Gentrification is having very real effects on Hispanic populations in Brooklyn according to a report by the National Institute of Latino Policy (NILP).

While the amount of Hispanic New Yorkers is still rising, as the New York Post notes, “from 2,428,756 in 2013 to 2,489,090 in 2016,” in Brooklyn neighborhoods like Bushwick and Williamsburg, Hispanics are being forced out.

Angelo Falcón, NILP president, claimed the Hispanic population in Brooklyn has dropped 1.6 percent, from around 513,242 to an estimated 505,183 last year.

Falcón explained the reduction to the New York Post,

“Falcón claims that escalating housing costs — spurred by gentrification — have driven lower-income Hispanics out of once predominately Latino neighborhoods of Bushwick, Williamsburg and Sunset Park. Puerto Ricans, in particular, had a strong presence in those areas.”

In the last 13 years, the Hispanic community has shrunk 13 percent in Bushwick and fallen 16 percent over a similar period in Williamsburg.

Falcón told the Post that this is a worrying trend,

“This provides a disturbing window into the possible future of the city’s Latino population if the city’s affordable-housing program does not take into account community calls for much deeper affordability than is currently being planned.”

It can be hard to quantify the real-life effects of gentrification and demographic change, but data over a fifteen year period demonstrates that the last decade and a half has caused a mass exodus of Hispanic populations out of neighborhoods like Williamsburg and Bushwick.

This is disturbing data for the Hispanic community and New Yorkers at large. As gentrification continues to change the face of New York, solutions are required as the City risks becoming more segregated and homogeneous.

It would be encouraging to see some sort of legislation introduced to halt the tide of gentrification and rising housing prices in traditionally working class neighborhoods.

De Blas, where you at?

Prince Aday was born in Brooklyn, New York to Nigerian parents who moved to the states in the late 1980s.

At 8 years old, Prince traveled back to Africa to attend Nigerian boarding school. After graduating and re-landing in Brooklyn once again, Prince got to work. He told Kulture Hub about growing up in NYC and Nigeria.

“I was in boarding school for almost 6 years, so for the most part of my childhood years I was adapting to the mentality of ‘survival’ since being overseas. Now, living in New York City, I really see it’s a jungle and like any jungle you find yourself in, it’s survival of the fittest.”

Prince always considered himself a creative and over the years he tried his hand at different forms of artistry; styling, photography, clothing, and jewelry design.

He cites his favorite jewelers to be Cartier and Andy Lifeschutz, and his favorite photographer as Eugeen Herman.

“I enjoy doing lifestyle, fashion and conceptual art. My favorite picture setting to capture is life – unplanned and right in the moment.”

If there’s one thing to be recognized by Herman’s art, it’s his ability to stimulate even the most tame settings and cut them with sexual undertones through a prevalent nude color scheme found in all his photos.

Scrolling down his Instagram page, Prince’s photography encapsulates sexual nature, much like Herman, but focuses on the ethereal beauty of his subjects.

Unlike Herman, Prince’s art expands beyond the nude palette, but often resurges back to a simple black and white representation of uniformity, with pop colors making an appearance every so often.

Picture Perfect.

A post shared by Prince Aday (@princeaday) on Jul 17, 2017 at 3:08pm PDT

Jewelry design became more than a hobby in 2012.

Prince launched his Rome & Tale brand and even included a couple of keychain accessories to go with the trinkets at the time.

another day another hashtag another crisis to last a lifetime another tragedy another empty seat at the dinner table another piece of evidence of the racism so ingrained in our cultures. #blacklivesmatter

A post shared by Rome And Tale (@romeandtale) on Jul 8, 2016 at 1:15pm PDT

The perfect timing

A post shared by Rome And Tale (@romeandtale) on Jan 20, 2017 at 7:15pm PST

Prince spoke about that time,

“During that period, everyone around me was creating clothing brands and I wanted something different. I also couldn’t afford the jewelry I wanted (the Cartier Love bracelet) at the time, and that drew me more into exploring the process behind making jewelry.”

Rome & Tale was born and picked up immediately, worn by known celebrities like Terrence J, Jhené Aiko, and Alicia Keys.

Grammy-nominated singer Jhené Aiko in a festival look wearing our 18kt gold colossal choker for her summer tour | styled by @adesamuel ✨#jheneaiko #jhene #choker #romeandtale #fashion #instylemagazine #vogue #style

A post shared by Rome And Tale (@romeandtale) on Aug 11, 2016 at 7:10pm PDT

Alicia Keys featured in an exclusive cover story on @FactMag wearing our silver ‘Taimei’ bracelet. #romeandtale #aliciaishere

A post shared by Rome And Tale (@romeandtale) on Nov 4, 2016 at 5:17pm PDT

“My favorite project that I’ve worked on so far is ‘the process collection’ by Rome & Tale. It was mainly influenced by the experiences both my design partner (Kevin) and I encountered over the year as we were putting the collection together. The collection drew inspiration from the women that were in our lives, the technicality behind getting the pieces made, places we visited and life as a whole. We’re still designing pieces that ties into it.”

Now, Prince has brought together his many hats under one umbrella company: A DAY LIVING. The platform produces content for creatives across a range of unique quality.

“It was inspired by the concept of the Justice League – an alliance of powerful beings with a common goal – and working closely with creatives like Sooflyt & Zomon, one of our common goals is to produce content with cultural depth and value.”

Embracing each client for their distinctive originality, A DAY LIVING cherishes art in all forms, working with distinguished names like Chris Brown, Sira Kante, Diggy, and Mr. Eazi.

Prince’s personal inspiration for photography is derived from his existential self. Through his pictures, his moods are expressed clearly – the light, the dark, the straight and the wavy.

“My inspiration is life – the beauty of it, how we all have the highs and lows. I can’t label my photos in one theme – some make you feel, some are just artistic captures, and some are conceptual.”

Natural scenes seem to be a natural affinity for Prince, his artistic eye is able to capture the acclimated beauty of Central Park and approximate it to an effortlessly stunning evening in Senegal.

For young creatives interested in launching their own careers, Prince offers some of his own advice:

“Find someone that’s above you in that particular business, shadow them, get advice from them and take risks always, because the safest bet in life is betting on yourself – especially when it’s for self-elevation.”

He concludes our interview with a piece of mind he believes is important for everyone to hear, vibes as positive as ever.

“If you’re reading this, understand that success isn’t sudden and the society we live in makes it seem as so. Move at your own pace, and see your journey as a marathon and not race. Trust your patience and you’ll overcome every obstacles that comes your way. Bless!”

Word to Prince!

“You got a number?”

I think this was the only question coming from everyone’s mouth on Thursday when Supreme opened its doors to a new home in Brooklyn.

Located at 152 Grand Street, it’s a little odd as to why Supreme chose that area to begin with. Before Supreme made the official announcement, there were rumors already circulating through all media platforms that the opening would be happening soon.

Finally, when the news did break out, people were left wondering exactly what procedure they would follow.

Swipe for a recap of Supreme Brooklyn’s store opening party. If in the area, be sure to stop by the new @supremenewyork flagship at 152 Grand Street. Photo: HYPEBEAST

A post shared by HYPEBEAST Style (@hypebeaststyle) on Oct 4, 2017 at 8:49pm PDT

Now, for those who don’t know about Supreme’s system, it’s really no secret. However, if you don’t know it by now, I don’t know what to tell you. Not that I want to be a dick about it but if you really want something bad, you find the means of getting it and do some research. In my case, I buy Supreme for myself and I can tell you for a fact, it’s gotten a whole lot harder to cop.

Anyways, the system now is that you have to go to a certain website every Monday and try to make a “reservation”. This reservation is for a spot on line at the actual store.

However, it is not a sure thing and it does not guarantee that you will get the item(s) you want. Then, the day before the drop, a text message is sent out with your spot in line and what time you should arrive at the store.

That feeling when Supreme Brooklyn never texts you a number😓 pic.twitter.com/TfmEqsMxDv

— yung48 v2 (@SickoRager) October 4, 2017

The same procedure was used for the grand opening. Long story short, I, like everyone else, tried my luck on making the reservation. Wednesday comes and this is what I receive:

I don’t want to say what number I got but let’s just say, it would’ve made anyone’s day. Opening day comes and outside the store is mayhem. Equal parts hypebeasts and resellers, asking the same question: “You got a number?”

Outside the store were a few dozen security guards, dressed in suits, listening to the instructions on how the queue was going to be formed. Beside them were a few police officers, waiting for things to get out of hand so they could shut the event down.

It took at least 3 different security guards to tell me where I was supposed to get my ticket. Each one had to radio someone to find out where the lineup was going to start. Finally, as I made my way to the right location, a few resellers came my way, one of which kept interrogating me asking if I was going to buy something.

https://twitter.com/dssardannaa/status/915270374136467456

“Yo, let me talk to you”, “What you getting?” and “You selling?” were the lines thrown my way. The resellers were fishing that day. And no one seemed to bite.

After verifying my ID and credit card, I waited with the others, who kept asking each other what they were purchasing. The obvious candidate was the opening box logo. A few minutes passed by and security led a few people to the front of store.

When we finally arrived there, one of the workers specifically pointed out a gentleman across the street from us and warned us that if we were caught selling to him, we would be banned from the store.

The reseller knew he was talking about him so he started laughing.

https://twitter.com/LilDumbIdiot/status/917444436845584384

For the store opening, they had a few items from previous releases in stock. Tees from the first drop (except for the Nas tee) were on display along with hoodies, pants, hats, and accessories.

Even the Supreme/Andis clippers were up for grabs as well as the three-sneaker Andres Serrano x Supreme x Vans collection. That same day, a few new pieces also dropped. The highly anticipated Stone Island collab with Supreme was made available.

As the workers were busy getting everything sorted out for each customer, it was still chaos. Bins of clothing and accessories were brought out from the back for each customer.

However, the box logo was only available at the register so as not to confuse them with the other items. Security inside the store made sure no one used their phone to record or make calls. OG head Jeff Pang made sure everything ran smoothly and at a quick pace. Behind the register was the big skateboarding ramp.

https://twitter.com/OnusOfficial/status/915734015579213824

The night before was the Friends and Family event and the likes of Eric Koston and Mark Gonzales were the highlight of the event when they were filmed skateboarding on the ramp.

I have never been to a Supreme store opening. The last store opening was the one in France and it was said to have been crazy and an all out frenzy.

Who knows when the next store opening will be and where but it will sure be one hell of a story to report.

Female empowerment squad Camel Assembly is letting people know what it truly means to to be a feminist. The group’s main goal is to shift consciousness by involving all genders.

The New York City-based collective of goddesses are going against the grain. They want to plant a mental seed in women all around the globe.

The seed will flourish and grow the idea that women can achieve their dreams, no matter what obstacle stands in front of them.

But for Camel Assembly, the future is not just female, it’s everyone’s. In order to make that happen, Camel Assembly want people to construct a new narrative.

That narrative calls for females to “lay a path for a unified future.”

So how does one draw a line between the divide? You have to stop keeping score. Peep how co-founder, Keshia Hannam, is looking to revolutionize gender equality,

“The modern revolutionary cares less about leaving the city in flames and more for being responsible for the construction of new one, and in our context, men and women must be laying those bricks together if we’re to weather any kind of storm in the years to come. But we will know the #thefutureisours when we’re no longer keeping score.”

Last year, Camel assembly came together and gave back to disadvantaged women who don’t have access to feminine hygiene products. The group banded together and made backpacks filled with hygienic goodies attached with love letters.

Peep the goddesses go to work, flexing for women in need.

Now Camel Assembly is looking to flex again. They’re throwing a block party of the baddies Saturday, September 23, 2017 called BK Assembly: Give Back To The Block Party.

The event is focused on donating to four local charities Brooklyn Community Housing, Brooklyn Rescue Mission, NYPCC, and Safe Horizons.

Half of each $10 ticket will be donated to a concern of each patron’s choice – Affordable Housing, Mental Health Awareness, Food Security, and Sexual and Domestic Abuse Awareness.

Now that’s a party with a good cause. The event will also host 15 different artists who will perform live on stage. Don’t miss out on a great time.

BK Assembly: Give Back To The Block Party will go down at the The Paper Box in Brooklyn, NY from 4 PM to 8 PM.

If you are interested in going, cop your ticket here.

Some poor soul in BK was the victim of a sinkhole incident.

At the intersection of Myrtle Ave & Walworth St, FDNY responded to an emergency call regarding Steven Suarez who got one of his legs eaten by a tiny asphalt pit.

The Daily News reported, “Steven Suarez was pushing a hand truck and crossing a street in Clinton Hill shortly after 11 a.m. when the ground gave way beneath his feet and trapped him in the crosswalk for nearly an hour.”

Peep the Sinkhole that almost peaced Suarez

.@FDNY removed the guys feet from the sinkhole, was taken to hospital, use caution in the area, avoid open sinkhole. pic.twitter.com/qAhAYKYmkM

— WILLIAMSBURG NEWS (@WMSBG) August 29, 2017

Can you imagine minding your own business when suddenly you just get sucked in by the streets? I would just start praying for my soul not to be taken by whatever is underneath me.

Suarez was shook as he had no idea what the fate of his entire right leg would be.

He told the the Daily News, “It was terrifying,” said Suarez, 33, of Staten Island. “I didn’t know what was going on. I didn’t know whether I was going to sink into the floor or what was happening. I was scared. It was my whole entire right leg, up until my tailbone basically.”

Mind you this happened at an intersection so cars were still driving by Suarez’s 3/4 of a body. It was not until pedestrians tried to stop the cars passing by, some traffic cops pulled up, the fire department arrived, and 10 minutes of slow tugging that Suarez was freed from the hole.

“There were cars speeding and passing me, and the pedestrians were trying to stop them. Then the police came and they were controlling the traffic around me until the fire department came down. It was five to 10 minutes. But when I was down there, I wasn’t paying attention to the time, I just wanted to get out.”

Sheesh! The funny part Suarez told his boss at King County Auto Body he wanted to drive today but his boss rightfully declined and said, “it’s not raining yet, walk.”

What a dick.

Most importantly Suarez will be OK as he was taken to the hospital for minor trauma to his leg. Also according to Daily News the “The 5-inch wide, 2-foot deep” pothole will be filled with asphalt.

With rumors of Supreme opening a new store in Brooklyn it looks like they got some money to throw around.

The only other location in the US just closed down to move. Pictures of the Supreme LA store without its famous banner have surfaced.

Bye Felicia R.I.P. 👋🏻

A post shared by Vlad Elkin (@highinla) on Aug 10, 2017 at 9:19am PDT

Of course Supreme isn’t just going to leave the West Coast without a store as they left a sign saying they are moving.

Instagram user @yungflexmaster was passing by and caught a video of the naked store front.

⛈

A post shared by @yungflexmaster on Aug 10, 2017 at 4:17pm PDT

The big question is will Supreme have time to open another LA store by the fall season comes around again?

They must’ve been planning this move for a while now because there’s no way they would leave LA without a store.

Word on the street is that the new store will end up in the art district around where the L.V. x Supreme pop up shop was.

With how well the collab did you know they have mad money and probably decided to upgrade their stores.

I mean, we might be getting another in New York but that was kinda necessary.
Comparing sizes, the NY store is by far one of the smallest.

Only Preme knows the real reason for the LA change, but let’s hope its dope.