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Is Racist Park Slope Petition A Hoax Or Written By A Coward?
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 4, 2011
Modified Mar 4, 2011
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 4, 2011
Modified Mar 4, 2011
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That stupid petition urging a new restaurant/lounge in Park Slope to program "indie artists" instead of hip-hop acts was authored by one "Jennifer McMillen." But there is no record of this McMillen on the voter rolls, no one recalls her attending the heated Community Board meeting about the establishment, and there's no proof that a woman with that name resides in Park Slope. Some now wonder if McMillen even exists, and Brownstoner wonders if it's "a successful parody of the Slope or unnecessary race-baiting?" We wonder if it matters.
We'll probably have to file this one under "life's little mysteries" (Viane Delgado: Never Forget!), but if someone was going to pen a not-so-subtly racist screed and publish it online, it seems plausible that the perpetrator would not use his or her real name. So just because the name is fake does not necessarily mean the sentiment expressed was insincere. The thing now has over 700 signatures, but it looks like the majority of the signers just did so in order to trash McMillen.
As for Prime 6, Levin's rep will be speaking with the Flatbush BID today to discuss the lounge. Besides threatening to bring scary hip-hop fans to Park Slope, the owners have angered locals with a perceived lack of receptivity. According to a source who attended the community board meeting, Prime 6's owners appeared uninterested in the neighbors' concerns because they already have their liquor license. They asserted that the backyard would stay open until 4 a.m. (unheard of in most parts of NYC), there would be music in the backyard (also forbidden), and claimed the noise wouldn't bother the neighbors. Then two neighbors in attendance pointed out that their childrens' windows face the backyard.
We also hear that the owner of the property leased by Prime 6 is on the Flatbush BID, which could be a conflict of interest. (The BID has not replied to request for comment.) Because of its proximity to the controversial Atlantic Yards project, Prime 6 has quickly become a high-profile battle ground for the changing neighborhood's divergent interests: the stroller set vs. the invading arena party crowd. Levin's spokeswoman Hope Reichbach says Levin "has serious reservations about a number of aspects of the plan. It's not acceptable for the community to be subjected to music playing until 4 in the morning, for one thing. So we hope everyone can sit down and work on something out that will be acceptable to everyone." Sure—as long as there are acoustic indie artists performing Kidz Bop covers nightly, we're sure this can be settled amicably.
Tagged
brooklyn
hip hop
park slope
prime 6
rap music
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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