{"@context":"http://iiif.io/api/presentation/3/context.json","id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/iiif/mk6542mc3h/manifest","type":"Manifest","label":{"en":["Shawn Chandler Oral History"]},"logo":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/organizations/logo_images/000/000/010/original/Aviary_QPLlogo_192x192.png?1578574261","metadata":[{"label":{"en":["Description"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eShawn Chandler is an educator and a longtime Rochdale Village resident. Chandler speaks with interviewer Syreeta Gates about his childhood memories of growing up in Rochdale Village starting circa 1990; in addition to playing youth football in the community, he recalls noticing the presence of community leaders and a strong collaborative spirit among residents. Regarding the history of Rochdale Village as a housing cooperative, Chandler discusses the community's population change from predominantly Jewish to predominantly African American, the decline in community amenities and activities over time, and the poor leadership of an entrenched and powerful co-op board. Chandler describes his work as a mentor to boys in Rochdale Village and as a community advocate trying to encourage more residents to mentor and otherwise participate in initiatives that help and support fellow community members.\u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eChandler discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both the senior population of Rochdale Village and the young adult student population that he works with as an educator; he also shares his thoughts about possible changes to educational curricula and teaching methods post-pandemic. Additionally, Chandler speaks about Rochdale Village's potential as a Black Wall Street and a community that is more self-sufficient and better prepared to respond to future pandemics and other crises.\u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003ePhoto: Rochdale Village apartment complex in South Jamaica, Queens, New York. By James Wood - Own work, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons, \u003ca href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4897445\"\u003ehttps://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4897445\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"]}},{"label":{"en":["Rights Statement"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eCC BY-NC-SA Contact digitalarchives@queenslibrary.org for research and reproduction requests.\u003c/p\u003e"]}},{"label":{"en":["Source Metadata URI"]},"value":{"en":["http://digitalarchives.queenslibrary.org/search/browse/45907"]}},{"label":{"en":["Date"]},"value":{"en":["2020-08-07 (created)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Type"]},"value":{"en":["Audio"]}},{"label":{"en":["Agent"]},"value":{"en":["Shawn Chandler (Interviewee)","Syreeta Gates (Interviewer)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Source"]},"value":{"en":["Interview conducted as part of the Queens Memory COVID-19 Project."]}},{"label":{"en":["Coverage"]},"value":{"en":["1990s-2020 (temporal)","Rochdale Village, Queens, NY (spatial)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Language"]},"value":{"en":["English"]}}],"summary":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eShawn Chandler is an educator and a longtime Rochdale Village resident. Chandler speaks with interviewer Syreeta Gates about his childhood memories of growing up in Rochdale Village starting circa 1990; in addition to playing youth football in the community, he recalls noticing the presence of community leaders and a strong collaborative spirit among residents. Regarding the history of Rochdale Village as a housing cooperative, Chandler discusses the community's population change from predominantly Jewish to predominantly African American, the decline in community amenities and activities over time, and the poor leadership of an entrenched and powerful co-op board. Chandler describes his work as a mentor to boys in Rochdale Village and as a community advocate trying to encourage more residents to mentor and otherwise participate in initiatives that help and support fellow community members.\u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003eChandler discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both the senior population of Rochdale Village and the young adult student population that he works with as an educator; he also shares his thoughts about possible changes to educational curricula and teaching methods post-pandemic. Additionally, Chandler speaks about Rochdale Village's potential as a Black Wall Street and a community that is more self-sufficient and better prepared to respond to future pandemics and other crises.\u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003ePhoto: Rochdale Village apartment complex in South Jamaica, Queens, New York. By James Wood - Own work, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons, \u003ca href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4897445\"\u003ehttps://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4897445\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"]},"requiredStatement":{"label":{"en":["Attribution"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003eCC BY-NC-SA Contact digitalarchives@queenslibrary.org for research and reproduction requests.\u003c/p\u003e"]}},"provider":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/aboutus","type":"Agent","label":{"en":["Queens Public Library"]},"homepage":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/","type":"Text","label":{"en":["Queens Public Library"]},"format":"text/html"}],"logo":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/organizations/logo_images/000/000/010/original/Aviary_QPLlogo_192x192.png?1578574261","type":"Image"}]}],"thumbnail":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/collection_resource_files/thumbnails/000/297/570/small/Rochdale_Village_copy.jpg?1763578772","type":"Image","format":"image/jpeg"}],"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570","type":"Canvas","label":{"en":["Media File 1 of 1 - chandler_shawn_20200807_full.m4a"]},"duration":2778.56,"width":640,"height":360,"thumbnail":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/collection_resource_files/thumbnails/000/297/570/small/Rochdale_Village_copy.jpg?1763578772","type":"Image","format":"image/jpeg"}],"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/content/1","type":"AnnotationPage","items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/content/1/annotation/1","type":"Annotation","motivation":"painting","body":{"id":"https://aviary-p-queenslibrary.s3.wasabisys.com/collection_resource_files/resource_files/000/297/570/original/chandler_shawn_20200807_full.m4a?1763577778","type":"Audio","format":"audio/mp3","duration":2778.56,"width":640,"height":360},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570","metadata":[]}]}],"annotations":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102","type":"AnnotationPage","label":{"en":["Full Transcript [Transcript]"]},"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/1","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: And then we're going to hop in. So Chandler, thank you again for saying yes, for rocking out. My first request is that you say and spell your name for me.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=0.0,13.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/2","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Yeah. My first name is Shawn, S-H-A-W-N. Last name is Chandler, C-H-A-N-D-L-E-R.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=13.0,21.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/3","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Great. And so, we need to get permission to use this audio. So if you can say, I, Shawn Chandler, consent the Queens Public Library's use of this content.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=21.0,31.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/4","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Yes. I, Shawn Chandler, consent for the Queens Public Library to use anything I say currently as content via media or any other way.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=31.0,42.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/5","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Cool. Thank you. Tell me about yourself.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=42.0,45.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/6","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So my name is Shawn Chandler. I'm an educator for over 15 years in the New York City Department of Education. I'm a father and a husband. I have a business called Sing To School Incorporated, which educates children using music. I also am a writer, and most importantly I'm a community advocate for where I live at, which is in Rochdale Village, Queens, which is probably the second largest Mitchell-Lama Cooperative in New York. And I'm very, very active—I try to be active in the community.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=45.0,82.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/7","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Haha. LOL [laughing out loud] at try to be [laughter]. You certainly are. Talk to me a bit about how—your background growing up in Queens and how your family got to Queens.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=82.0,93.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/8","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: I was born in Queens, actually. I first lived on a block with my mom, my father, and my brother, and my grandmother on 145th Street near—not too far from Sutphin [Boulevard]. And then I moved to Rochdale over 30 years ago. And growing up, when I first came to Rochdale Village, I mean it's 5,860 apartments in Rochdale. So, you can imagine the difference of living on a block and a house, and then moving into this enormous 120 acres of land, predominantly African-American. I've never seen anything like it in my life. And it was just so different that everything, all activities, everything was just so much of a community. Like I said, cooperative, you know, people cooperating with each other was amazing.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=93.0,147.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/9","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And to this day, I am the person who I am today because I grew up in a cooperative where people work together, spend their money together. And, well, we used to assemble, now it's a little bit difficult, but we'll get into that later. But, that's pretty much my childhood growing up in Rochdale. I did a lot of things. Played sports. Just like I said, we had community rooms of activities. We had teams, we had community leaders, and a lot of that is not the same, again, you know what I mean? But that's how I grew up and became the person I am today. So I grew up amongst many African American men who were involved in the community and advocates of the community, as well as women, but I do remember many Black men who were involved in Rochdale Village. And so, that's why I am who I am today.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=147.0,204.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/10","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. Got it. And, can you share like two of your fondest memories of growing up in Queens?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=204.0,209.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/11","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: My fondest—that's a good, that's a great question. My fondest memories. Wow! I mean, little—I can give you a simple one. To this day of—seeing how today's society is with social media and how kids are locked into their homes, living in Rochdale Village was totally the opposite. You have all this land. I mean, 120 acres of land. And then—I'll give you a simplistic example which would be, we had a big mound of dirt, you know what I mean? It was basically a big mound—they were doing construction, I believe—and it was called the mountains and we all would basically go to the mountain, slide down this big dirt and we would all meet there. It was really simple, but it was a huge thing where everybody in Rochdale would do it. It was incredible, right? That's one thing.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=209.0,265.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/12","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And then, I think my next experience would be, what I can remember, I used to play football. It was a football team that was started in my community when I was a kid. And that was huge because it gave me an opportunity—because Rochdale was so big—it gave me an opportunity to interact with other kids who are from my community who were on the other side of the Village. But the bond that was created—I'll never forget—the bond that was created in this football team, which we don't have one today, was incredible. And to this day, I will never forget the coaches involved. There was a police officer named Leroy, he was basically the main coach, and all the—it was a lot of assistant coaches, many of them lived in Rochdale [unclear].","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=265.0,315.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/13","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And it was just an experience, just, a bonding, a brotherhood with these guys. Basketball wasn't, at that time, we had basketball [unclear] but this football team was a little bit different. And the guys that we bonded with, it was incredible. To this day, I still know them. But that was something I remembered as a kid and always looking forward to going to practice. And, when you're doing something like that, you're not in trouble. You're focused on your friends, you're focused on the sport. You know, you're not on the Boulevard or something like that. So, I will never forget that experience. And, again, the volunteerism involved by these men, that allowed me to be a better person.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=315.0,360.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/14","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. Got it. And you mentioned this briefly, but I would love for you to talk more in depth around, like, what makes Rochdale Village special.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=360.0,371.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/15","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: [clears throat] Excuse me. Rochdale is very special. We talk about—many people, because of what's going on now and demonstrations—a lot of people are talking more and more via social media about Black Wall Street. And, currently, Rochdale is predominantly African-American for a very long time, but is an example of what could be the Black Wall Street. You have all these people who work different types of jobs and careers. You have lawyers, doctors, blue collar workers. You have athletes that live in Rochdale, executives, I mean, media executives, archivists like Syreeta Gates. You have all, I mean, you name it, you have them here. And to see that, this is something that you see constantly in social media, people preaching about Black people sticking together, working together, and basically, economically, we put our money together to get things that we want.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=371.0,439.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/16","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: We have our own power plant, which is incredible. We generate our own electricity, which, I mean, people, some people, they see that, they see 20 buildings in a cooperative, first, they don't even know it's cooperative. They see 20 buildings, they automatically think projects. I remember in high school, people would try to crack a joke and I'm like, \"Wait, hold up.\" Just now the lights went out in New York City, not too long ago, and I'm proud that we live in a community where our power is still generated because we have our own power plant. I mean, that's incredible.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=439.0,472.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/17","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: I mean, Rochdale is close to JFK airport [John F. Kennedy International Airport]. We have the Long Island Rail Road here. We have representatives. We've had Councilmen who actually lived here. So, it has a wealth of individuals here who collectively make this place special. It needs some work, but it definitely is something that, again, to see a bunch of Black people together and see what it could be and the possibilities is just great.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=472.0,509.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/18","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. Got it. And share with me a little bit about the difference from Rochdale now versus, like, back in the day. Like, I remember hearing people saying like, \"Oh, there was a skating rink in Rochdale.\" Like, what?!","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=509.0,529.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/19","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Yeah. Do you really want me to answer this question?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=529.0,531.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/20","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Sure.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=531.0,535.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/21","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Okay, I'll tell you what happened. The decrease in activities has all got to do with—so, many people will blame, my perspective is a little bit different as a community advocate. It's very different than, I would say, the normal cooperative or shareholder because—and I say that because I've been involved and I've dealt with many aspects of the corporation. So for me, for example, you're right, we had a skating rink. I believe we had indoor tennis courts in the big mall. We had a movie theater. We had things in our laundromats. And I think—and previously before Rochdale was predominantly African-American, it was a Jewish community. And the Jewish community, I believe, the community, like, we have community rooms in every single building that we have.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=535.0,595.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/22","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And I just think that at the time, before African-Americans moved in, those community rooms were used more to—as well as the community center that we have—were used to have more programming and implementing activities and things of that nature. What happened is that, I believe, greed happened. We have a lack of participation in our community because some people are lacking it, but the powers that be, we have a majority, a political majority that's been here for 30 years. That's a big problem. We have an election coming up in October and many people are talking about term limits because they are frustrated in this community about the poor leadership.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=595.0,646.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/23","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: This leadership has been a—I'm not going to blame it all on them because, again, as you can see, like I said, we live in an era right now where people are rising up against oppression and opposition. And so, that's what we have to do in this community. But unfortunately, the leadership, the majority, we have Board members, we have Board members that are here in Rochdale, and to me, they've been a big problem. And, I can say that because I've dealt with them in reference to advocacy to this community. And, I've experienced personally them preventing bids for power, preventing, so, I think that is a big reason. You know, we have a predominantly senior citizen community, which we all love and appreciate. They have a lot of power because of their voting power. So, the majority Board members basically are in a situation where if they can appease the seniors, they have a higher chance of getting elected.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=646.0,715.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/24","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So many times our community—I'll give you an example. We have a nonprofit in this community. I mean, it's all documented. I mean, it's not like [unclear]. We have a nonprofit. If you look at our nonprofit and you review, the nonprofit is supposed to focus on seniors, youth and people with physical disabilities. If you look at where the money is going, the money goes to the seniors. I'm not making this up. It's a fact. So, what happens is, we have a situation where the youth are neglected, and I don't think anyone would dispute over that. The youth are neglected in our community, and the forces that be are in control, and that's the problem.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=715.0,765.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/25","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: They've suppressed people's right to assemble. For example, in Rochdale Village currently right now, they—and I'm sad to say this because I love my community. I'm sad to say that they've pretty much—which just violates laws and everything—they're not allowing people to assemble in the community rooms as organizations for tenants. So if you, they—it's in writing. If you want to organize in your building, they're not even allowing you to do that, which is absurd. Like you can't, you cannot organize in your building or your, or—Rochdale is broken up into five circles. That is a detrimental policy that was purposely put in place to empower them to stay in power. Now, the damage is going to be done, so much, tremendously, because if the people in the community can't interact with each other, it's going to fall apart.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=765.0,823.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/26","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And as you see, Rochdale is just not the same as it used to be. Do I think it can get better? Yes, I do. How can it get better? We definitely need a progressive movement. We need to change the leadership. And, this is an ongoing theme across America right now. You know, [Donald] Trump, the establishment. And so, you have people who've been in control, you have Board members who have been in power for years. That political party, what is it called? Concerned Cooperators? The Coalition of Concerned Cooperators have, in the last 15 years, I personally think destroyed this community. So, that's basically, that's basically how I feel. Based on the facts, not an emotion. But that's why, you know, people are disturbed by what's going on in Rochdale. They're like, \"Oh, there's nothing going on.\" All the choices made somewhere along the line that the majority on the Board had, perhaps, something to do with it.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=823.0,892.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/27","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So, the frustrations though, the people that live here, the frustration is not high enough yet for them to say, \"You know what? We got to get them out of here.\" But again, you'd be surprised about, like I said, the law that was, the policy that was created, which is actually illegal. When people—a lot of people don't even know about it because maybe they don't read the paper or the fine print when they go to the Board meetings. They are disgusted about a display of arguing and so they don't stay for the Board meetings. You know, it's a lot of drama. So, the community has changed, but I do not put the blame on just the Cooperators. A lot of blame goes to the powers that be, many of the majority Board members, majority [unclear]. So—","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=892.0,944.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/28","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. Thank you for sharing that. I think we want to switch it up a little bit. Talk to me about how COVID has impacted your life.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=944.0,959.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/29","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Oh, yeah. I mean, COVID-19 has—before COVID-19, I had requested from our management company, for example, I said, \"Listen, we have a lot of seniors here in our community.\" A lot of seniors here. We have, we do have a program for our seniors, a NORC [naturally occurring retirement community] program. And, what was, is, devastating about that is that many seniors needed help. And, luckily there was a—I mean, I don't know if you know Kevin Livingston. He currently has, well he, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he basically was giving meals to seniors and trying his best to provide for our senior population. But, I think it, COVID-19 kind of like showed us that, hey, listen, we are a cooperative. And, if something happens, we need to be prepared to deal with different things, especially for our seniors, because they needed assistance. And, I think it kind of just showed that we weren't prepared, like many other people aren't prepared for this pandemic in reference to cleaning and everything else.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=959.0,1032.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/30","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: But, it definitely has—you have many people who can't pay their carrying charges. You had seniors who needed food, they needed access to food, they needed deliveries. And, I just think the, knowing what seniors live amongst us—again, we do have a program. We do have programs here for seniors, but not all seniors are involved in those programs. So, we have some seniors who are left out, and the cooperative here, we have to establish a better plan to identify people who need help. And it's, and again, Rochdale is, for many people who don't live here, Rochdale is five circles and each circle is over a thousand apartments. So, one circle probably is, I guess, I don't know, maybe the size of Baisley Projects, just one circle.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1032.0,1085.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/31","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So you have all—you have many seniors in there. So when COVID-19 hits, you have people who, like I said, they were frightened to get outside, which is a terrible thing. So, it was devastating. We have, one thing, essential workers here in our community, we've got many essential workers that live in Rochdale. And I definitely applaud them, besides clapping for them, which I think was a great gesture, but when you live—I live, on my floor, I have two nurses that live on my floor. I have another essential worker who is a—she's in the armed forces. She works for [unclear] Fire Department. You see, these are your neighbors. And it just was an eye opener to the fact that we have to appreciate those people that live around here.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1085.0,1138.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/32","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: COVID-19 was deadly. People died that—oh my God. A friend, a great, a good friend of mine, and he was a youth advocate, when he passed away, that really shook me up because it was at that point, I think once that happened, it really, I was like, \"You know, this is really not a game.\" And so to have so many people living amongst each other—it was scary because in a building, the elevators and things like that, it was very scary, but we're getting through it. And, it's, I think moving forward, we'll know how to react better in this situation. But it was very frightening.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1138.0,1192.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/33","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And again, the seniors, I think the plan, I think we need a food pantry in our community ourselves to help seniors. We have a community center, but we don't currently have a stove. And, that's something that we have to think about, you know? If this happens again, do we have on record this person, who do we go to, things like that, but that's really about it. COVID-19 is still causing problems, but it's getting better.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1192.0,1227.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/34","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Indeed. And talk to me about COVID in relation to you being an educator. Like, what does that now look like for your young people that you work with, how you've had to, like, reimagine the work that you do, et cetera.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1227.0,1243.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/35","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Yeah, well currently, now I'm an Attendance Teacher with the Board of Education. So my job is basically—I work for a program, Pathways to Graduation. It's an excellent program to, basically it allows—we don't say GED [General Educational Development] anymore, but pretty much people know GED, high school equivalency. Basically we are, we give kids, students, an opportunity from the ages of 17 to 21 to take their high school equivalency. So when COVID-19 hit, for me, you know, at this point, again, like I said, I would go out. If students are absent, I have to—I would go out and try to get them back in school and get them re-engaged. So for me, a lot of it then changed. You really couldn't go out to people's homes.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1243.0,1295.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/36","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: I'm hoping this time, in September it seems that we will be going back to school. I don't know if it will be a hybrid system as of yet, but they're still working on that. But I do, as an education, excuse me, an educator in general, I do have some concerns of students who are falling through the cracks, because remote learning is not for everyone, and the implementation of it was just—it was very difficult to do. You know, many of my co-workers are trying their best, principals are doing their best to get it started, but you definitely have some students who might not do well in remote learning. But, that's a concern.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1295.0,1345.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/37","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So, I'm looking forward to going back to work to get—because, we, of course, while we do need children to graduate from high school, we also do need, we have a population who are trying to get their high school equivalency who also need to graduate. So, I mean, I guess, in my experience, I have, like I said, 15 years or more. And so, now for me, I'm like, listen, I, you know, I want to make sure that if the kids have to go back to school, or they're supposed to be going to school, that they have the opportunity, that they actually are coming back to school. Or if they need services—you have some students that might need certain things, and maybe they don't want to come to school to get it, you know. If I can go out and help get it to them, then, hey, so be it.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1345.0,1391.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/38","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So, I'm looking forward to going back in, how should I say, in a safe, precaution, taking precautions, obviously wearing a mask, things like that. But, if I need to go out to see my students in a safe way, then I definitely—and it's going to help, and we're going to get more students to graduate—I'm definitely looking forward to that. But yeah, it's going to—it's one of those situations where, you know, remote learning right now, for some people, it's been a great experience, for others, they're still trying to make adjustments. So, just trying to find out what is going to be the best for our students at this particular time. But it is a difference. Huge difference.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1391.0,1433.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/39","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. And talk to me about what you believe the future of education would look like after COVID?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1433.0,1440.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/40","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: I think you're going to have schools who are going to have hybrid situations. You're going to have many schools, in my opinion, that you go to school three, four days out of the week. Maybe on another day, you're doing field trips or you're doing something else. When you're getting an education, education, books, just books, reading books and answering questions, that won't be what an education is supposed to be. I think you're going to find out that the world is changing as we know it, and the school system has to change as well. I think you're going to see an increase in vocational training. You will see, especially in New York City, you will see an increase in vocational training and also any way where [unclear]—it won't be that students are forced to go to school just to go to school. It has to make sense. So, you won't have to go Monday through Friday. I think those days are going to be over.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1440.0,1507.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/41","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Maybe not 2021, but as we get over COVID-19, I think people will be able to prepare even more and think about, hey, how does this make sense? Like I said, we have vocational training, but we need more. We need more schools that will give training to the students. And we also have other—there's other people talking about different things like real estate, you know, different ideas popping up. So I think you are going to have more creative schools with different missions and remote learning will be a part of it. And, you remember how you used to have internships? So, imagine internships starting out very early. Instead of high school internships, starting out in middle school as opposed to high school. That's what I believe is the future.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1507.0,1559.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/42","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: It doesn't, it really doesn't make, again, it doesn't, we have to think about—I don't think we should be focused on what's wrong, we should be focused on how do we get a child to be the best that he or she can be in a particular career. So, if you tell me it's being an archivist, for example, things that you needed to do to become a great archivist, now that I know that, then I set up a plan for someone else in that age. I mean, I have a daughter and my daughter plays tennis. I mean, literally, you can, you could be playing tennis, for example, at a very early age, but they train you a certain way at an early age—they don't wait late, you don't wait late. And, I use sports as an example, but that's pretty much what we do. We have to find the right methods to train our youth so that they will be prepared for the future.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1559.0,1625.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/43","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And it doesn't necessarily mean sitting down on a desk Monday through Friday eight to two or whatever, or excuse me, eight to two-fifty or whatever the case may be. It could mean, hey, you're going to be on Wall Street from 9 o'clock on Friday. 9 o'clock, you're going to be down in Wall Street and you're going to be working with whoever the case may be. Or, you'll be working with Syreeta Gates. In eighth grade, you're working with Syreeta Gates for an hour or two hours per week, as opposed to being in school. So, I mean, that's what I think. Or real estate or whatever the case may be, you know what I mean? I think it's going to change that way. But that's my opinion. I'm not at the top of the Board of Education.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1625.0,1674.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/44","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: [laughs] Got it. Got it. So, I want to talk about your community work. You kind of shared what inspired you, but what is the work that you are doing and have been doing for quite some time?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1674.0,1686.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/45","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Well, I've been doing different—currently right now, for example, I started, I did this before, I had a mentoring program. I have one now with kids, boys, who are middle school age who live in my community. And we have a lot—this is another thing—we have a lot of youth in our community. And one big problem that is not very well documented, and I've requested specifically to different agencies in my community, because I said, you can't come out with programming and activities if you have an overwhelming, for example, if you have an overwhelming female population in our community, let's say you have girls who are of a certain age or toddlers, I mean, that, you need that information to know what kind of activities and programs you need to implement, you know?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1686.0,1743.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/46","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: What I'm doing is, currently now is, I have a mentoring program, which my focus—again, we have, it's hard to tell, I guess to explain, but in Rochdale, it's divided up into five groups, like I said before. So for me, I live in one circle, I live in Circle Four. So, one of the things I was trying to do, I did it before, was to do a mentoring group for the boys that lived in my group, because I see them every day. They're my neighbors. So, the name of the mentoring program is called Mentee 5E, and we pretty much focus on, like, brotherhood, community service, activities. I said brotherhood, and education, right? So my goal is—the goal really was to start one in each group, but because we have 5,860 apartments, you definitely need more people to be involved to do something like that.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1743.0,1802.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/47","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Well, I did it in 2009, and I got some pushback because they were—they didn't like the fact that I was working in my group, which, again, is a thousand apartments. I'm working, where I'm at, it's a thousand apartments, so you can imagine how many boys that live in that area of a thousand apartments. So I'm saying, \"Listen, I'm only one man. I'm trying to find other mentors to help as well.\" But there was opposition from the Board members, not the people that live here.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1802.0,1839.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/48","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So, to this day, right now we work with—I have another mentor, Marcel. You know Marcel. He is a counselor slash social worker. He's tremendous, younger. We don't have that many, I don't want to say we don't have that many black men volunteering, but because of—the Board members make it difficult. So, basically what we've been doing is we don't even have a space to work in our community rooms. They won't allow us to use our community rooms to work with the kids who live right next to us, which is illegal, but it doesn't matter. Every Tuesday we meet. We meet at different—before COVID-19. Before COVID-19, we would have seminars. We would go out to eat. We would go out to different places to go discuss with them about the community, about how to act in the community, talk about problems they have.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1839.0,1900.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/49","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And, we were on our way to getting, like, sex education, obviously with the parents' permission, to discuss different things with these young men, to not only help them become better men as they grow up, but to become better cooperatives and, perhaps, maybe even leaders in this [unclear] slash community. So that was—right now to this day, is going great. Right now, because of COVID-19, we're still trying to keep our distance. We're still trying to do a few things with the kids while practicing social distancing, but, it's been, the response has been great from the parents.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1900.0,1945.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/50","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And again, even though I have had some opposition from Board members—they want us to use, let's say, they want us to go to the community center to meet with the boys. But again, [unclear] mentoring, I don't know how many people grew up with a mentor, but what we're doing, we're trying to meet with them on a regular basis. And again, we don't have that many mentors to help us. And, we have probably, at least, I'm going to say ten kids now, ten boys, that we really try to work with. And again, they live next door to us. So, it's a great program. They can call us. We can go outside and play basketball or whatever. So it's something that not only do you have a set date when you can meet them, but also be spontaneous. That's just one thing.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1945.0,1995.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/51","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: But in general, one great thing about being in this community, for example, like, if we need to, right now, we don't have a program. Let's say we want to do a basketball program right now, which is to include basketball training with social distancing, sort of like the NBA [National Basketball Association]. The great thing about it is that you actually could just use social media, you can do it on your own, I mean, with parents' permission, which we are all on Facebook together. We have a Facebook page, one of my circle, and we have a big Facebook page called Real Deal Rochdale, which everyone communicates via Real Deal Rochdale who is on it, about the different things that are going on within the community. Tenants rights, I help with that. Recently, I did a petition for—I feel like you got me rambling right now, but [laughs]—","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=1995.0,2053.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/52","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: No, it's all good. I'm with you. I'm with you.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2053.0,2057.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/53","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Recently, we—I did a petition. I have an organization called Rochdale New York that I started years ago. And again, I started the program noticing that—and then I'll tell you a few things we did—I started Rochdale New York because I was like, Rochdale is huge, and each circle needs to have the cooperatives come together. They need to organize, they need to work together to get things done, because Rochdale is so, so big. You know, it's like Russia. And so, if you don't have these little areas of organization and leadership, then it's going to fall apart. And that's what I wanted to prevent. And I wanted to, you know, by being on Facebook together, like Real Deal Rochdale, by communicating with each other, we can learn from each other. Show, hey, listen, this is what we did and these are examples of what we're doing. You need help? If you have tenant issues, anything, let's help each other, using social media.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2057.0,2128.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/54","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: With that being said, using Real Deal Rochdale and my other Facebook page, we were able to petition for an elevator at the Locust Manor Station, Long Island Rail Road station. So that was great. I love that initiative because we pretty much were able to get cooperatives to actually print out a petition. And the goal was just to get each cooperative to get ten signatures, and people did it. I mean, not having an elevator at the Locust Manor Station was a big thing. Like, we deserved it. And then, other communities had it, non-black communities, many areas had elevators. And it was something that was great to see because I say, \"Hey, listen. You don't have to go out and get a hundred. If you get ten and hundred other people get ten signatures, we've done our job.\" And I think that's the message, here in this co-op is that, you know what, if you do your little part and everyone else does a little part, not one person is getting exhausted, you know, overworked. And that's what I've been trying to push.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2128.0,2203.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/55","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: I definitely worked on different things with the Department of Transportation, Councilwoman Adrienne Adams. I try to stay involved in different aspects of our community because they all affect Rochdale. Every single aspect affects Rochdale, so I try sometimes to get my hands in it. Again, Rochdale has its own politics, and I fight for tenants' rights and to help cooperatives in different areas that I can, and to—I'm in this community and trying to make the best of it. You know, basketball tournaments, donations, trying to help Black owned businesses in Rochdale. Having people try to support people—many people who live in Rochdale, many people who have their own businesses—let's try to support each other.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2203.0,2260.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/56","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So, you name it. [unclear] community advocate, there's no one thing you can do. There are so many things, so many ways you can help people, especially as African-Americans living together. And just trying to show that as an example, to be a positive example to other people, like people were positive examples to me. So I've been a basketball coach. I'm not not a— thanks to Antonio [unclear] but that wasn't my thing. But you know what? He needed a coach. I did it. I jumped in and did it. So, you remember the Africa Park Classics?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2260.0,2295.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/57","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Yeah. Yeah.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2295.0,2296.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/58","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: You know, so, I mean, it was a great thing, and there's no longer anymore because of politics, Rochdale politics. But even that, jumped in as a coach, hey, I wasn't the best coach in the world, but, hey, listen, there's something, I said, \"You know what? I love to see this going on.\" So, that's what I try to do in this community. Anything—a lot of ways that I can try to help out while remaining a husband and a dad, trying to do all of that, it is a great feeling. It brings me joy doing it. So, I do a lot, but I'm not, I don't—don't get me wrong, I know some people that are doing way more than I am. But just always thinking about helping somebody else, I think that's very important.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2296.0,2348.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/59","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: And we definitely appreciate that work that you are doing. What does the future look like for Rochdale? Like, what is possible with that, with you continuing your community work?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2348.0,2365.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/60","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: I think the future, I think Rochdale has the ability—Rochdale has the name The Jewel of Jamaica, okay? And the jewel is a little dusty now, but what I see for the future is that the jewel will be shined. We are going to shine it up again. It's going to be bright in all areas. I think Rochdale is going to be a leader in cooperatives [unclear] a conversation to talk about. I think we're going to have our own franchises soon. We will—which would allow us to be more self sufficient. So that is going to be a big step because that is a huge theme right now in America. Black people, being self-sufficient, taking care of yourself, having your own business, and Blacks supporting their own businesses.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2365.0,2433.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/61","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So Rochdale is a 83 million dollar revenue generated co-op. It's time for us to have our own. It's time for us to have our own stores, our own franchises, our own businesses to generate more money for the cooperatives, for the people who live here. I believe that the majority Board members who are infringing the rights of cooperatives will not be in power for very long. That is my prediction. And I believe, with new Board members, new policies will come about. I think we will get back to a place where cooperatives know each other, they love each other and they are willing to help each other.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2433.0,2482.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/62","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: And I believe that you will see a huge increase in an investment of our children. I believe that. Adrienne Adams is currently our Councilwoman. She definitely is positive for this community. And I hope that anybody else, I think what's going on now is that we've—Rochdale has always had a connection with the politicians because we're a huge community, so politicians need us. But it's very important who you elect in that office. And I think social media has made people more aware and have access to information. That has been the same for Rochdale Village. People are becoming more informed, and so we will have—people have other sources to get information as opposed to one paper that we get once a month at our door.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2482.0,2549.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/63","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: So my future for Rochdale, I believe that it is going to change for the positive. I definitely believe it's going to be changed for the positive, and that people will get more involved and understand what the cooperative process, I mean, what living in a cooperative is. And, let me just clarify that, you know, all residential apartments, whether they be cooperatives or not, have their problems, and I do understand that. And, you know, trying—it takes effort to try to get people involved and active. And I think that, I think down in the future, once we change some Board members and people actually vote more, we're going to see a big change. That's what I believe.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2549.0,2601.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/64","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. And is there anything else that you want to share around COVID, around your community work, around the community in general?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2601.0,2612.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/65","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: Yeah, I think COVID-19, we definitely need more testing in our area. Before they had a testing site in Rochdale, I had asked cooperatives via social media on Real Deal Rochdale [unclear], hey guys, trying to get a feel of how people felt because it was a scary, scary situation. A lot of people had—some people wanted it without question, like, \"Yeah, definitely, we need testing.\" And right now, I think we definitely need more testing, access to testing, so people can quickly—even for antibodies testing, people, there's been some questions about antibody testing and it's not accurate all the time, but I rather people have access and get more access as opposed to not having it at all. But, I think, yes, the COVID-19 testing, initially it was a slow start and other communities were getting services faster than us. But, I feel like it's better, but I think it could be—it still, right now, people should be able to get COVID-19 testing quickly, and I don't feel that the cooperatives here feel like that that's the case so much, even though the numbers are dropping right now, but you should be able to go downstairs and just get tested real quick, right here in the community.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2612.0,2706.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/66","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Shawn Chandler: But, again—I guess, with COVID-19 being so devastating the way it is, and this just not being planned, and also living in a community where things don't happen so quickly, again, I'm trying to look, I'm hoping that the numbers stay low, and that in the future, we are prepared to deal with this again. Because it might not be COVID-19—this time, right now, it's COVID-19, next time it could be SARS, something else, or another virus. The idea is that we will be able to get resources quickly. And knowing now that, hey, listen, this is something that can happen, you can have an airborne virus that could devastate millions of people, thousands of people, quickly, so we got to have something in place. I think that's the learning lesson as opposed to just focusing on COVID-19.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2706.0,2772.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570/transcript/87102/annotation/67","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Syreeta Gates: Got it. Clear. Thank you for your time. Let me stop recording real quick.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/163468/file/297570#t=2772.0,2778.56"}]}]}]}