvin’s profanity didn’t offend them, Mo and Emad said in the depositions that it scared them. Calling the police is part of their policy when a situation gets too scary, said Mo and Emad in their testimonies to Alvin’s attorney. Mo told ALBB during an interview: “We need the help of the police. We rely on them.”
What follows is a story of an entitled customer, a police response, newspaper coverage with deaf ears, and the City of Beacon’s response that was dimly lit with gaslight.
A Tale Of 2 Salads: A Story Of Entitlement
CHAPTER 1: The Deli Counter
Frequent shoppers of Key Food know that Emad Debashi is a tall, quiet person who usually wears glasses, as his other brothers do. One of his brothers looks very much like him, but they aren’t twins. Emad often bends down to give people his attention, and speaks from a low place, almost matching the speed of a slow rolling river. He has worked at Beacon’s Key Food for 10 years, and is a member of the family who owns the local franchise, Key Food Beacon.
On March 2, 2022, a customer named Alvin Medina came in with his mother to grocery shop. According to the customer, he went to check out with his mother, but had a craving for shrimp salad, so went to the deli counter. In the deposition, Alvin answered the Key Food’s attorney’s question about what salad he was craving: “Basically usually I would get, like, the shrimp salad mixed with some of the other salad that was there, I think it was like crab or something.”
Alvin’s attorney questioned Emad about the salad, who recalled: “He ordered two different salads to be filled up into one container, two different prices. I told him that we don't put two different salads with different prices. If it was the same price I would do it with no problem, but since there are two different prices I told him I can't do it.”
Alvin felt a way: “I asked if I could get the salad, and when I asked it, he just gave me like a rude face, he just looked upset. I don't know if it was his day or what was going on. But he was like, we don't do that here. And he just turned his face like he was pissed off or something he didn't like, yeah.”
Key Food’s deli opened in August 2019, along with a newly paved and painted parking lot.
According to Emad in his testimony: “He [Alvin] insisted. He said that he's gotten it there multiple times and that he's been there at the store for 4 years and shopping there for 4 years.”
Alvin later said in the deposition that he got the salad maybe two times. The deli opened in August 2019, and this salad incident happened in March 2020. A Little Beacon Blog wrote about the deli opening because the investment was such a large undertaking with construction limiting the flow of shopping for a while.
Emad told Alvin’s attorney: “I always advise if there's two different prices not to put it in the same container and I didn't want to overcharge him and I didn't want to under charge the store so I advised to give him two different containers and I'll put it in two different containers, two different prices. He still refused it and wanted it in the same container.”
Next, Alvin told the attorney that Alvin said: “I said okay fuck you. And I went back in line and waited with my mother.”
Emad recalled: “After I refused he flicked his middle finger towards me, and then kept walking, and then started cursing using fowl language so I told him since you're using fowl language I need you to step out of the store. I don't want you coming into the store anymore, and that was the first interaction.”
Alvin admitted to not knowing the employees at the Key Food Beacon store, despite his stated long shopping history. “I never paid much attention to the employees there, besides the one with the long hair.”
CHAPTER 2: The Checkout Line
Emad described how Emad came out from the deli counter to the checkout line to tell Alvin to leave.
Alvin described to Key Food’s attorney: “Waiting then basically he had said something, I had said something. Because he was waiting behind me. I was like, there's no reason for you to wait behind me. I don't know why you're waiting behind me, this that and the third. And then that was when me and him started going and exchanging words at the time.” According to Emad, he was telling Alvin to not come back to the store, based on the cursing.
Emad recalled the conversation to Alvin’s attorney, and recited the words he could remember: “The first thing [Alvin said] is, like, fuck you, and then I was, like, all right. I won't help you. And then he went to the register. He's, like, fuck you, you don't know who you're talking to, you don't know who the fuck you're talking with, I'll fucking punch you in the face right now and just went on. Later on his mom got involved and was, like, you don't know the family you're fucking with, you don't know us.”
According to Emad’s testimony, he walked out of the deli toward the cash registers at the front of the store where the door to exit is, to tell Alvin to leave. While Alvin was cursing, Alvin’s voice got louder, “to the top of his [Alvin’s] lungs,” said Emad, while Emad was telling Alvin to leave the store. Alvin proceeded to checkout with his mother at the cash register.
In Alvin’s testimony, he accused Emad of calling him a “faggot.” Alvin’s attorney asked Emad about it:
Alvin's Attorney: “Did you call Mr. Medina a fag or a faggot?”
Emad: “No.”
Alvin''s Attorney: “Is there anything about the way he was conducting himself or speaking that led you to believe that might be gay?”
Emad: “No. I didn't even know that.”
Emad wanted to call the police. He stated in the testimony: “When he was threatening me saying that he was going to punch me that's why I had to call the cops in order to have the cops deal with it... I was feeling threatened in the case of they're saying you don't know who our family is, that he's going to punch me or whatever so that's why I called the cops to get the cops involved and to have him be banned from the store.”
During his testimony, Mo Dabashi told the attorney why sometimes they have needed to call the police for an unruly customer in the past: “There are, you know, events like that, you know, where you would have to, you call the police because this guy is crazy or he's on drugs and not listening or --- you know, and you don't know what to do with them so you would have to call police.”
In a video of the cash register, Alvin can be seen standing at the register. He claps his hands, and turns to say words to Emad. “I'm not 100% sure of what he to the T,” Emad testified, “but it was cursing at the time I asked him to leave the store and he's not to come into the store.”
In Emad’s testimony, Alvin’s attorney confirmed that Alvin was gesturing and speaking in the surveillance video. Emad walked away toward the front office with the wood paneling at the front of the store, and told their accountant who was in the office, Barbara Malouf, to call the police, which she did.
According to Emad’s testimony, Alvin was muttering to himself saying “Oh, I'll punch this dude. I been here for four years.” And then Alvin’s mother allegedly got involved. As Alvin and his mother were leaving the store, Emad recalled the interaction: “He's saying things like you don't know who you're fucking with, you don't know our family, and she said the same type thing, don't fuck with us. She forgets her milk and then she comes back for it. As they were walking out the police car arrived.”
CHAPTER 3: The Beacon Police Let The Customer Walk By In Parking Lot
Alvin remembered leaving after the groceries were bagged up, testifying: “After that, we left the store. We did see cop cars coming up as soon as we were leaving, but we just kept walking like nothing happened. She had her shopping cart. I was there with her and we walked and went home.” According to Alvin as clarified by Key Food’s attorney, the police did not follow him, or ask him to stay so that they could speak to him, or contact him later.
The Key Food surveillance cameras have video of two police cars pulling up as Alvin and his mother walked by them. This is established verbally in the depositions by Alvin’s attorney. A Little Beacon Blog has also verified these videos by watching them during an interview with Mo.
In an initial Police Report about both incidents (the second incident described later on), the officer writing the report, Trevor Wood (008) stated: "HQ advised units that the male inside the store was removed from the store earlier in the day and told not to return by the store owners. This agency was contacted about the previous incident and the male fled from the area prior to officers arrival." The report numbers for this report are BL-001734-20 CR-00232-20.
But according to video and his own testimony, he did not flee before officers arrived.
ALBB Editor’s Note: When this blogger wrote in her Letter to the Editor of the Highlands Current, objecting to the short, mike-drop style of their article describing this highly consequential situation which ignited a bush fire in the Beacon community toward Key Food, the editor, Chip Rowe, disputed what this blogger said about the police letting the customer “walk right by.” Chip said: “According to the police report, Medina had left by the time Beacon officers arrived; they didn’t “let him walk right by.”
As far as this blogger knows, there is no police report of this first arrival of the Beacon police, but there is a second one: BL-001734-20 CR-00232-20 which is perhaps Chip is referring to. ALBB asked Chip and reporter Jeff Simms which Police Report(s) they reported from, but they did not respond. Surveillance camera footage and Alvin and Emad’s testimony say that Alvin walked by the first police car to arrive. According to Emad, that officer told Emad there was nothing he could do, and that Emad would need to go to the police station to file a report.
In Alvin’s Police Report CR-00232-20 (also has a notation of CR-442-20 hand-written at the top) dated March 4th, 2020, he stated: “I then proceeded to leave the business with my mother and observe the Beacon Police arrive, but I was never stopped or approached by them.”
At Alvin’s attorney’s request, Emad describes the video of the police cars arriving: “This is when they were walking out. He left. His mom was still in the store and as she's walking out you'll see the police officer's car.” Emad comes out of the store, says hello to a taxi driver who is regularly there to pick up customers. Alvin’s attorney walks Emad through the video of the police:
Alvin’s Attorney: “Can you see if that's my client and pretty much right in front of the his mother police car? Are you able to tell that's them?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Alvin’s Attorney: “I'm going to zoom the video. This car just seems to roll by though and then you follow?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Alvin’s Attorney: “My client and his mother are walking away still?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Alvin’s Attorney: “I see it looks like a shadow, your shadow underneath that delivery truck and you're talking to the cop, I presume, at that point?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Captured in the deposition, Emad told the police officer what he needed: “I was telling him about the interaction with the customer, that he was cursing and threatening. I told him that I just wanted to ban him from the store so that he doesn't come back to the store. He said I can't do nothing about it. I would have to go to the police station and file a report.”
According to all involved, there was no followup by police after that. No one spoke to the customer to let him know that his behavior lost him privileges to return to the store. So far, no police report from this first call of the police has materialized in FOIL requests by A Little Beacon Blog, and cannot be found in court documents. A FOIL request did produce a Police Report of both incidents combined (BL-001734-20 CR-00232-20).
The customer’s attorney asked Emad about previous experiences with working with police to ban someone from the store. Emad answered: “The cops will come and take the person's information and they do the report but, I haven't asked a police officer or had to follow up with it regarding a ban.” Emad continued that usually Mo or JB follow up by talking with police officers.
The customer’s attorney followed up with more questions about the process of the police’s involvement with banning an unruly customer:
Alvin’s Attorney: “When he called [in the past] the police arrive on premises and they take some sort of report?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Alvin'’s Attorney: “And the information that's in the report you believe is what the name of whomever the person being banned might be?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Alvin’s Attorney: “Of a description of them?”
Emad: “Yes.”
Alvin’s Attorney: “Anything else?”
Emad: “That's it.”
The attorney asked if there was a list or bulletin board, and Emad answered that there was not. “They already know. You specifically tell the person you're not allowed to come into the store and usually that's where it ends unless they come again and that's when you contact the police station. It depends on how the situation was. If they called the police and filed a report right there and then with the officer and they're banned from the store and they come again you call the cops and they'll come and deal with it.”
The reason this is important is because the customer came back to the store 2 hours later after taking prescription medication and having at least one beer. It is during the second shopping event that the physical incident happened.
In terms of how employees know who is banned, Emad answered that the managers, Mo and JB know the circumstances behind each customer, and inform each other if there is a situation, which is rare. In this situation, when the attorney asked if Emad told Mo or JB about the customer he banned, Emad replied: “I don't think I did because I went back to work. I had a busy schedule that day so I went right back to work and forgot all about it, forgot about the situation.”
A Little Beacon Blog called and emailed Detective Sirrine for comment about how the police handle unruly customers at this store and other stores, but he did not respond.
Alvin’s attorney pursued Emad to ask: “Were you angry about what happened with yourself and Mr. Medina?”
Emad answered: “Not necessarily because I could say we do have customers but usually when you tell them you're -- The only thing is just going to the cop, calling the police officers thinking that they'll do something that's just the thing that -- you know -- it lets you down thinking that the cops will help you out or something like that. But other than that it really didn't bother me since he already left the store.”
CHAPTER 4: The Dairy Isle
A couple of hours after the customer got back home, he said in his deposition that he realized he needed milk. His mother bought milk, as was discovered in the sequence of events earlier, but he needed his own milk. He told the attorney: “I noticed I didn't have milk and I probably wanted to get something else for the house. I went to the same supermarket because I figured it's already been a while later he probably wasn't there. And on top of that, it was a little dispute, it wasn't nothing crazy.”
The customer walked into the store. Emad was standing at the front of the store, at the end of the isles, in front of the checkout lines. Frequent shoppers of Key Food know that sometimes Emad or other store managers stand in that position to help shoppers flow through the checkout lines seamlessly. Usually this front section has people standing in line, or delivery carts are being rolled through to stock inventory. Upon entering the store, Alvin turned left through this area and walked past Emad, then turned up an isle to head to the dairy section, where the milk is in the back left corner of the store.
As a frequent shopper of Key Food, the easiest and most direct way of getting to the milk is by walking into the store and staying straight. Walking up through the produce section, turning left at the meat section, and then turning left for the last isle - the dairy isle. But that is not the direction the customer went.
Emad was standing in the front of the store by the registers when he saw Alvin enter. Alvin walked by Emad, according to both of their depositions. According to Emad, Alvin’s hand was in his left pocket, and remained there the entire time he was in the store, which made Emad nervous, thinking he had a weapon.
The customer's attorney asked Emad how that made him feel. Emad said: "I was confused because I had told him not to come back to the store but he was coming back. I told him as he was walking 'you're not allowed to come into the store' and he just proceeded to walk."
The attorney asked Emad how far away he was from Alvin. Emad answered: “I'm not sure if as he was coming I told him or as he passed me I told him but I did I did tell him you're not allowed to come into the store and he just proceeded to keep walking so I followed him. I let him know -- you know -- you're not allowed to come into the store and as we were walking towards the dairy I told Barbara to call the cops again.”
When Alvin described it to Key Food’s attorney, Alvin said: “At that time we weren't even flying with F bombs or nothing like that. He just came out and was like I don't want you here. I was like, I just came here for a half a gallon of milk.”
INFLUENCE OF DRUGS OR ALCOHOL
When asked by the attorney if he thought Alvin was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, Emad responded: “He did seem off. I don't know what he was on but he was on something...Just his face, his expression, everything. He just seemed off." The attorney asked Emad if he had ever seen Alvin before this day. Emad answered: "I seen him at the first interaction and in the first interaction he was loud and talkative. The second time the guy was calm. He didn't say much. His eyes were close to shut. Even his body language was just, it wasn't okay. He seemed to be on something.”
Alvin’s attorney asked Emad if he was trained in identifying people who were under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Emad answered that he was not trained, but had seen it many times. According to the Police Report: "Officers attempted to interview ___ on what occurred but had a difficult time understanding ___ due to his speech and appearing to be under the influence of alcohol."
In his deposition, Alvin told the attorney that he had consumed at least 1 beer (Heineken) before returning to the store, and had “probably” taken his prescription medication for depression (Wellbutrin), and prescription medication for blood pressure, (Amlodipine). He could not recall if he had also had a beer before the first time he grocery shopped with his mother hours prior.
When asked by Emad’s attorney if he had taken any other prescription medications that afternoon, Alvin responded: "Well, definitely I didn't take Ambient because I would have been asleep, not at the store and my Xanax."
INTO THE DAIRY ISLE
Further into questioning, the customer’s attorney asked Emad if he had to stop following the customer at any point. Emad answered that the did, in order to tell Barbara to call the police. Barbara was in the front office where she usually is. Mo was also in the office and heard what was going on. According to the deposition, Mo asked Emad what was up, and Emad told him that the customer was back in the store.
Emad picked back up to find the customer in the dairy isle, knowing the police were on their way, but kept a distance. He feared there was a weapon in Alvin’s pocket, stating: “His hand was in his pocket so I didn't know if he had anything in his pocket. So the whole time that hand was always in his pocket, his left hand was in his pocket.”
Emad told the attorney that he continued following the customer to make sure he did not damage anything, and to continue telling him he was not allowed in the store. According to a police report CR-00238-20 filed by JB the next day, after JB was told by Emad and Mo about what happened, the customer allegedly knocked down a display on his way to or through the dairy section.
However, the detective allegedly disregarded that police report days later, saying he couldn’t see the damage in the video, as you’ll read further on in this article. However, in the initial Police Report BL-001734-20 CR-00232-20 by the officer: "Officers did observe multiple grocery items damaged and on the floor of Keyfoods aisle.
In Emad’s deposition, Alvin’s attorney asked him if Alvin had knocked down any displays or picked up any other items. Emad answered that Alvin had not. However, in the video, Emad was holding bags of snacks that Mo says Emad did pick up from Alvin, or that Alvin had dropped to the ground. Emad can be seen dropping the snacks before he approaches Alvin in the final seconds of the video.
As Emad and Alvin were headed down the dairy isle, out of view of the video footage, Mo walked into the dairy isle to try to talk to the customer.
Another employee was also in the deli isle: Willy Cole. Frequent shoppers of Key Food know that Willy often worked in the deli isle, stocking the shelves, arranging items, and checking for expiration dates. At any given moment on any given day Willy could often be found in the deli isle.
However, the customer saw that differently. Alvin told his attorney in his deposition: “So I proceeded down the milk aisle to go grab my milk. And I grabbed the milk. I was going to pay for it, all you know, I have him behind me, the one with the long hair [aka Mo] on the right-hand side of me trying to grab the milk out of my hand and the other guy that was hiding behind the potato chips [aka Willy].”
FEELINGS OF THREATS MADE BY THE CUSTOMER
In his deposition, Mo recalled those early seconds in the dairy isle, where he walked from the front office to the dairy isle: “Emad came and told me that he [Alvin] was back and we went about and we were going to call the police. So we told Barbara to call the police and then I wanted to talk to him [Alvin] to try to see if --- you know, if he would talk to me instead of my brother and if he would just leave with --- in peace. And he would not listen to me, he was just trying to walk through me, and, you know, [saying things] like you can't talk to me, you can't tell me what to do, I'll do whatever I want to do.”
Emad recalled the seconds as well in his deposition. All depositions were taken individually, with no one hearing each other. Emad said: "He [Alvin] just kept on pushing his way through." The attorney asked Emad to clarify the pushing: "Not pushing him [Mo] to the side but kept on going forward even though Mo was standing in front of him."
According to his deposition, Mo tried appealing to Alvin again: “I told him that, like, we don't want your service, can you just --- can we talk. He would not --- he would not want to talk to me. I said, listen, you know, you had an argument with my brother, we do not want your service here. You know, you said what you said, and we don't appreciate it. We are calling the police right now, and we need you to get out. And he would not, he was just walking through me.”
The customer’s attorney asked Mo about Willy, who was in the dairy isle. Mo responded: “Willy was working, he was nothing to do with it. He's clearly working right there.”
Once everyone got into view of the security camera, the final action of this whole day was captured in 20 seconds. Emad testified that he did not hear Alvin talking, but Mo testified that he did. The Highlands Current in his response to this blogger’s Letter to the Editor called that testimony “conflicting.” The newspaper editor said to this blogger: “The Dabashi brothers offered conflicting statements in their depositions as to whether Medina said anything to them when he returned to the store."
The Highlands Current editor may have missed this statement in Emad’s testimony, on page 83 of just Emad’s testimony (page 364 of the court documents that the newspaper has): Emad recalled: “Mostly the encounter at that time talking with each other was Mo and Mr. Medina.”
Alvin can be seen talking in the video. He is saying something to them, even if Emad could not hear it, but Mo did. Alvin can be seen talking in the video.
In term of safety, Alvin’s attorney asked Emad: “Did you believe that he might have had some sort of weapon?” Emad answered: “Yes. I'm not 100% sure if he had something in his pocket, something dangerous, I wasn't sure.”
THE SLAMMING OF THE MILK
Alvin the customer was sharing the video of his take down two years after it happened, and within the same month as signing the settlement for his $95,000 payout. This photo shows Alvin winding up to slam the milk to the floor, where it exploded
When Mo was trying to appeal to Alvin to leave the store, Mo reached in to take the milk from Alvin. In his deposition, Alvin recalled: “So basically, as I'm trying to walk to the cash register just to go pay for my milk -- that's all I wanted to do was pay for my milk -- is when the one with the long hair [aka Mo] grabs my hand to get the milk out of my hand. That's when I tossed the milk to the side, didn't toss it at anyone, just tossed it to the side.”
In the video, Alvin can be seen snapping the milk across his chest in a wind-up, raising it above his head, and then slamming it to the ground, where it exploded. Mo can be seen backing away, while Willy is taking a drink of something he opened from the dairy isle. After Alivin threw the milk to the floor with a lot of force, the milk exploded. This is when Emad grabbed Alvin from behind and put Alvin to the ground.
THE TAKEDOWN
Alvin’s attorney asked Emad what he hoped to accomplish by throwing Alvin to the floor: “Not getting attacked with anything coming out of his pocket,” Emad responded. “My brother getting hurt or anything like that.”
Said Mo of that moment: “We didn't know what he was going to do, so with my brother trying to, you know, protect me or he thought he was going to take out something or anything like that, so he took him down.”
Emad walked away from the scene, and the 20 second video ends. What is not shown, but is described in Emad’s deposition, is Emad leaving the frame to get the police. Just before police arrived, Emad went back check on Alvin. Emad recalled: “He had gotten up. He stumbled a couple of times, dropped the Rice Crispy's and then I assisted him to sit onto the dairy cooler and told him to stay there.” The police arrived 2 minutes later, Emad said. The Rice Crispy’s were a snack that Alvin picked up.
Alvin’s attorney proceeded to again try to paint a picture of 3 against 1 in this situation, with Willy as the third. For those just seeing the 20 second video, and for those seeing the single photo in the Highlands Current, the public wrote their own story of Willy’s involvement.
Alvin’s Attorney: “So in the video of the actual incident it's you, your brother, and Willy all standing around or near Mr. Medina, three against one, right?”
Emad: “Willy wasn't in the picture to begin with. Willy was way out of the picture. He wasn't standing around him. He wasn't getting involved. He wasn't doing anything.”
Alvin’s Attorney: “But he was present?”
Emad: “Present doesn't mean you're involved.”
After Alvin was on the ground, Willy seemed to say something to Alvin and walk away.
FEELINGS AFTER IT ALL
Alvin's attorney then posed a different kind of question to Emad: "Do you think that he got what he deserved for what he did to you and your brother?"
Emad answered: "Not for what he did but for what to expect. I didn't know what to expect especially during the first interaction being threatened and saying about his family, we don't know who his family is and stuff like that so I didn't know what to expect and plus his hand was in his pocket so I wasn't 100% sure so I needed to do something.”
THE GUILTY PLEA
While the Highlands Current article said that Emad “conceded” to his plea, there is more to Emad’s feelings on his plea. The attorney asked Emad if he plead voluntarily. Emad answered: “Yes. With the advice of my counsel. I mean if it was for me I wouldn't just volunteer for that. I would have just kept on going but with my assisting counsel at the time that was advised.”
The attorney pressed on, asking Emad why he didn’t want to plead guilty. Emad answered: “Because I felt like it was self-defense defending me and my brother and the video just shows me hitting him on the floor and not knowing the background of the whole situation and threatening.”
Alvin’s attorney continued with his questioning of Emad’s plea, asking him if the judge asked him “a bunch of other questions” similar to this deposition setting. Emad answered that the judge did not ask bunches of questions, and just wanted to hear the story. So Emad told him the story. The guilty plea meant that Emad gave up his right to a trial by jury, and that Emad’s attorney could have cross-examined Alvin, to ask Alvin bunches of questions, but did not because of the guilty plea.
Alvin’s attorney continued on with the implications of the guilty plea questioning:
Alvin's Attorney: "Did he ask you if you were pleading guilty to this misdemeanor assault because you were, indeed, guilty of doing that?"
Emad: "Saying that I applied excessive force and that's the reason why I was guilty."
Alvin's Attorney: "And you agreed to that?"
Emad: "I agreed with it to resolve the case."
Alvin's Attorney: “But did you mean it?”
Emad: "Yes."
Alvin's Attorney: "But you do understand that you could have went forward with the case and had that trial and given the testimony and if you chose to present the self-defense or justification defense to everything that's shown in the video, right, you know you could have done that?"
Emad: "Yes. But I just seen the video and everyone doesn't see it that way." This was the only quote the Highlands Current included in the conclusion of their article. The newspaper then used a quote from Junior Dabashi that Junior changed his mind on and asked them not to include, but according to Junior, the editor Chip Rowe said that the editor insisted on using it.
CHAPTER 5: The Police Were Allegedly Divided About Their Own Response
Mo was hesitant to go on the record about the police’s response as to how the first incident with Alvin’s alleged verbal abuse was handled, when the Beacon police drove up, Alvin walked by, Emad pointed to him, and the officer did not speak to Alvin.
Even though he was afraid of further abandonment by the police, Mo decided to go on the record with A Little Beacon Blog about this part of the story: “The police were divided over how the first officer handled it,” Mo told ALBB. “The two detectives involved in the case were Brian Lawrence and James Sirrine. We were so cooperative with Brian and showed him all clips needed and he was on our side in the case. Then he turned against us, where James was very helpful and supporting us the whole time. James Sirrine was the one that told us that the police department was divided in the case. Some were saying that the police officer who showed up the first time should have did something and some didn’t care that they thought it was a wrong reaction by my brother and doesn’t want to hear anything else.”
CHAPTER 6: Police Take Report From Key Food’s Co-Owner JB Said To Press Charges; It Is Thrown Out; Instead, Emad Is Arrested
The day after the incident, the Key Food Beacon franchise co-owner JB Said went down to the police station to file a Police Report against Alvin Medina, which is filed as CR-00238-20, Blotter No. BL-001734-20. The report states that the detective taking the information about Alvin’s actions, Detective James Sirrine, “completed an arrest warrant for Criminal Tampering 3rd and filed it with the court.”
While JB was not at the store that day, Mo and Emad told him what happened. On their behalf, JB reported: “When [customer] was turned away from the deli he became verbally abusive towards his staff, and began calling them profanities and terrorists. Said states that [customer] then intentionally knocked over several displays of merchandise at the back of the store, causing a large mess inside the store. [Customer] made threats to harm [redacted] and his staff.”
In his deposition, JB told Alvin’s attorney: “He said that --- starting from the incident at the salads he started saying fuck you, mother fuckers, you fucking ‘A-rabs,’ such and such, and he started throwing the middle finger in his face, you know, like when you --- at the clerk in the deli. And Emad told me he's going to fuck you up, you don't know who the fuck we are, fuck you, mother fucking ‘A-rabs.’
JB continued in his testimony for the lawsuit: “He just kept on cursing and cursing over and over. It wasn't the staff cursing. And then I asked --- I made sure to ask Emad did you say anything back and he said I didn't curse back at him or nothing like that, I just told him I don't want his business and that was it, end of conversation. And I don't remember to the T because I wasn't there. I'm just going off what everybody is telling me, what Emad is telling me on that stuff.”
In order to clarify JB’s recollection in his deposition, Alvin’s attorney asked JB if he had watched the video before filing the police report. “The second I understood there was a situation I first thought where they fought was next to the milk, next to the milk is all the way in the back of the store. The video that you showed me is in the front already leaving the aisle, the milk section is all the way in the back. So to my understanding I thought the situation happened there, not in the front. You know, that's why I was thinking the displays or wherever the fight happened was in the back.”
Later, the Police Report that JB filed was withdrawn, or canceled, according to JB. Alvin’s attorney asked JB: “Did there come a time where you withdrew your complaint against Mr. Medina?” The attorney rephrased the question, and asked why Mo did not file the complaint.
JB answered: “Because I thought it was the right thing to do because the situation of what happened. I mean, it's my location, my store. I'm --- most of the managers there is me, I'm always there all the time, so I wanted to do something for the guy that caused us so much problems in the store.”
Alvin’s attorney asked JB if Emad said he felt disrespected. JB recalled: “Not that I know of. He never said the word disrespected, he just said --- he explained it to me as Mr. Medina wasn't--- if he was on some --- that he was drinking or on some kind of drug of some sort. That's what I understood, that he was telling me that the guy was not right at all…On the second encounter he [Emad] was telling me that, that he [Alvin] was definitely on something and it looked like he was coming back just for trouble.”
Alvin’s attorney returned to questioning about the Police Report and JB’s filing of charges. He asked: “Was he [the officer] upset with you when he returned to speak to you?”
JB: “Who, the police officer?”
Alvin’s Attorney: “Yes.”
JB: “No. Why would he be upset with me?”
Alvin’s Attorney: “I was just asking. Did he say anything along the lines of that would be interpreted or construed as questioning your veracity; do you understand what I mean?”
JB: “No, I don't understand. Veracity meaning what exactly?"
Alvin’s Attorney: “I will make it very plain for you. Did he tell you that he thought you were lying or making stuff up the second time he talked to you?"
JB: “The second time I think he talked to me he was explaining to me that he didn't see anything on the camera and I was explaining to him that I was going off what Emad and Moufaq and everybody was explaining to me about the situation and what happened."
Alvin’s Attorney: “And did you stand firm with what you shared with him the first time?"
JB: “Yeah, I explained to him the situation, but he was saying it wasn't credible because the camera system doesn't show that, doesn't show the situation."
Alvin’s Attorney: “So he told you he didn't believe you? Did he say it like that or did he say it the way you just said it ---"
JB: "Yeah, he said it was incredible."
Alvin’ Attorney: "Yeah, well, what did you think of it, what did you think about that?"
JB: “It is what it is. The proof is the proof, you need to see what's in front of you to actually, you know, consider truth."
Alvin’s Attorney: "Did you still believe you were telling the truth?"
JB: Yeah, "I believed I was explaining the situation like it was, but to my understanding, I wasn't a hundred percent accurate with the conversation because I wasn't at the scene, scene of the crime."
Alvin’s Attorney: "Did he tell you after that conversation, that one we're talking about right now, that he was pulling the warrant or withdrawing the criminal charges you wanted to press or something like that?"
JB: "Yes, he was telling me that because he said it wasn't credible enough, there wasn't enough proof to show everything that was going on that we said was going on."
Alvin’s Attorney: "How did that make you feel?"
JB: “I mean, it was okay. It is what it is. I mean, we've got to go with what we see, wheat's in front of us. What can be proven, put it like that. Whatever can be proven is what it should be."
In the Beacon Police Report dated 3/3/2020 22:19 by Wood, Trevor (008), identified as BL - 001734-20 CR-00232-20, police officers did see damaged property. The report stated: “Officers did observe multiple grocery items damaged and on the floor of Keyfoods aisle.” It is not clear why the Detective did not consider this observation made by officers in the earlier Police Report, when he allegedly told JB that damaged displays or groceries were not in the video footage, so did not seem to matter.
CHAPTER 7: A CLOSER LISTEN Why Being Called “Terrorist” Wasn’t “Heard” In Testimony
After first learning about the incident and later lawsuit in the article in the Highlands Current, this blogger went to Key Food to get a better understanding of what happened. The newspaper article was short, the photo and video only showed the most graphic, heated moments of a much longer story. Both Mo and JB said that the customer had used racial insults that day.
Based on my interview the day after the newspaper article dropped, my first Letter to the Editor to the Highlands Current, I stated that the customer had used Islamaphobic insults. The newspaper’s editor, Chip Rowe, suggested I read the court documents before he published my letter. At my request, Chip emailed the court documents he and his reporter used.
In the court documents, when Mo and Emad were questioned separately by Alvin’s attorney about if Alvin called them “terrorists,” both Mo and Emad answered that he did not. In fact, the customer’s attorney asked Emad several times if Emad felt disrespected. Each time, Emad answered that he did not. Emad expanded: “Why would you feel disrespected if you get into an encounter like that. I didn't think I was disrespected.”
Puzzled, I returned to Key Food Beacon to ask Mo why both he and Emad denied that Alvin called them “terrorists”, if their memories remembered Alvin saying that. It was an uncomfortable question to ask Mo, but he responded quietly: “I don’t hear it anymore. In Oakland, CA, that was chaos.” Mo used to work in bodegas in Oakland before moving to Beacon, NY, as he described to Alvin’s attorney in his deposition. “I know who I am, and I know what they say to me is not true. I am an Imam at the mosque [Masjid Ar Rashid – Islamic Teaching Center] down the street. When I am outside, people yell to me: ‘Go home!’ But I am home.”
Mo continued: “If someone tells me they are going to punch me in the face, I will remember that. That tells me that I should duck; that something might happen to me right now.”
Despite stating that he had shopped at Key Food for several years, Alvin stated and implied several times that he did not know the management at Key Food, who is quite visible both behind and in front of the counter. He referred to them as “the one with the long hair” and other visual indicators. Alvin made it clear in his deposition: “I never paid much attention to the employees there, besides the one with the long hair.”
However, in his Police Report days after the incident to file charges against Emad, Alvin identified him as: “the male employee described as being Middle Eastern with a long beard about 30 years of age.” These were more precise details when Alvin was pursuing Emad’s arrested.
“At first, [Detective] Brian said ‘we are with you guys.’ But when he had us down to the station,” Mo recalled to ALBB, after the police invited Emad down to talk about more details, “he [Detective Brian Lawrence] was a different person.”
CHAPTER 8: Alvin’s Recollection Of What Police Told Him About Emad
According to JB’s testimony, his Police Report to press charges against Alvin got withdrawn. After Alvin filed a Police Report of his own after he got out of the hospital, the police called Emad to come down to the station to answer a few more questions, JB told ALBB in an interview. When they arrived at the police station, Emad was arrested.
According to Alvin’s own testimony, the police had feelings about who was wrong, and seemed to be basing it on the 20 seconds of the video clip, without questioning others. ALBB has reached out to both detectives for their response to how they handled this, but neither have responded. They forwarded ALBB’s request to Beacon’s City Administrator Chris White, who also did not respond.
Alvin stated in his testimony: "I went to the police station to actually make a report, the police officer that was there -- I went there by myself at nighttime, which was hard enough to even walk over there, but that police officer told me, if I were to make a report, they would have to arrest me then go and get the guy."
At the time, JB’s Police Report was active, and the arrest warrant for Alvin was open.
"First thing the detective said before he started the report he was like, Alvin, I don't care what you went there for, what happened at that supermarket, from what we saw in this video, it wasn't fair what they did to you. When you went to the police station two days after, did you make a report? I didn't even get to report because he said if I filed a report, he would have to arrest me then he'll have to go and arrest the guy."
Alvin's Attorney: “So then, do you know how it came about that two days after that detectives contacted you?”
Alvin: “That's when the detectives just contacted me and then they asked me if I was able to make it to the station.”
Alvin's Attorney: “Did you fill out any paperwork with the police?”
Alvin: “Yes, after the detectives came and picked me up, yes, that's when we made the report.”
Alvin's Attorney: “If you didn't make a report that night, two days after you left the hospital, how did the police know what happened?”
Alvin: “I guess from when they went to the supermarket.”
Alvin's Attorney: “And do you know that they went to the supermarket?”
Alvin: “I'm guessing so.”
ALBB emailed both detectives to verify what Alvin said in his testimony. Leutenant Figlia responded with a reminder that as of 12/23/2021, all of ALBB’s questions for the Police Department need to go through City Administrator Chris White. The City Administrator then did not respond.
Chapter 9: The Restraining Order
After the incident, JB pursued a restraining order against Alvin Medina. The restraining order was granted in Beacon City Court from Judge Timothy Pagones, who was City Court Judge back then. Alvin needs to walk on the opposite side of the street from Key Food when he passes that property.
The COVID-19 pandemic was declared days after this incident. Over the next two years, this lawsuit traveled through its process. Emad went through his court experience pleading guilty to the charge Alvin filed, and later on, all four people gave their depositions. The two parties settled in mediation, and agreed on March 15, 2022 to end the lawsuit for a payment of $95,000.
According to Alvin’s deposition, all of his medical bills had been paid already prior to the lawsuit settling by his Medicare Insurance 1199 Aetna, with the exception of the Beacon Ambulance Corps bill, which he was still submitting.
After the Stipulation of Discontinuance With Prejudice was signed on March 15, 2022, which stated that the lawsuit wa discontinued because a payment was on the way, Alvin began sharing the 20 second video in his video, accusing Key Food Beacon of being homophobic. Alvin riled up his friends, and didn’t seem to tell them in social media that he had already pursued a lawsuit and was awareded $95,000. Alvin let his friends tell him to sue Key Food Beacon.
Last month, Alvin also called Key Food Beacon “dirty,” which again, is an Arab racial insult, as described above. He continued to verbally assult and abuse Key Food Beacon. Which is what started this whole thing.
It's April! Which means a lot more rain, a lot more flowers, a lot of ice cream, and a lot of Summer Camp planning for the kids! Because believe it or not, you must plan as early as now to make sure you get in where you want to get in! Luckily, there are a lot of different options and the good news is, you don't have to choose just one.
Use A Little Beacon Blog's Summer Day Camp Guide to mix and match for your family's schedule. To help, we created a Summer Camp Guide and a handy organization print-out list for you. Print out the list to help you plan those weeks of summer for each child!
If you run a Summer Camp and want to add more details and photos, consider upgrading to a sponsored listing so that we can show those lovely photos and gush about the themed weeks you have planned! Learn more here >
Looking for sports teams to sign up for? A Little Beacon Blog has that guide too! The Kids Sports Guide. We are updating it as we speak for all of those hard-to-find registration links.
Ramadan Mubarak! As the Crescent moon was spotted in Saudi Arabia today, Ramadan begins Saturday, April 2nd. It lasts the month, and those who recognize it will be fasting from sunrise to sundown until May 1st. You can learn more about it here, including what fasting means to Muslims, as well as how to great someone to wish them a blessed Ramadan.
This illustration was first shared by Izdihar Dabashi, who is a writer for A Little Beacon Blog and is celebrating Ramadan. The illustration was shared by @arabic.pop.art and was created by @rafikillustration.
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Edited and Written By Teslie Andrade and Katie Hellmuth Martin
Beacon's First Friday SHOPPING Day: Friday, April 1 Time: "Late Night" in Beacon, maybe until 9sh pm Location: Main Street, Beacon, NY
Beacon's boutiques and shops are at it again! Thought you wanted to go to their late night shopping event, Hop And Shop, during the winter holidays? So did everyone else. The shops have banded together to stay open in the First Friday of every month. Rain or shine. Hot or cold. Shopping in Beacon on a Friday night is actually a sacred space - the weekend crowd has not arrived yet. The streets are peaceful yet relaxed as everyone is letting go from the week. Mark this in your calendar on Repeat, and take yourself on a stroll or roll down Main Street for evening shopping.
Lit Lit Day: Friday, April 1 Time: 7pm- 9pm Location: Howland Cultural Center, 477 Main St., Beacon, NY
The first Lit Lit at the Howland! Poet Kristen Holt-Browning (originally scheduled for March) will be joining as a featured reader and reading from her newly-published chapbook, The Only Animal Awake in the House. “All our advance reading slots are now full. But we will have a bunch of spots available for you to sign up to read when you arrive, if you get there early! Everyone can read their own writing of any genre for a maximum of five minutes, until we run out of time! The Howland requires proof of full vaccination the door, along with a photo ID. They will also have soft drinks, wine, beer and snacks on hand to buy. We know that it is April Fools' Day, so we intend to be as foolish as possible.”
Book Club! Matcha Thomas & Binnacle Books Day: Friday, April 1, 2022
Hosted monthly at Matcha Thomas, they created space for connecting, expanding, & healing together through the power of books. First Spring session is Friday April 1st for an introductory pre-read discussion/meetup! Mark your calendar for future opportunities Information >
Easter Egg Hunt Day: Saturday, April 2, 2022 (Rain Date: Sunday April 3, 2022) Time: 12pm - 3pm Location: Maurer Geering Park, 1 Geering Way, Fishkill, NY
Fishkill Recreation in collaboration with the The Blodgett Memorial Library, Town of Fishkill Police Department, Town Hall and Village Hall is proud to announce our 2022 Easter Egg Hunt. This is a FREE event, however this event is full with a waiting list. Add yourself to the waiting list here! >
So many of you want to know which restaurants are open on Mondays!
So ALBB enhanced our Restaurant Guide to show you. See it here >
TWO WAY BREWING COMPANY
18 West Main St.
It may still be a little chilly but you can never go wrong with a refreshing beer from Two Way! Our suggestion? The flight! Try a few and find your favorite(s) PS LIVE MUSIC tonight! 7:30 pm with Michael Leidig and tomorrow night at 9:00 pm with David Kraii. Don't forget about Trivia on Thursday's! PPS Did you know you can rent Two Way's game room for private events?! Reach out and find out more! See Trivia Schedule here > See beers on tap here > OPEN:
Thursday 4:00pm - 10:00pm
Friday 4:00pm - 11:00pm
Saturday 12:00pm - 11:00pm
Sunday 1:00pm - 8:00pm
Two Way Brewing Company is a Sponsor, thank you!
EAT CHURCH
3091 U.S. 9, Cold Spring, NY
If you missed out on the Dumpling Pop Up from Eat Church, we are so sorry! But, this is your sign to follow them on IG so you can never miss out on special deliciousness again! You can grab-n-go Eat Church goodies from Marbled Meat Shop in Coldspring and at the Beacon Pantry in Beacon! OR, because it's the weekend and you deserve to treat yo'self, find Eat Church at Industrial Arts Brewing! Fridays from 3pm - 9pm & Saturdays from 12pm - 9pm. PS you DO NOT want to miss out on their specials! Trust us. Keep up with all of the delicious pop-ups and events here > You can also visit their website for Weekly Menu/Specials > Website >
Eat Church is a Sponsor, thank you!
BEACON BREAD COMPANY 193 Main St.
Happy Friday, and in the words of a passerby, “Spring has SPRUNG!” It's always warm & sunnday at Beacon Bread! Especially when you're enjoying this NY staple: BEC (SPK!) on a house-made brioche roll + a French toast latte (with their bakery-crafted syrup + extra shot of espresso). Stop in this weekend for all the goods! OPEN:
Sunday-Thursday until 7 pm (Closed on Wednesday)
Friday + Saturday until 10 pm Happy Hour $7 ‘til 7 pm menu is available every day starting at 4 pm! Menu > Order Pick Up or Delivery > Beacon Bread Company is a Sponsor, thank you!
MEYERS OLDE DUTCH
184 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Can you really go into work on Monday & say you had a good weekend if you didn't stop at MOD for lunch??... Exactly! Stop in this weekend for fresh delicious burgers & twice cooked fries. PS: Rumor has it, MOD is about to drop a new Cocktail menu... PPS: Meyers is looking for a full time bartender to join their wonderful team! Reach out to brian@meyersoldedutch.com if you're interested. Open Sunday thru Thursday for Food 11:30am - 9pm; Bar until 10pm Friday and Saturday Food 11:30am - 11:00pm; Bar until midnight. Order Now > Meyers Olde Dutch is a Sponsor, thank you!
HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL 288 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Shmuck's ice cream is open year round, rain or shine, with great indoor seating if it's cold or rainy! So yeah, no excuse to not get ice cream! Inside the HV Food Hall! Follow HV Food Hall's foodies:
Miz Hattie's BBQ: Southern Style BBQ, from North Carolina. Order ahead via their Toast-app menu! El Nica: Nicaraguan Food Roosevelt Bar: Cocktail Bar in a well-ventilated space with Outdoor Patio! Shmuck's Sweet Stuff: Local Ice Cream, Hot Waffles, and Other Sweet Stuff Hudson Shawarma: Falafels, shawarma, baklava, and platters Ciao Chow - Hand made pasta and fried rice Hudson Valley Food Hall is a Sponsor, thank you!
BAJA 328 328 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Aside from Baja's delicious southwest cuisine, they offer over 130 top shelf tequilas. They pride themselves on using only the freshest ingredients available for their cocktails and cuisine! Baja also has great vibes & we can't wait to dine with the garage doors open! PS: Different specials every week! You don't wanna miss out. See some examples here > PPS: Happy Hour Tues-Fri 4-6pm Check out their specialty drinks > Check out the specials >
BAJA 328 is a Sponsor, thank you!
ZIATUN
244 Main St.
If you didn't get a homemade chocolate chip tahini cookie from Ziatun to go with your lunch/dinner, did you even go to Ziatun??? Made with cardamom & pairs well with a pot of Arabic coffee pre or post dinner! Or as a substitute for lunch/dinner - no judging here! PS as the weather begins to warm up, enjoy a Halloumi Cheese Platter and their other delicious mezzes outside! > Menu > Order Online > HOURS
Monday + Thursday-Saturday 11 am-9pm
Tuesday + Wednesday 11 am-4pm
Sunday 11am-8pm Ziatun is a Sponsor, thank you!
WITCH HAZEL Online Shop based in Beacon, NY!
A local online shop based in Beacon, NY that offers clean beauty products, exclusively designed home good from NY artists, custom floral design, and vintage/antiques! Plus, small-group floral design classes (ie, for birthday parties, bachelorette parties, book club events, "I haven't seen you in 2 years" moments! Whenever possible, Witch Hazel sources what they sell from local growers, small-batch brands and other eco-conscious companies that, you know, respect the planet where we live. Shop here > Follow Witch Hazel on Instagram! >
BINNACLE BOOKS
321 Main Street, Beacon The coolest collab ever! A new book club in partnership with Matcha Thomas, the endeavor “book club!” and meetings will be hosted monthly at Matcha Thomas just up the road at 179 Main St.! They're creating space for connecting, expanding, and healing together through the power of books. Each month’s book will be available to book club! members at a discount. First Spring session is Friday April 1st for an introductory pre-read discussion / meetup! (this is sold out already but this is your sign to be on alert for the next book club!) The selection of reads will center topics such as mindfulness, creativity, radical love, connection, and self and community care. But they intend for book club! to be collaborative, so they may expand beyond these areas as the group feels inclined. Tea and vegan + gluten-free treats will be provided by Matcha Thomas for club members to enjoy. Join them! Binnacle is *Open daily!
Binnacle Books is a Sponsor, thank you!
BRETT'S HARDWARE 18 West Main Street, Beacon
And now for our moment of looking at these adorable stuffies, available now at Brett's Hardware. BUY EACH ONE! Omg. Brett's is always surprising us with their Kid Section throughout the store (Brett is a father of young kids!). When you need to buy some hardware, or paint, or a new toilet seat, you can also buy a panda or a pink...squid. OPEN
Monday-Friday 7:30am - 7pm
Saturday 8am - 6pm
Sunday 9am - 5pm Brett's Hardware is a Sponsor, thank you!
LUXE OPTIQUE 181-183 Main Street, Beacon
Walking out of Luxe with your new eyeglasses like.... Luxe Optique is so ready for Spring and already filling up the shop with Spring collections. Just when we think they can't get better... they do! Always do! Stop in & check out Their latest Spring Collection! Schedule the eye exam that you've been putting off! You won't regret it.
Read more about the team here > PS: Appts required for exams. HOURS:
Monday 10 AM - 5 PM
Tuesday - Saturday 10 AM - 6 PM
Closed on Sundays! They've gone shopping! Shop Online > Luxe Optique is a Sponsor, thank you!
Yanarella Dance Studio 312 Main St., Beacon, NY New Website Alert!
For over 60 years, Yanarella has been dedicated to providing an exceptional dance education to the Hudson Valley. Since the day they opened their doors, their philosophy has been that “every child should have the same opportunity to dance, regardless of talent or ability. There is no can’t in dance. There’s only a C-A-N”.
ANTALEK & MOORE INSURANCE AGENCY
340 Main Street, Beacon
Head on over to Antalek & Moore's website to subscribe to their monthly newsletter! Never miss out on the latest company updates, industry news, and more.
Antalek & Moore is a full-service insurance agency and risk-management company based right here in Beacon! Says Katie of A Little Beacon Blog: "Honestly, I love them because they hold my hand. From Workmans Comp to Disabaility Insurance, I can call them, make an appointment, come to the office, and they walk me through what I need to do. As a business owner, I cannot imagine navigating insurance needs without them." They offer commercial and personal insurance solutions to customers in the Hudson Valley community, throughout New York State, and across the country. AND, with Spring right around the corner, it's the perfect time to review and update your insurance policies. Contact their office and let one of their experienced agents assist you! Latest Announcements > Antalek & Moore is a Sponsor. Thank you!
TIN SHINGLE
Tin Shingle a training platform and community for businesses, artists and makers who are getting the word out about their business. Tin Shingle teaches PR, social media and content marketing tactics to regular people to help make their pitching and brand story telling smarter, engaging and more appropriate for the media to consider for article features. Tin Shingle produces weekly webinars called Training TuneUps, which offer free access to niche classes, as well as one-on-one training opportunities. Our Research Team is constantly updating our easy-to-use Media Contact Library and Editorial Calendar Collection, which serve as an inspiration center when discovering story angles and best people to connect with about where to pitch about your business. Learn More > Tin Shingle is a Sponsor. Thank you!
KATIE JAMES, INC.
It's Spring! You know what that means... it's time to update your website & give it a refresh! Just like you do your closet. Your website is your most solid footprint for people to know what you do and how to buy from you. Find out more about Website Design services here > Katie James Inc. is a sponsor. Thank you!
HIRING: Full Time Receptionist At Antalek & Moore Details >
HIRING: Maintenance & Packaging Manager At Industrial Arts Brewing Details >
HIRING: Beacon City School District Food Service Department Is Looking For Substitute Food Service Helpers Details >
In December of the school year, amidst holiday choral concerts and shopping, all of the Elks Club all over the nation hold a Hoop Shoot contest. Kids compete in their age and gender bracket to see who can swish the most baskets. Winners advance to next states, and the final tournament is held in Chicago, where the competing children and their families are put up in a hotel for the final round. Winners names go into the National Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield Mass.
Required to enter was a birth certificate for proof of age, which hinders a number of kids from entering who do not have easy access to their birth certificates, or if their birth certificates are not current with their names or genders. The Beacon Elk’s Lodge was questioned about the routine practice by a parent (me). After giving it a second thought, the Beacon Elk’s Lodge Hoops Director Nicole Moreno agreed that the policy was restrictive, and took it all the way to the State and National Directors of the Elks Lodge to advocate for the requirement’s removal. The top directors agreed, and the birth certificate is no longer required.
About The Hoop Shoot Contest
In Beacon and in other communities where there is an Elks Club Lodge membership hosting the contest, parents receive a simple flyer with the date and location of the tryout: a Friday evening at Rombout Middle School. Participating kids must bring their birth certificates in order to prove their age. Being that the kids are receiving these flyers in school the need for proof of age seems redundant, and overly cautious.
The Restrictive Problem With The Birth Certificate Requirement
This seemingly simple requirement is a barrier to several different types of children, including those who are:
Unable to locate their birth certificate. Sometimes they get lost.
Living with a parent or caregiver in more than one household where communication between parents is strained, and only one parent has the original birth certificate to make the copy. Getting a document like this for an activity that both parents agree on can become a problem.
Difficult for those with different immigration statuses who may not have a birth certificate.
Limiting for those in foster care who also may not have easy access to a birth certificate.
Uncomfortable for kids recognizing gender identification, and are going through Beacon schools with a different gender and name than what they were identified with at birth. Revealing a birth certificate may “out” them in a way they don’t intend.
When asked why the birth certificate was needed if the kids are being recruited from Rombout Middle School, Principal Brian Soltish referred questions to Carl Oken, an organizer with the Elks Club. Carl explained that the birth certificate was needed for proof of age should the child advance to next rounds, as the school does not share records with the club. Carl stated that “birth certificates can have all data redacted other than name, birth date and sex.”
When questioning of the practice persisted, Carl referred the questions onto the contest director, Nicole Moreno. While at first she was comfortable with the practice, she gave it a think over a weekend, and changed her mind: “Our conversations had my wheels turning. I have addressed this issue with both the State and National Directors and effective immediately, birth certificates are no longer a requirement.”
A Beaconite who is a parent in the district and is a bilingual lead advocate for domestic violence victims, Ella Mar, was supportive of the decision. “That type of requirement excludes undocumented students, and potentially exposes their undocumented status. It also excludes queer children and teenagers who have been kicked out of their home and doesn't have access to their birth certificate,” they reflected.
“A proof of birth certificate requirement especially targets trans kids, who would have to expose their dead name and assigned gender at birth, which could potentially out any child whose current sex, gender or name isn't reflected on their birth record. This type of requirement could also exclude children in the foster care system, or any youth where it is not safe for them to produce their birth record. Or they just don't have it."
Months after the decision was made, Nicole remains supportive of the decision to make community-based events produced by the Elks more inclusive, stating: “For a long time, the Elks Club was not so inclusive. You had to be a white Christian male to be a member. There are still Lodges to this day that are still segregated by sex and color. Even a neighboring community still doesn't allow female members. Beacon, however, was one of the first to allow female members, and the first to elect a Woman Exalted Ruler. We just elected the 3rd this year 2022. We love our vets. We love our kids and we love our community.”
This month finishes Nicole’s four years as chair of the Hoop Shoot committee, to be followed by Joe Green. Barbra Farber was Exalted Ruler twice, and Jennifer Velez is the newly elected Exalted Ruler, to begin serving the term in April 2022.
The Beacon Elks Lodge is located at 900 Wolcott Avenue. Keep up the the many events and opportunities they offer, including rental of their space.
This week in your City Hall, the City Council, the Mayor and the City Administrator will meet on the following items that are officially on the meeting’s agenda for 3/21/2022:
- Appointing (hiring) a new HR Director, Sara Morris.
- Appointing Esther Jackson to the Conservation Advisory Committee (a busy committee that keeps the City on track with environmental goals)
- Re-hiring a cleaning service to clean the City of Beacon’s public bathrooms. Miller’s Touch Cleaning Service, a Black owned business won the bid.
- Hiring of VAD Contractors to replace the roof on the Municipal Building (aka Town Hall)
- Authorizing permission to remove and replace the solar panels on the roof.
- Amending the Rules and Procedures for how the public can address the City Council, Mayor, City Council, and employees of the City of Beacon during Public Comment sessions every other week. While Beacon’s administrations have usually been publicly criticized or questioned, this administration has come into power after a time of regular protests in the racial justice reawakening period, emboldening more people to speak more strongly on many topics. The Mayor and City Administrator have thoughts to curb the enthusiasm, and the City Council responded with edits.
Tonight’s meeting has 2 Public Comment sessions, where anyone can speak on any topic, and no Public Hearings (official discussions from the public on a determined topic).
Beacon’s Eviction Without Good Cause Law accounts for many situations, including requiring landlords to provide good cause to raise the rent above 5% if contested by their existing tenant requesting proof of necessity if the tenant/landlord discussions break down and the landlord pursues going to court to let a judge decide on the legality of the rent increase.
Where Is This Law Coming From?
Beacon is joining in the national movement within the housing crisis for all people to not let long-term rentals be a cut-throat rental market business model anymore. Other municipalities in this area have crafted and signed similar legislation, including Newburgh, Kingston, Poughkeepsie and Albany. Each of those communities, including Beacon, experienced the decimation of many of their historic buildings during the federally funded program Urban Renewal, which ended up mattering when rent regulation laws were enacted. Albany currently has one lawsuit against it, brought on by three landlords and their companies, asking for the law to be rescinded, as reported in the Times Union. There is proposed legislation in New York State Legislature that would enact a similar measure statewide.
It is in part because of that destruction that these communities cannot enact forms of rent stabilization found in New York City today. A new law in New York State, the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 2019, allows for a declaration of a housing crisis in a locality, but is based on having a number of historic buildings still in tact. However, as has been especially demonstrated in the past several years, laws are created, and laws are walked back upon when levels of harm are represented by groups of people advocating for change.
Residential Real Estate As A Business Model
During this process of legislative debate, advocates for Beacon’s law stressed that housing is a human right and needs more protection. Landlords who showed up to public meetings to speak answered that money they invested in a property is their retirement plan and should not be impeded upon. However, price hikes in any business model usually proves bad for business, and results in a client-business breakdown. Some Beacon landlords showed up to speak in favor of the law.
Even in the short-term rental market, or a client-services market - if a client is used to paying one price over a long period of time - to suddenly hike that price usually ruins the business/client relationship. In the housing market, the long-term landlord may replace the tenant quickly in an unregulated market, but in the equally unregulated service or even the short-term rental industry which has online reviews tied to it, pricing is regulated by online reviews (social pressure), proper business relationships, and providing great service. Because secure housing is such a desperate need, some residential landlords don’t often face social pressure to keep rent increases stable, or provide stellar service in some cases.
Said the lead author of the law, Councilmember Dan Aymar-Blair, to A Little Beacon Blog about the passage of this law: “Tenant-landlord issues are most often resolved out of court and I hope that continues. The law has clear definitions of what constitutes good cause eviction and that framework can be used for discussions before anybody has to go to court. I hope landlords and management companies that depend on abusing tenants for profit margins will see their business model won't work in Beacon.
“I hope that Beacon will next come together to address the lack of affordable housing for all income ranges. Good cause eviction means that tenants can organize and participate without fear of retaliatory evictions and jacked rents.”
Was This Vote Expected This Night?
The week prior, The City Council was not anticipating voting on the law on March 7th. Week after week, the law had been pushed forward by the Council to even get it to the stage of Public Hearing, which is where it was the Monday evening of this week. For months, the City Council heard resistance from its retained legal counsel, Keane and Beane, who also represents developers building rental units in the City of Beacon, to advise the City not to create a law, stating on public record that it would be difficult to defend if a lawsuit was brought against the City. The Council then discussed the possibility of hiring a different law firm to represent a lawsuit in that case, should that happen.
Beacon’s City Administrator Chris White stressed throughout several discussions his concern for “fiduciary” spending of taxpayer dollars on legal costs defending this law. It is not clear on his definition of fiduciary, since he has currently authorized at least $110,000 of taxpayer dollars in the pursuit of terminating employment of a longtime city employee of the Highway Department, in addition to over $50,000 in paid-leave salary for that employee to not work during a labor shortage.
This law was in its second round of Public Hearing, where anyone in Beacon could come speak their mind about it. With this law being discussed on social media and out in real life for several months, it was hard for the community to ignore the effort. Landlords came to speak in favor or against, as did tenants. Advocates for the law even held a holiday caroling/protest in December 2021 at Pohill Park, which marched to City Council to confront the then City Councilmembers during their last days on council before the new members started.
Self-Fulfilling Prophesy Of Rent Hikes Before The Law Passed
After at least one tenant came forward to public City Council Meetings to speak in favor of the law, word circulated that some landlords had begun raising rents in anticipation of the free-for-all rent hike situation getting regulated.
That Beacon tenant reported at the next Public Hearing, that after she spoke in public at a City Council Meeting, she had subsequently asked her landlord to fix something necessary in her apartment, whereby she received by text from her landlord saying that he would fix it. In the same text, he declared he was also raising her month-to-month rent by $600/month. This hike, after an agreed upon hike of $100/month over the summer, resulted in a $700/month hike within one year, she told A Little Beacon Blog. This renter is White, works in the non-profit sector, and volunteers to teach classes in a corrections facility in the evenings.
Usually, if the City Council expects to vote on a legally binding resolution the night of the closing of a Public Hearing, the Resolution is noted in the official Agenda for the City Council, and a vote is taken that evening. This can be fore anything simple like having a Public Hearing for allowing firefighters to live further away from Beacon, hearing from the community, and then voting affirmatively right after if the public doesn’t bring overwhelming objection.
But this vote wasn’t on the evening’s agenda after the Council closed the Public Hearing, yet they discussed putting it on the agenda during the opening of the meeting. A Little Beacon Blog asked Councilmember Dan if the Council expected to vote that evening. He answered: “Yes. When we started to hear that landlords were retaliating against renters, we had no choice. Seeing that the outstanding amendments would have weakened the law and allowed this retaliation to continue for another month, we pressed forward.”
When Did This “Eviction Without Good Cause” Movement Start?
In the Before Times, during the pre-pandemic days, and during the former administration under Mayor Randy Casale, rents were already on the rise in Beacon. Former Councilmember Terry Nelson suggested pursuing the Emergency Tenants Protection Act of 2019. During that administration, where Lee Kyriacou was then a Councilmember, the common response by then Mayor Casale and some councilmembers to Councilmember Terry’s urging was that rents would self regulate under market conditions.
When the new administration came in, with former Councilmember Lee Kyriacou winning the election to become Mayor, the new Mayor Lee Kyriacou gave a platform for the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 2019 to be considered, after Councilmember Terry continued to bring it up. Mayor Lee would state that he was doubtful that Beacon qualified for the tenant protection. Yet he dedicated space at a public Workshop Meeting for expert opinion to explain why Beacon did not qualify.
The Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 2019 requires a locality to know its rental vacancy rate, and of those, that the buildings are ones built between February 1, 1947 and December 31, 1973. Many of Beacon’s buildings that were of that age had been bulldozed during the federally ordered Urban Renewal period. You can get an introduction to Urban Renewal from the blog Newburgh Restoration, who describes it as a “tragedy” when mentioning how 1,300 buildings were demolished there, 9 streets “plowed under,” and “The city’s African American community was uprooted, with thousands of businesses and residents displaced.” A similar situation happened in Beacon. The Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 2019 requires that these buildings still exist to qualify.
During the time of Beacon’s Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 2019 discussion, Mayor Lee also stated that Beacon does not have a housing survey to know its vacancy rate. He did not imply that Beacon was in a hurry to conduct such a study. However, he did support spending at minimum of $50,000 on a Parks and Recreation study to be told what people want from a central Community Center. Two such centers used to exist in Beacon, and Beacon’s current tiny Parks and Rec building at 23 West Center Street is bursting at the studs with services and volunteerism.
The City Council’s pursuit of more tenant protections continued, with Councilmember Dan Aymar-Blair pushing to have a Good Cause Eviction Law considered. Councilmember Dan took the lead on drafting the law with other Councilmembers and the City’s retained law firm, Keane and Beane.
A Little Beacon Blog reached out to former Councilmember Terry Nelson to get his take on the passage of this law, and if he thought his early efforts helped from years ago. He responded: “It’s not really for me to say if my efforts helped, but I would like to think they did. It’s always a good thing when renters get the protections they deserve. But any law only works when there is effective enforcement. Attention must be paid to the level of enforcement of the new law.”
What Some City Council Members Said Upon Voting
Before casting his vote of Yes, Councilmember George Mansfield, who consistently voiced concern about leaving renal rates in the hands of a judge on a case-by-case basis, said this to explain his vote in favor of the passage of the law:
“This is a complicated issue, and I appreciate everyone who has come out during the course of this discussion.
“I'd like to first say that Keane and Beane, our lawyers, have represented this community and looked out for them for as long as I've been on council - or maybe I've been here longer than Keane and Beane has, but. So I truly respect your advice and consider that greatly in my decision.
“I also think, that I can see through our discussions, that we have an opportunity to respond to Albany - that there might be an opportunity - I don't feel like we are risking an expensive lawsuit going forward - that we can respond.
“I would have preferred to wait for the Albany decision to come down. But I think we have time to respond between maybe passing this and actually going to quote and the cost of litigation associated with that.
“One of my goals when we pass a law such as this is to help as many people and to hurt as few people in the decision. And in the end, no one is fully happy, and no one got fully what they wanted out of these discussions.
“I think that there is an urgency right now, certainly listening to some - part of the urgency is created not only by the greed, but by the fear of this law being passed. I think that is what is happening to some people. Landlords are raising rents objectionably and unconscionably right now. They've been known to do that in the past as well.
“My decision tonight will be based on helping as many people and hurting as few people going forward. Thank you all for being part of this conversation.
Mayor Kyriacou had this to say before casting his lone vote of No:
“The issue that I have respect to authority is that I have been sitting on Council for a long time. The nature of how City's get their authority from the State is not supported in this area. I'm sorry, but that is what it is. You all may have a different view, and I'm very respectful of that view.
“The second of my concern is, if we are picking away to help renters, and I think we do need to help renters, pitting one part of the community against the other is the wrong way to do this, and this does exactly that. Which I find that just sad.
“I know we want to help renters. Again, the County has announced a rental support program for people in low-income. That I think is the correct approach. It's something that we all as a community pay taxes to support, and I'm supportive of that. Pitting one part of the community against the other is the wrong way to go. I'm just saddened as I listen to us just dividing ourselves.
“The ones that I am focused on helping is low-income renters. There are plenty of renters that have come to Beacon who are fully capable of paying the full rents that are out there now. That's why those rents are out there. If we afford them the same rights, they will push low income renters out, and that's the group I really, really wish to help. I don't think this law is structured correctly do to so. Those are my concerns.”
In answering the Mayor, Councilperson Justice McCray gave their answer before voting in favor of the passage of the law:
“To that point, this law is designed to keep people in their homes, so I don't see how this would push low-income renters out,” Justice said.
“Just to talk about eviction:
“Evicted individuals are 11% to 15% more likely to experience a loss of employment and medical insurance as compared to individuals who have not been evicted (Harvard University)
“Children victimized by eviction are typically forced to transfer schools; a traumatic destruction of stable educational and peer relationships that has been shown to have a lasting negative impact on childhood development. (National Education Policy Center)
“All adult populations, once evicted, experience higher-all cause mortality, increased instances of emergency room visits, higher rates of addiction and relapse, depression, and suicide. (National Library of Medicine)
“Cost-burdened households spend more than 30% of their income on rent, and severely cost-burdened households spend more than 50% (Disrupted)
“I came onto Council as a community organizer working in social and racial justice. Passing Good Cause is crucial for bringing racial justice to housing. More than two-thirds of Black families in New York State rent. Among renters, Black households are the most vulnerable to eviction, the most likely to experience discrimination from landlords, and the ones most likely to be displaced when neighborhoods change.
“High rents and gentrification have had a devastating impact on Black communities in New York State. In my social justice work over the past couple of years, I’ve built connections with Black members of our community who lived here for years, and because they weren’t protected by this law, they’re gone. I don’t get to walk around the corner and share meals with them anymore. If you’ve been here for not even 10 years, you’ve seen the active displacement of Black people in Beacon. Good Cause is an important step in promoting community stability and combating displacement.
“According to a study published last week by the Pratt Center for Community Development Urban Democracy Lab, Legal Aid Society, Housing Justice for All, and the Community Service Society: “Black Households In New York Are 3x As Likely To Face Eviction As White Households”
“Councilmembers and community alike have stated that housing is a human right. It’s not just a philosophy. Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 25: Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, and housing…
“I support Good Cause Eviction.”
The Press Release From The City Council After The Vote
Below is the press release from the City Council, that has not yet been published to the City’s website yet. In earlier discussions as the law was debated, City Administrator Chris White asked the Keane and Beane attorney if the law, if voted on, could be delayed to be published to the City Code and delay enforcement, to which the attorney answered that it could. It has not been stated as to the date that this law will be published to the City Code.
BEACON, NY MARCH 8, 2022 - In last night’s City Council meeting, the Beacon City Council passed their hard-fought “good cause eviction” law tonight with the support of all six City Council members. By providing Beacon’s housing court with a framework for what constitutes an eviction with good cause, the City Council hopes to end the leniency of eviction proceedings against tenants, allow greater access to due process, and mitigate the displacement of residents. The law builds upon the fact that housing is a human right and that apartments and houses are not just commodities, they are homes.
“To clear up misconceptions, this law does not change that evictions require the courts. What it does is sets relevant standards for the proceedings that protect tenants,” said Wren Longno, Ward 3 Councilmember.
Specifically, grounds for eviction with good cause include:
Non-payment of rent
Substantial lease violations
Property damage
Committing a nuisance
Refusal of access
Illegal activity
Bad-faith refusal to sign a written lease
If the landlord wants to move themselves or a family member into the rented unit.
Additionally, rent increases above 5% will require a justification before a judge in cases where the tenant objects to the increase. The law intends to end the practice of arbitrary evictions and steep rental increases which are de facto evictions.
“Beacon is a popular place to live, and with good reason, but increased rents of 20% or more have become common which is simply impossible for most people.” said Councilmember At-Large Paloma Wake “While this law does not directly address affordable housing per se, we know that stable housing has compounding benefits for the entire city. When basic needs are met, individuals can be more active and thriving members of our community.”
Since Councilmember Dan Aymar-Blair for Ward 4 first introduced the law in August 2021, neighboring communities of Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, and Kingston passed their own similar versions of the law.
While no legal action has been taken against these municipalities, over several workshops, the City Council discussed the potential of a lawsuit brought by landlords. The City Council concluded that the risks posed to the city by a lawsuit were low, particularly the threat of legal expenses.
“Passing Good Cause is essential for bringing racial justice to housing,” said Ward 2 Councilmember Justice McCray. “More than two-thirds of Black families in New York State rent; and among renters, Black households are the most vulnerable to eviction, the most likely to experience discrimination from landlords, and the ones most likely to be displaced when neighborhoods change. If you’ve been here for not even 10 years, you’ve seen the active displacement of black people in Beacon. Black households in New York are three times as likely to face eviction as white households. Good Cause is an important step in promoting community stability [preserving diversity] and combatting displacement.”
Similar laws are still being considered around New York State, including New Paltz and Ithaca. A statewide bill is also actively under consideration.
“Tenants can now organize and speak up about their living conditions without fear of retaliatory evictions and jacked rents,” said Aymar-Blair. “Now that the folks who depend on affordable housing can fearlessly join the conversation, the City Council is ready to turn its attention to creating new affordable housing for low-income residents and working families.”
Molly Rhodes, Ward 1 Councilmember said, “We hope this can be a launching point where both tenants and landlords feel inspired to come together to help the city craft future housing policies and vision.”
From:
City of Beacon Councilmembers Dan Aymar-Blair, Wren Longno, Justice McCray, Molly Rhodes, and Paloma Wake
“Pitting One Part Of The Community Against The Other” - Governing Laws Already Do This
One of Mayor Lee’s stated concerns is for avoiding this legislation is to avoid “pitting one part of the community against the other,” implying tenants vs landlords. This type of “pitting” has already existed in the form of legislation in New York State, especially so in New York City and parts of Albany, Erie, Nassau, Rensselaer, Schenectady, and Westchester counties where rent control is still in effect, according to the Residential Tenants Rights Guide. These members of the community are already pitted against each other when the landlord pursues going to court to evict a tenant - if it reaches that point, and the tenant doesn’t self-evict.
A Little Beacon Blog has spoken to people who work in different areas. Families who have the same job year after year - fixed income if you will - who cannot afford a large rent increase - and then need to move out of Beacon to Wappingers or Newburgh to find comparable rent. Nurses. Home care workers. Self-employed creators. Service-industry folks like bar tenders and restaurant managers can barely afford to live in Beacon, yet they work here. Some commuting from counties over. “Artist lofts” are very limiting for who qualifies to live in those units, and can be discriminatory.
It is unclear who these low-income people are that Mayor Kyriacou says he advocates for, since the people he seems to say can pay these rising rents may be from certain private sectors, or people who rent apartments as second get-away homes, or are never home because their jobs who can afford this rent send these new Beacon citizens to other locations to do their jobs. Or, are the blessed collection of employees who can work remotely from home.
Parade of Green committee volunteers painting the town with green, yellow, orange and blue shamrocks. Pictured from left: Rick Brownell, Bitsy, and Annie McElduff.
DAY: Saturday, March 12th TIME: 12noon for the public (floats and cars line up earlier at 11am) LOCATION: Starts at Pohill Park (near Bank Square) ends at Dummy Light (1 East Main near Trax) RAIN OR SHINE
With weather apps calling for 100% chance of something wet this Saturday, March 12, 2022, Beacon’s Parade of Green is on with no rain date. Said one of the parade organizers, Kimberlee Markarian in response to Councilmember George Mansfield’s question of if the parade is rain or shine during this week’s City Council Meeting: “It is rain or shine! Which is so amazing! We went through a whole lot of things in the last couple of years. A little rain…we got it!”
The parade route is from Pohill Park (the corner of Main Street, 9D and South Avenue at Bank Square), runs down Main Street, and ends at the Dummy Light (near 1 East Main near Trax Coffee and the Chocolate Studio). Main Street will be closed (but all shops and restaurants open!), so the parade floats, cars and walkers will have full access to roll through. The parade starts at 12pm from Pohill Park.
Be sure to visit Meyers Old Dutche for their special “Shamrock” drink inspired by the parade. Later on, find a calm and cozy spot inside of Two Way Brewery for their live music, featuring the TMcCann Band starting at 7pm (food also available from the Flying Jibb)
Honoring Anthony Lassiter, Grand Marshall For 2022 Parade Of Green
The Parade of Green is honoring Anthony Lassiter, was born February 1947 in Beacon. He attended Beacon High School where he was on the football, wrestling, and baseball teams. He graduated high school in 1966 and was drafted into the US Army in the spring of 1967.
Private Lassiter was trained to be an Army electrician. His primary responsibilities included building helicopter landing pads for Cobra gunships. Additionally, Specialist Lassiter was assigned to the "burial detail firing squad" where he performed the 21-gun salute at the funerals of fallen heroes.
Ultimately, Specialist Lassiter was sent to Republic of South Vietnam. Shortly after being promoted to Sargent, Lassiter and his Company were attacked by hostile forces. Lassiter was injured in that attack and was awarded a Purple Heart. He received an Army Commendation Medal for his distinguished service and was honorably Discharged from the Army in November 1969.
In January 1970, he went to work at IBM in East Fishkill. After several years, he became a manager. One of his favorite assignments was recurring college students to work for IBM. He worked at IBM for the next 30 years. Anthony married Patricia Lassiter. Together they raised 2 sons: Justin and Aaron, and have 8 grandchildren. Mr. Lassiter is now retired.
Anthony Lassiter serves his church and assists throughout the community in multiple volunteer activities. Anthony served on the City of Beacon Planning Board for 15 years, and continues to serve on the City of Beacon Housing Authority Board of Directors. He is a member of the American Legion Post 203, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 666, the Beacon Community Lions Club, and is a member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.
Anthony is a long standing volunteer at the St. Andrew's / St. Luke's Food Pantry. For many years, he has served on the Spirit of Beacon Day Committee, and in 1991, was chosen as the Spirit of Beacon Volunteer of the Year.
Anthony is registered with Donate Life Organ Donation, and actively encourages others to register. As a civic minded individual who strives to serve this community and is dedicated to his fellow veterans, Anthony's commitment is limitless. This list only touches on his accomplishments.
The Army Commendation received by Lassiter proclaimed: "The loyalty, initiative, and will to succeed that Specialist Anthony V. Lassiter demonstrated at all times, undoubtedly made him one of the finest soldiers in this command." It can be concluded that Anthony Lassiter's loyalty, initiative, and will to succeed make him one of the finest citizens in this City of Beacon.
John Lewis was born in Troy, Alabama, and started working raising chickens on his family farm. He wanted to be a preacher, and began practicing in front of his chickens. He grew up to become the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) from 1963 to 1966. He was one of the organizers of the 1963 March on Washington. Lewis led the first of three marches from Selma to Montgomery in 1965, and was part of the incident at Edmund Pettus Bridge known as Bloody Sunday. He was a believer in non-violence based advocacy. He was elected to Congress to serve in the United States House of Representatives of Georgia’s 5th congressional district from 1987 to 2020, when he died.
One of the ways he ensured his story and experience dismantling legalized segregation through Jim Crow laws was by co-writing a graphic comic novel, that he calls a comic book during this speech at a library when his book launched. The book is called “March,” and it comes in three parts.
In honor of Black History Month, the Howland Public Library is inviting Middle School and High School students to participate in a special Read and Respond project. The Beacon Public Library is giving away a limited number of copies beginning Monday, February 21, 2022 in hopes that students (and their adults) read it in this fun and engaging format, learn more about the Civil Rights movement through the eyes of Congressman John Lewis, and answer a question posed by the library. Answers may be featured here at A Little Beacon Blog!
Inspiration For The Comic Book “March”
When Lewis was a student, he was inspired by the 1958 comic book “Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story.” Now, the March trilogy brings the history of the Civil Rights Movement to a whole new generation.
Extra Credit For Your Brain!
To learn more about John Lewis’ lifelong work for civil rights and social justice, students (and anyone with a library card) can also stream the documentary “Good Trouble” for free on Hoopla, the library’s free app that works with your Beacon library card number.
Read and Respond: Student’s Answers Featured At A Little Beacon Blog
After reading the book or watching the film, students are asked to write about what the concept of “good trouble” means to them. Lewis was always told to not get into trouble. Yet through his work with Dr. Martin Luther King and learning about Ghandi and Theroux, he said that he saw the need to get into good trouble and make some noise.
Their answers from students will be displayed at the library and may be featured here on A Little Beacon Blog. Responses are due by Friday, March 11th. Students who share their responses will also be entered in a drawing for a chance to win copies of Book Two & Three of the March Trilogy.
The books will be available on Monday, February 21st, for youth in grades 6 and up on a first come, first serve basis. One per household. “March: Book One” is also available as an eBook through the library’s app, Hoopla. For more information, contact Michelle Rivas, Young Adult Programs Coordinator, at community@beaconlibrary.org.
Excerpts of the winning MLK Jr. essays were published in the Highlands Current.
Six essays submitted by students celebrating the life and mission of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were announced for 2022. The essay contest was part of the annual programming from the Southern Dutchess Coalition and the Beacon Sloop Club, which includes a march in Beacon followed by a program, during which the essays are recognized. A prize of $50 is awarded to each winner by the essay sponsor, Rhinebeck Bank. The winning essays are selected by a committee of the Sloop Club members.
The march did not happen this year due to the pandemic, but the essays were recognized in published excerpts by the Highlands Current. The students needed to answer: “Are we keeping the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jur.’s dream alive?”
Pick a day, any day, and Beacon local Kamel Jamal, owner of more than one restaurant in town (Ziatun, Beacon Bread, WTF, creator of Tito Santana Taqueria, and Végétalien, both he since sold), wears his heart on his sleeve for his home country of Palestine.
Every day for him is a day of love he shows for a free Palestine. From the food he plates, the restaurants he decorates, the merch he makes, most centering back to somehow to empower those still living in Palestine.
In this podcast, Kamel discusses how his parents left Palestine when he was a toddler with some of his family thanks to a family friend who sponsored them.
Co-hosts Brandon Lillard and Katie Hellmuth Martin sat down with Kamel on A Little Beacon Blog's sister podcast,"Wait, What Is That?" for an at times emotional interview about his view of how the people of Palestine are living now. The time was May 2021 during the escalation of protesting by residents in Palestine in the neighborhood Sheikh Jarrah. Their homes were scheduled to be demolished, and Muslim neighbors in the Hudson Valley as well as the world were sounding alarms.
In this podcast, Kamel describes his Palestine. He discusses how his parents left Palestine when he was a toddler with some of his family thanks to a family friend who sponsored them. He describes why he continues advocating from America for Palestine's liberation, so that people can live without fear of their homes and businesses being demolished by occupiers. He discusses the lack to basic rights, like clean water, receiving mail, and having to pass through armed checkpoints to get to a job or part of town.
In 2021, a protest march in Newburgh was organized with Next Step Hudson Valley where the Palestinian community came out, consisting of people young and old, with roots in Palestine, Pakistan, and other communities. Speeches were held on the lawn of Representative Sean Maloney's Newburgh's office.
Beaconites normally quiet about their cultural origins brought pages of prepared speeches, to express to an engaged audience about how their parents, siblings, cousins and/or friends felt about the global response to this little neighborhood protest in Palestine that spring. A Little Beacon Blog covered that march, which you can read about here and listen to some speeches.
Kamel Jamal, speaking at the Free Palestine protest march in Newburgh on the steps of Representative Sean Maloney’s office. Several other speakers participated. Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin
Khitam Jamal Nakhleh’s Starbucks order, where her name is “FreeGaza,” which results in the barista shouting the demand to the room. Khitam is Kamel’s sister. Photo Credit: Khitam Jamal Nakhleh
Since then, a lot has happened. Kamel's sister, who many know as Kate, champions the Free Palestine movement with every step she takes. Recently, she declared she was going by her birth name: Khitam Jamal Nakhleh. She is known to use subtle tactics like ordering a Starbucks under the name of "Free Gaza" so that the demand has to be called out to the room full of customers.
Every now and then, something pro-Palestinian will make the news in the US, like when Emma Watson (Hermione Granger from Harry Potter), and a UN Women's Goodwill Ambassador, voiced her support for Palestine. Or the feature story in Vanity Fair's February 2022 issue, "Generation Gaza" by veteran war correspondent Janine di Giovanni who revisited Gaza "and found resilience and hope among its 2 million Palestinian residents, two thirds of whom are under the age of 25," according to the lead-in for the article.
Also according to the February Vanity Fair feature: "Gaza's 20 and 30 somethings, it so happens, tend to be highly educated, multilingual - and jobless. 64% of the youth labor force is unemployed, largely due to the occupation. Nonetheless, year after year, they have proved indefatigable." Running a business there is virtually impossible, due to actions taken against business owners. But some continue to try, as this designer does, which was featured in Vogue.
In May 2021, neighbors came out to show their support of Palestine by creating a chalk art message on the sidewalk outside of Beacon Bread, owned by Kamel.
Circling back to the first line of this article - pick a day, any day - in the publishing world, an article usually needs to be published in a timely way. Like, back in May or June 2021 after we recorded this podcast episode and covered protest march. In Palestine, their inability to live free lives is every day, with different demolitions of family homes scheduled, like this one at the end of January 2022 or this one where the family had to self-demolish their own home.
But timing gets tricky. During the "Wait, What Is That?" episode, the silence of friends was discussed, acknowledging that talking openly about this topic can be difficult leading to unexpected responses. There is a moment where Kamel's emotions overcome him. You'll need to listen closely to the interview to hear where.
Peek Inside Ziatun
If you haven't been inside of Ziatun yet, here is a peek. Kamel admits this is one of his favorite places to be, and you can tell in the flavor of the food. The hummus is unlike any you have had, being extra smooth. There are plenty of warm soups to choose from, like the Addas soup. View the merch and buy a bag or two. Don't miss the watermelon t-shirt, designed to show resistance through food.
Because it’s Black History Month every day, A Little Beacon Blog has added 3 new Black Owned Businesses to our Business Directory! Max’s Beacon Fade and Shave across from Key Food; the hyper to detail auto detailing service Speechless New York; and the paint event destination Zhane’s Palette currently mobile and in the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory.
For a good dose of entrepreneurial history, read out the building featured in our Black Owned Businesses logo Perry Cross for Hyacinth Marketing Group . Enjoy!
Beacon Fade & Shave Barbershop
Owned by Max, this barbershop across from Keyfood is friendly for walk-ins for a fade or haircut for kids and adults. You may see Max’s young family in there with him as locals line the chairs, waiting their turn. Notice the art on the walls, as is part of Max’s collection. If you play the guitar, you may feel inclined to strum one in the corner.
Zhane’s Palette
“Join us as we continue to Celebrate everything with PAINT virtually and on location. We happily host Birthday Parties for (All Ages), Date Night, Girls Night, Company Events, Social Organizations, Sorority Events, Fundraisers or a private session just for YOU. At Zhane's Palette, its always your ART, your PARTY & your FUN!”
Speechless New York
“Speechless New York is a locally owned and operated business located in Dutchess County, NY. Like most entrepreneurs, they offer many things! Mainly, they are know the most for their impecable car detailing. With over 20 years in the business, working directly with the largest names in the auto industry. Our work is well known to many of the locals. We offer Auto Detailing & Restoration packages to fit ALL budgets.”
“I have heard employee concerns about discrimination, inequality, and growing tensions,” Gina stated in her printed presentation. “We need to address these issues head-on, and policies and procedures are only the beginning. We need a long-term plan on how to address these issues.””
During her first public presentation to the City Council on December 14, 2020, Gina mentioned “many discussions with our employees about how they feel about working for the City,” ALBB reported at the time. At that time, she also met with the community group Beacon4Black Lives.
After holding a Meet and Greet with all department heads individually, she scheduled a Meet and Greet with the Fire Department, which needed to be rescheduled due to COVID-19-related issues. Gina held a Meet and Greet with the Highway Department, which is where she began her focus to discover overall themes employees experience when working for the City.
“Lack of clarity in intra-departmental policies and inconsistency.”
Gina confirmed: “I have heard employee concerns about discrimination, inequality, and growing tensions,” Gina stated in her printed presentation. “We need to address these issues head-on, and policies and procedures are only the beginning. We need a long-term plan on how to address these issues.”
A few of Gina’s next public steps were to introduce new policies that the City of Beacon had not had before, including a Firearms Policy, Domestic Violence Policy and Diversity and Inclusion Policy. While some City Councilmembers expressed surprise that anyone would bring a firearm to work, they assumed it occurred in the police department. However, there has been an unreported instance of an employee casually bringing a firearm to work in another department, during a time of increased employment tension.
Gina has accepted the position of Talent Acquisition Manager at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. Gina had also served on the Zoning Board of Appeals for the Town of Hyde Park, according to her LinkedIn.
In 2021, the City of Beacon paid $50,452 of admin leave to Reuben Simmons, an employee with the Highway Department who is of mixed race and identifies as Black. ALBB has confirmed this amount with Reuben when we asked if he would make public his payments from the city for 2021. This is as per union rules as Reuben understands them, when an employee is presented with a discipline, the City can give up to 30 days suspension without pay, after which the employee is placed back on payroll while the process continues. Reuben has been served with 2 disciplines totaling 60 days over a course of at least 8 hearings with the City and their attorneys.
Reuben has worked for the City of Beacon in the Highway Department since 2002, where he started in the Summer Help position. He worked his way up to Laborer, then Maintenance Worker. During that time, he was appointed Union President for the City of Beacon CSEA Local 814 Unit 6662.
In 2017, Reuben was appointed Highway Superintendent, the lead position in that department, by then Mayor Randy Casale, with the support of then City Administrator, Anthony Ruggiero. In 2018, Dutchess County reached out to the City of Beacon to let the City know that the job title was incorrect, and that Superintendent of Streets was the proper title, but required a different Civil Service exam to qualify for the position. Fellow employee Michael “Micki” Manzi qualified for the test, and replaced Reuben as Superintendent of Streets. All of the people mentioned here except Reuben are white. To this day, the job title is stated on the City of Beacon’s website as Highway Superintendent.
During this transition under the management of then City Administrator Anthony Ruggiero, Reuben was not given the opportunity to take the required Civil Service exam in order to accept or maintain his job position of Highway Superintendent. Extending this opportunity to someone in an existing role is not unheard of in the City of Beacon. Listen to Reuben tell it in his own words on the “Wait, What Is That?” podcast.
For example: at the 5/17/2021 City Council Meeting, current City Administrator Chris White announced that longtime Water Department employee Ed Balicki, who is white, would become Superintendent of Water and Sewers. “We are moving Ed to the proper title,” explained City Administrator White to the City Council at that meeting. “Ed will have to take a Civil Service Exam…We don't think there will be any issue.” Ed passed the exam, and was re-titled.
In Reuben’s case, he was stripped of his title, and demoted back down to Maintenance Worker, then promoted to Working Supervisor, and demoted to Maintenance Worker within a 2 year period. During the first week of January 2021, he was placed on his first round of unpaid leave, and the order of City Administrator Chris, accompanied by a stack of charges against him signed by City Administrator Chris, which ALBB did see documentation of. These charges amounted to lists of generalities of what intersections Reuben was accused of not doing work, returning late from lunch, and an auto accident that Reuben reported to his supervisor Michael Manzi by way of announcing it on the Highway Department radio, and again in a later discussion, according to Reuben.
Auto accidents are not uncommon in the Highway Department, or other departments within the City of Beacon where vehicles are driving by city employees. What is not disclosed by the City of Beacon is when these auto accidents happen, and if they are reported. For example, the public is not informed of when the new Highway Garage gets a dent in a garage door,, for instance, or if an employee did get into a fender bender, and if that incident got reported or not. Additionally, the public is not regularly informed when an employee resigns or is fired, but the public is informed of each new hire when that employee is presented to the City Council the night of a vote to hire them.
Recently, two employees of the administration resigned, which were announced during City Council Meetings: Beacon’s first HR Director, Gina Basile, who left after a year and seven months on the job, according to her LinkedIn, and the Mayor’s Assistant, Collin Milone.
The City of Beacon has hosted at least 8 hearings against Reuben in 2021, which involve the city’s labor attorney and an arbitrator. During the 8th meeting, the City of Beacon actively closed the meeting to the media, by requesting that ALBB leave the call (ALBB was sent an invite to the hearing via Zoom by the arbitrator at Reuben’s request). The city attorney stated that the meeting was closed, and that Reuben had wanted it closed. Reuben denied that, stating that he wanted the hearings open to the public from the beginning, and then stated it again in an article on ALBB.
During this time, In 2021 alone, the City of Beacon under the direction of City Administrator Chris has made two transfers to cover unplanned costs from unrelated areas of the budget to another area of the budget called “Employee Discipline,” bringing that unbudgeted total to over $110,000.
Reuben was put on unpaid leave in January 2021 for a 30 day period, followed by a second 30 day unpaid leave period for disciplinary reasons. The City of Beacon has not made public what those disciplinary reasons are (though ALBB has seen the first stack of the vague charges), or why they have spent so much money for a willing and able Highway Department employee to not work for over a year, during a national labor shortage. During the summer of 2021, the City of Beacon could not completely fill the 6 Summer Jobs it seasonally fills to fill its department.
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The City of Beacon entered into a contract with Legal Services of the Hudson Valley to provide increased access to Beacon tenants facing eviction. They may also be able to help with sources of rent arrears assistance. Call the paralegal, Steven Mihalik at 845-253-6953 to inquire.
Dutchess County Helpline. Open 24/7 to take your calls, listen, and give you resources.
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