New York Life Direct Deposit: Fill & Download for Free

A sketch of what the layout of Seneca Village would have looked like. (Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central Park)Seneca Village was supposed to be a sanctuary.Created in 1825, the village spanned from 82nd to 89th street, along what is now Central Park’s western edge. The village was home to thousands of freed African American slaves, who had come to New York City seeking refuge. Seneca Village became a safe haven for Black property owners who sought to not be limited to the slums of the Five Points in Lower Manhattan where poorer African Americans lived.[1][1][1][1] By 1855, the village consisted of approximately 225 residents, made up of roughly two-thirds African-Americans, one-third Irish immigrants[2][2][2][2] , who following the potato famine of the 1840s and 50s,made their way to New York City in hope of escaping the perils of starvation and death, and a small number of individuals of German descent.[3][3][3][3]However, after just 20 years, the thriving black community that had made its home there were forced off their property by New York so that the city could embark on one of its most recognizable attractions – the creation of Central Park and free additional land for the affluent white residents of Upper Manhattan to build a park.In the mid 19th century, New York City decided it needed a park. The city was growing fast, and everyone was conscious that this was one metric on which its rivals in Europe had the upper hand. In 1845, the editor of the New York Evening Post wrote a special Independence Day editorial, enviously praising Britain’s acres of parks, noting: "These parks have been called the lungs of London."[4][4][4][4]According to the Louise Chipley Slavicek, author of New York’s Central Park, the pro-park lobby were largely “affluent merchants, bankers and landowners”, who wanted a “fashionable and safe public place where they and their families could mingle and promenade”.[5][5][5][5]Uncovering the Stories of Seneca VillageAnd so in 1851, Ambrose Kingsland, the city’s mayor, agreed to create one.[6][6][6][6] By 1854, the city had chosen generous chunk of land in the centre of the island between what is now 59th and 106th streets, and construction on the park began. (It was later extended four blocks further north). The park is still there today, and everyone loves it: despite centuries of urban development, the park has remained an anchoring chunk of green space among the ever-denser Manhattan streets.By the time the decision to create a park was made, there wasn’t enough empty space left in Manhattan. So the city chose a stretch of land where the largest settlement was Seneca Village, population 264, and seized the land under the law of eminent domain, through which the government can take private land for public purposes.[7][7][7][7] Residents protested to the courts many times, against both the order and the level of compensation being offered for their land; eventually, though, all were forced to leave.Map of the lands included in the Central Park, from a topographical survey, June 17th, 1856; [Also:] Plan for the improvement of the Central Park, adopted by the Commissioners, June 3rd, 1856.(Can You Help Find the Descendants of Seneca Village?)Seneca Village was first started by Andrew Williams and Epiphany Davis, two prominent black abolitionists, who managed to find a white man to sell his land to black people.[8][8][8][8]Mr. Andrew Williams, a 25 year old bootblack or boot-shiner was the first free African American man to purchase land in New York City in 1825.[9][9][9][9] Charging anywhere from 3 – 5 cents a shine, he worked hard, saved his earnings and purchased three lots of (Central Park) land for $125.00 ($113,000 in today’s money) from a white cartman by the name of John Whitehead.[10][10][10][10]In 1824, a white couple John and Elizabeth Whitehead bought and subdivided land in what is now Manhattan’s Upper West Side.[11][11][11][11]Andrew Williams (Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central Park)It was unheard of for African Americans to be able to purchase land. However, for whatever reason, Mr. Whitehead was willing to sell it not only to Mr. Williams, but also to the many that would follow. In no time, Mr. Whitehead sold off his farm acreage.At the time, it was rare for black people, slaves or not, to be able to purchase land, though there were a few who would sell to them. Williams and Davis were prominent members of the New York African Society for Mutual Relief[12][12][12][12],as well as the AME Zion Church. Williams was joined by trustees for the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church who bought six lots of land near 86th Street designated for a ‘colored’ cemetery. [13][13][13][13] Epiphany Davis, a Black store clerk and trustee of the church, paid $578 for 12 lots.[14][14][14][14]A 19th century map of part of the settlement, marked with names of some residents. (A Handrawn Map of Seneca Village, the 1800's Settlement in New York's Central Park)By the end of the 1820s there were nine houses in Seneca Village.[15][15][15][15] This number would continue to grow throughout the 1830s as African Americans from neighboring York Hill moved to the area. They were displaced to make room for the Croton Reservoir on 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue – a storage unit for the water gathered by the Croton Aqueduct – after William Mathews sold his land to the government for the project.[16][16][16][16] Providing fresh water to the city, the reservoir was eventually torn down in the 1890s.The people of Seneca Village lived in homes ranging to one to three stories and were spread out which was in stark contrast to the crowded homes of poorer black people in the city. Slowly, the community started to take shape. Homes were built, some with barns and stables. Soon, three churches were erected, as well as a school.The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church was established by Reverend Richard Allen in 1801 and was the most prominent African church in the country.[17][17][17][17]The African Union Methodist Church opened in 1837 when William Mathews a deacon purchased land on 85th street.The church buried African Americans in Seneca Village until 1852 when a law prohibiting burials south of 86th Street was enacted.[18][18][18][18] They had had at least two burials between 85th and 86th but were forced to bury their loved ones in the Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn the following years. Colored School #2 was located in the church’s basement indicating that a majority of the children of Seneca Village pursued education.[19][19][19][19]The First African Methodist Episcopal Church Branch Militant opened its doors in Seneca Village on August 4, 1853. A box put into a cornerstone contained a Bible, hymn book, the church’s rules, a letter with the names of its five trustees and copies of newspapers The Tribune and The Sun.[20][20][20][20]The prospect of owning land in Seneca Village was exciting for more than one reason. Owning land meant voting rights, as well as refuge from the slums of lower Manhattan.[21][21][21][21] Despite New York State’s abolishment of slavery in 1827[22][22][22][22] , discrimination was still prevalent throughout New York City, and severely limited the lives of African-Americans. Seneca Village’s remote location likely provided a refuge from this climate. It also would have provided an escape from the unhealthy and crowded conditions of the City, and access to more space both inside and outside the home.New-York Historical SocietyCompared to other African-Americans living in New York, residents of Seneca Village seem to have been more stable and prosperous — by 1855, approximately half of them owned their own homes.[23][23][23][23] With property ownership came other rights not commonly held by African-Americans in the City — namely, the right to vote. In 1821, New York State required African-American men to own at least $250 (roughly $6,180) in property and hold residency for at least three years to be able to vote. Of the 100 black New Yorkers eligible to vote in 1845, 10 lived in Seneca Village.[24][24][24][24]The fact that many residents were property owners contradicts some common misperceptions during the mid-19th century that the people living on the land slated for the Park were poor squatters living in shanties.[25][25][25][25] While some residents lived in shanties and in crowded conditions, most lived in two-story homes. Census records show that residents were employed, with African-Americans typically employed as laborers and in service jobs, the main options for them at the time.[26][26][26][26] Records also show that most children who lived in Seneca Village attended school.Albro and Mary Joseph Lyons, prominent residents of Seneca Village (Double ambrotype portrait of Albro Lyons, Sr. and Mary Joseph Lyons)Seneca Village also served as a stop on the Underground Railroad.[27][27][27][27] During its heyday, many of the village’s basements served as hiding places for people looking to escape slavery. The name of the city helped discern this as Lucius Anneaus Seneca[28][28][28][28] , a Roman philosopher and statesmen, whose book Seneca’s Moral was read carefully by many African American activists in abolition.[29][29][29][29] Prominent Underground Railroad abolitionist Albro Lyons owned land lived in Seneca Village so the possibly of a potential connection is further solidified.[30][30][30][30]Particularly after the Fugitive Slave Law was passed in 1850[31][31][31][31] ,a lot of people were being abducted on the street and being sent down South into slavery because they weren’t allowed to testify against themselves. A community like Seneca Village away from the city held attraction for the Underground Railroad. And if Seneca Village was actually a destination for slaves to escape to freedom, then the Irish who lived there were also complicit in making sure they stayed safe.[32][32][32][32]However, as the people of Seneca Village were thriving, the people of lower Manhattan were looking for other, more aesthetically pleasing things to do with the area it occupied. Lower Manhattan was overflowing with immigrants at the time, and the wealthy, affluent families were beginning to look for other places to make their homes.[33][33][33][33] The upper, eastern part of the island is where they started looking, directly across from Seneca Village. Once all of the affluent families started moving to the Upper East Side, they started wanting outdoor space.When Powerful White New Yorkers Demolished An Entire Black Village To Build Central ParkReal estate developers quickly jumped on the idea of an exclusive community bordering lush parklands and began looking into securing the area in the center of Manhattan — including the prime real estate that Seneca Village stood upon.The city government authorized the taking of land between 59th and 106th Streets between Fifth and Eighth Avenues in 1855 to adjust to the new demand. Land was flooded for the Central Park Lake and soil was brought in to cover the land and all the agriculture that had existed on it.[34][34][34][34]Many settlements had to be uprooted to make way for Central Park including Harsenville (though part remained intact), the Piggery District and the Convent of the Sisters of Charity.These areas were home to Dutch, Irish and farming villages. Nearly 7,500 lots of land home to roughly 1,600 people were displaced to make way for the grand park.[35][35][35][35]Martel’s New York Central Park by Pierre Martel, 1864When New York City decided to move the park to the Seneca Village and surrounding area, they gave the residents of the settlement two years to pack up their things and leave. The government also offered to buy the properties but often for much lower prices for what the land was actually valued for. It was hoped that the removal of the inhabitants '”will be effected with as much gentleness as possible'' while at the same time describing them as less than human”.[36][36][36][36]Andrew Williams filed an Affidavit of Petition to the Commissioners of Central Park in the State Supreme Court of New York where he detailed his annoyance with the low valuations the city placed on his property.[37][37][37][37] 1855-56 found Williams in court being offered $3,500 for his land which was worth more than $4,000.[38][38][38][38] The Government had enacted eminent domain (eminent domain refers to the power of the government to take private property and convert it into public use), to take his land and after supposedly offering him $3,500 ($99,000).[39][39][39][39] The Fifth Amendment provides that the government may only exercise this power if they provide just compensation to the property owners.[40][40][40][40] Williams was eventually forced to take $2,335 ($66,600) and leave immediately.[41][41][41][41]He rejected the lower offer and settled his claim for his land by using the rights afforded under the law of eminent domain to reclaim the land.Some of the Seneca Village residents were paid for their land, but most of them were not. Epiphany Davis lost over a hundred dollars as she was forced to give up her home.[42][42][42][42]The sign, acknowledging the area where Seneca Village once stood. (Local Ecologist)After it was obliterated in 1857, the story of Seneca Village was lost for more than a century. At the end of a Central Park plaque commemorating Seneca Village, there’s an apparently innocuous line, noting: “The residents and institutions of Seneca village did not re-establish their long-standing community in another location”.[43][43][43][43]In the years after the 1827 slave emancipation, the safest way to live as an African American was in a separate, “enclave” community.[44][44][44][44] As the village was destroyed, so was this safe haven for what based on census records was a “black middle class”.[45][45][45][45] Many of the residents stayed relatively local to New York (after the village was demolished), but what they did not do was stay together. And that’s what’s so tragic: it was a community, and then the community was gone.It wouldn’t be until 1992 when Roy Rosenzweig and Elizabeth Blackmar published their book The Park and the People: A History of Central Park that the old town was brought to the public gaze.[46][46][46][46] Recently researchers have begun excavating the site on which it once stood, hoping to shed light on the lost village and give due credit to those who lived there. However, as of now, the only official artifact acknowledging the village’s existence is a small sign, dedicated to the people who once called it home.In the late 1990s the New York Historical Society launched Before Central Park: the Life and Death of Seneca Village which was an exhibit curated by Cynthia Copeland and Grady Turner. Wall, along with professors Nan Rothschild from Columbia University and Copeland, started the Seneca Village Project in 1998 working towards the ‘study of the village in an educational context and its commemoration.’[47][47][47][47]Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central ParkThe Seneca Village Project began excavating the location in Central Park where the community existed in 2011. They conducted studies of historical maps, soils, and ground penetrating radar which allowed for the pinpointing of locations where artifacts could be found.[48][48][48][48] With the excavations the Seneca Village Project was able to find the foundation walls and cellar deposits of the home of church porter William Godfrey Wilson, his wife Charlotte, and their eight children.[49][49][49][49] Included in the finds were a child’s shoe, a roasting pan, and a tea kettle.The collective was also able to pinpoint deposits from behind two houses that were buried in the ground and located in another part of the village.How America’s first black middle class village was destroyed to make way for Central ParkExcavations attempt to place Seneca Village in a much wider narrative, in which African Americans’ role in the nation's early public life has been erased. There’s been a denial that there were African Americans in New York City. In 1991, a slave burial ground was discovered during excavations to build a new office block north of City Hall – a reminder that nearly a quarter of the city’s population was black by the time of the American Revolution.[50][50][50][50]Archaeologists, historians and members of the African American community are trying to get knowledge of the Seneca Village into the New York City school curriculum[51][51][51][51] and other school curriculum because people don’t know about middle class African Americans.Fragments of crockery found during the Seneca Village dig. (New York destroyed a village full of African-American landowners to create Central Park)Another key part of the Seneca Village Project is an attempt to trace the genealogies of those who lived there, and find any living descendents.[52][52][52][52] So far, unfortunately, this has been unsuccessful. Researchers hoped that with a population of almost 300 people that there would be descendants of Seneca Village, able to share part of their family history. If you know someone who may be a descendant of Seneca Village, contact Diana Wall at [email protected] and/or Nan Rothschild at [email protected] continuance of a community made up of African-American landowners, in the middle of Manhattan, could have made for a very different New York – or even a very different United States – today. It’s a reminder that seemingly small decisions, like uprooting a certain community, or bulldozing a council estate, can change a city for good. You have to wonder whether all the mingling and promenading was worth it.Footnotes[1] Five Points District, New York City, New York (1830s-1860s)[1] Five Points District, New York City, New York (1830s-1860s)[1] Five Points District, New York City, New York (1830s-1860s)[1] Five Points District, New York City, New York (1830s-1860s)[2] The unknown Irish story of New York’s Seneca Village [2] The unknown Irish story of New York’s Seneca Village [2] The unknown Irish story of New York’s Seneca Village [2] The unknown Irish story of New York’s Seneca Village [3] The Story of Seneca Village[3] The Story of Seneca Village[3] The Story of Seneca Village[3] The Story of Seneca Village[4] New York destroyed a village full of African-American landowners to create Central Park[4] New York destroyed a village full of African-American landowners to create Central Park[4] New York destroyed a village full of African-American landowners to create Central Park[4] New York destroyed a village full of African-American landowners to create Central Park[5] New York City's Central Park[5] New York City's Central Park[5] New York City's Central Park[5] New York City's Central Park[6] History Engine: Tools for Collaborative Education and Research[6] History Engine: Tools for Collaborative Education and Research[6] History Engine: Tools for Collaborative Education and Research[6] History Engine: Tools for Collaborative Education and Research[7] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.nyhistory.org/sites/default/files/Seneca_Village_NYHS.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiu5_rZvvTjAhWOG80KHWGGClsQFjAYegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw19LKMehXoJceMyWirg0Mwv[7] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.nyhistory.org/sites/default/files/Seneca_Village_NYHS.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiu5_rZvvTjAhWOG80KHWGGClsQFjAYegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw19LKMehXoJceMyWirg0Mwv[7] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.nyhistory.org/sites/default/files/Seneca_Village_NYHS.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiu5_rZvvTjAhWOG80KHWGGClsQFjAYegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw19LKMehXoJceMyWirg0Mwv[7] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.nyhistory.org/sites/default/files/Seneca_Village_NYHS.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiu5_rZvvTjAhWOG80KHWGGClsQFjAYegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw19LKMehXoJceMyWirg0Mwv[8] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[8] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[8] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[8] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[9] Andrew Williams: Census Entry[9] Andrew Williams: Census Entry[9] Andrew Williams: Census Entry[9] Andrew Williams: Census Entry[10] SENECA VILLAGE[10] SENECA VILLAGE[10] SENECA VILLAGE[10] SENECA VILLAGE[11] Seneca Village: Page Three[11] Seneca Village: Page Three[11] Seneca Village: Page Three[11] Seneca Village: Page Three[12] The New York African Society for Mutual Relief (1808-1860)[12] The New York African Society for Mutual Relief (1808-1860)[12] The New York African Society for Mutual Relief (1808-1860)[12] The New York African Society for Mutual Relief (1808-1860)[13] African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Cemetery[13] African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Cemetery[13] African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Cemetery[13] African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Cemetery[14] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://medium.com/%40interestingshit/the-sad-tale-behind-central-parks-destruction-of-seneca-village-346b8ee6ddc2&ved=2ahUKEwjlu6ClyPTjAhVEaM0KHT-qAc8QjjgwEHoECAgQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0JD56dyAGxg8sSQviuRiDc[14] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://medium.com/%40interestingshit/the-sad-tale-behind-central-parks-destruction-of-seneca-village-346b8ee6ddc2&ved=2ahUKEwjlu6ClyPTjAhVEaM0KHT-qAc8QjjgwEHoECAgQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0JD56dyAGxg8sSQviuRiDc[14] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://medium.com/%40interestingshit/the-sad-tale-behind-central-parks-destruction-of-seneca-village-346b8ee6ddc2&ved=2ahUKEwjlu6ClyPTjAhVEaM0KHT-qAc8QjjgwEHoECAgQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0JD56dyAGxg8sSQviuRiDc[14] https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://medium.com/%40interestingshit/the-sad-tale-behind-central-parks-destruction-of-seneca-village-346b8ee6ddc2&ved=2ahUKEwjlu6ClyPTjAhVEaM0KHT-qAc8QjjgwEHoECAgQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0JD56dyAGxg8sSQviuRiDc[15] Seneca Village: Black history in Central Park[15] Seneca Village: Black history in Central Park[15] Seneca Village: Black history in Central Park[15] Seneca Village: Black history in Central Park[16] Croton Reservoir[16] Croton Reservoir[16] Croton Reservoir[16] Croton Reservoir[17] AME Zion Church — Harriet Tubman Home[17] AME Zion Church — Harriet Tubman Home[17] AME Zion Church — Harriet Tubman Home[17] AME Zion Church — Harriet Tubman Home[18] Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895[18] Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895[18] Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895[18] Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895[19] https://www.jstor.org/stable/25617485?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents[19] https://www.jstor.org/stable/25617485?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents[19] https://www.jstor.org/stable/25617485?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents[19] https://www.jstor.org/stable/25617485?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents[20] Seneca Village: Page Five[20] Seneca Village: Page Five[20] Seneca Village: Page Five[20] Seneca Village: Page Five[21] The Story of Seneca Village[21] The Story of Seneca Village[21] The Story of Seneca Village[21] The Story of Seneca Village[22] Slavery and Emancipation in New York[22] Slavery and Emancipation in New York[22] Slavery and Emancipation in New York[22] Slavery and Emancipation in New York[23] The Story of Seneca Village[23] The Story of Seneca Village[23] The Story of Seneca Village[23] The Story of Seneca Village[24] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[24] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[24] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[24] Before Park, Black Village; Students Look Into a Community's History[25] Seneca Village: The Community that Died so Central Park Could Live[25] Seneca Village: The Community that Died so Central Park Could Live[25] Seneca Village: The Community that Died so Central Park Could Live[25] Seneca Village: The Community that Died so Central Park Could Live[26] Seneca Village: How racism and white supremacy led to the creation of New York City's iconic Central Park[26] Seneca Village: How racism and white supremacy led to the creation of New York City's iconic Central Park[26] Seneca Village: How racism and white supremacy led to the creation of New York City's iconic Central Park[26] Seneca Village: How racism and white supremacy led to the creation of New York City's iconic Central Park[27] SENECA VILLAGE[27] SENECA VILLAGE[27] SENECA VILLAGE[27] SENECA VILLAGE[28] Page on loebclassics.com[28] Page on loebclassics.com[28] Page on loebclassics.com[28] Page on loebclassics.com[29] Did Stoicism Condemn Slavery?[29] Did Stoicism Condemn Slavery?[29] Did Stoicism Condemn Slavery?[29] Did Stoicism Condemn Slavery?[30] Double ambrotype portrait of Albro Lyons, Sr. and Mary Joseph Lyons[30] Double ambrotype portrait of Albro Lyons, Sr. and Mary Joseph Lyons[30] Double ambrotype portrait of Albro Lyons, Sr. and Mary Joseph Lyons[30] Double ambrotype portrait of Albro Lyons, Sr. and Mary Joseph Lyons[31] Fugitive Slave Law of 1850[31] Fugitive Slave Law of 1850[31] Fugitive Slave Law of 1850[31] Fugitive Slave Law of 1850[32] Irish Immigrants and the Underground Railroad[32] Irish Immigrants and the Underground Railroad[32] Irish Immigrants and the Underground Railroad[32] Irish Immigrants and the Underground Railroad[33] Ephemeral New York[33] Ephemeral New York[33] Ephemeral New York[33] Ephemeral New York[34] The Lake[34] The Lake[34] The Lake[34] The Lake[35] 160 Years of Central Park: A Brief History[35] 160 Years of Central Park: A Brief History[35] 160 Years of Central Park: A Brief History[35] 160 Years of Central Park: A Brief History[36] A Village Dies, A Park Is Born[36] A Village Dies, A Park Is Born[36] A Village Dies, A Park Is Born[36] A Village Dies, A Park Is Born[37] Little Known Black History Fact: Seneca Village[37] Little Known Black History Fact: Seneca Village[37] Little Known Black History Fact: Seneca Village[37] Little Known Black History Fact: Seneca Village[38] Death of Seneca Village[38] Death of Seneca Village[38] Death of Seneca Village[38] Death of Seneca Village[39] Eminent Domain[39] Eminent Domain[39] Eminent Domain[39] Eminent Domain[40] fifth amendment - Google Search[40] fifth amendment - Google Search[40] fifth amendment - Google Search[40] fifth amendment - Google Search[41] History of the Community[41] History of the Community[41] History of the Community[41] History of the Community[42] The Lost Village In New York City[42] The Lost Village In New York City[42] The Lost Village In New York City[42] The Lost Village In New York City[43] Place Detail: Seneca Village[43] Place Detail: Seneca Village[43] Place Detail: Seneca Village[43] Place Detail: Seneca Village[44] New-York Historical Society[44] New-York Historical Society[44] New-York Historical Society[44] New-York Historical Society[45] Seneca Village: The Black Community That Was Destroyed To Create Central Park[45] Seneca Village: The Black Community That Was Destroyed To Create Central Park[45] Seneca Village: The Black Community That Was Destroyed To Create Central Park[45] Seneca Village: The Black Community That Was Destroyed To Create Central Park[46] The Park and the People[46] The Park and the People[46] The Park and the People[46] The Park and the People[47] Before Central Park: The Life and Death of Seneca Village[47] Before Central Park: The Life and Death of Seneca Village[47] Before Central Park: The Life and Death of Seneca Village[47] Before Central Park: The Life and Death of Seneca Village[48] Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central Park[48] Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central Park[48] Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central Park[48] Seneca Village destroyed to make way for Central Park[49] Seneca Village 2011 Excavation[49] Seneca Village 2011 Excavation[49] Seneca Village 2011 Excavation[49] Seneca Village 2011 Excavation[50] African Burial Ground | [50] African Burial Ground | [50] African Burial Ground | [50] African Burial Ground | [51] Marilyn Nelson's [51] Marilyn Nelson's [51] Marilyn Nelson's [51] Marilyn Nelson's [52] Can You Help Find the Descendants of Seneca Village?[52] Can You Help Find the Descendants of Seneca Village?[52] Can You Help Find the Descendants of Seneca Village?[52] Can You Help Find the Descendants of Seneca Village?

Hello!Sadly, yes that is true…Donald Trump’s Treasury Department has given U.S. banks the green light to confiscate a portion or all of the one-time $1,200 coronavirus relief payments meant to help Americans cope with financial hardship and instead use the money to pay off individuals’ outstanding debts—a move consumer advocates decried as cruel and unacceptable. “The Treasury Department effectively blessed this activity on a webinar with banking officials last Friday,” The American Prospect‘s David Dayen reported Tuesday. https://prospect.org/coronavirus/banks-can-grab-stimulus-check-pay-debts/In an audio recording from the webinar obtained exclusively by the Prospect, Ronda Kent, chief disbursing officer at the Treasury Department’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service, told bankers that “there’s nothing in the law that precludes” financial institutions from seizing a person’s payment and using it to pay off the individual’s debts.“After a third of U.S. renters couldn’t make rent this month, the Treasury Department is pointing out opportunities for banks and debt collectors to steal Americans’ relief checks out from under them,” Jeremy Funk, spokesperson for consumer advocacy group Allied Progress, said in a statement responding to Kent’s comments.“It’s the middle of a pandemic,” said Funk. “This money should be going toward food, rent, and medicine—it’s not the time to hand out favors to debt collection industry donors or pad some big bank’s bottom line,” said Funk. “Secretary Mnuchin needs to ensure that these $1,200 checks go straight into Americans pockets where they belong.”Here’s the link to the recording and listen for yourself: Audio of Ronda Kent, chief disbursing officer with Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal ServiceAmericans with direct deposit information on file with the Internal Revenue Service are expected to begin receiving the $1,200 payments in their bank accounts this week, provided that their banks do not opt to seize the money.Those for whom the government does not have direct deposit information—a group that is disproportionately low-income—could be forced to wait up to five to receive paper checks in the mail.The direct payments were authorized under the CARES Act, a massive coronavirus stimulus package President Donald Trump signed into law last month.Congress explicitly exempted the one-time stimulus payments from collection under the CARES Act “if the debt is owed to federal or state agencies, unless the debt involves a child support payment.” Text - H.R.748 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): CARES ActBut Congress did not extend this exemption to private debt collection. The payments are defined as tax credits and not federal benefits, making them subject to ‘garnishment,’ in which a debt collector that wins a judgment in court can seize anything of value held by the debtor.Congress did give Treasury the authority under Section 2201(h) of the CARES Act to write rules exempting the payments from private debt collectors, but the Treasury Department—headed by former Goldman Sachs executive Steve Mnuchin—has thus far refused to exercise that authority despite pressure from Democratic members of Congress and state attorneys general.I checked with the five largest consumer banks. Only JPMorgan Chase said they would not use CARES Act payments to offset debts. The other four gave no response. https://t.co/by1oQ1cNkL— David Dayen (@ddayen) April 14, 2020On Monday, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey issued guidance stating that the $1,200 payments “are exempt from seizure or garnishment by creditors under Massachusetts law.” Guidance regarding CARES Act payments.pdf“These payments are supposed to help individuals and families put food on the table during this crisis, not enrich debt collectors,” Healey said in a statement. “With this guidance… my office is putting the debt collection industry on notice that these payments are off limits.” AG Healey to Debt Collectors: COVID-19 Stimulus Payments Are Off LimitsHealey on Monday also signed onto a letter (pdf) led by New York Attorney General Letitia James urging Mnuchin to issue “a regulation or guidance designating CARES Act payments as ‘benefit payments’ exempt from garnishment.” The letter was signed by 25 state attorneys general. ag.ny.gov/multistate_letter_to_treasury_re_garnishment_and_cares_act_final.pdf“During this public health and economic crisis, the states do not believe that the billions of dollars appropriated by Congress to help keep hard-working Americans afloat should be subject to garnishment,” the letter states.Needless to say that this is absolutely obscene. This money is for food, medicine, housing. The essentials of life.Dayen noted in his tweet that “legally speaking, banks have the right to ‘offset’ any deposits to pay off delinquent loans, overdraft fees, or other charges.”“Banks have more immediate access to the coronavirus checks by virtue of having them deposited into accounts at their institutions,” Dayen wrote. “They’re also in front of the line for repayment of debts ahead of other private debt collectors.”The possibility that banks could seize individuals’ relief payments as millions of people across our country face layoffs, pay cuts, and reductions in work hours sparked outrage on social media.“This is beyond predatory,” tweeted finance expert and investigative journalist Nomi Prins. She couldn’t have phrased it any better.Jess Scarane, a progressive running to unseat Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), tweeted that “this ‘stimulus’ gets worse and worse for working people every day.”“Even the meager help we thought individuals would get can end up in the hands of banks,” said Scarane, “while people continue to struggle to put food on their tables and survive.” Jess Scarane for Senate (@JessforDelaware)This isn’t owning the libs, team MAGA, this will affect and imperil some of you, your family and/or friends as well. Wake up!!!

This February my wife was diagnosed and given six months to live. When I heard the doctor tell her “six months”, it felt like I was going to die and my whole world was going to collapse.I met my wife, Jess, twenty-one years ago when she was nineteen.Our parents owned side-by-side cabins in the northern part of New York and we both happened to be along for the week-long hunting trip our fathers planned that year.Jess' father was a skilled hunter and could hit a headshot from a mile away — same as my dad.Jess and I didn't hunt with them — we hung out by the lake.The moment I saw Jess I fell in love. We've been together ever since.But now, now that she has an expiration date, I just don't know what to do — I'm scared and lost.Monday morning at work I was telling my best friend and supervisor, Timmy, about my wife's condition. Timmy told me that I.T. or Intelligent Terrestrial just came out with their latest models.These models are different than those of yesteryear because they are 52% mechanical and 48% biological.Timmy said all you have to do is mail a sample of DNA to I.T. and upload a digital copy of your consciousness through an app. You can then purchase a custom made clone at an age of your choice. When the clone arrives it will turn on, study it's surroundings and await a consciousness download.“Oh my God Timmy, what's the catch?”“The price, Leon.”When I got home from work, Jess and I plugged in and uploaded a digital copy of our entire conscious catalog to I.T. and then mailed off DNA samples.Jess asked me what age I wanted her to be. It felt awkward to say “twenty”, but I did it — I was honest. I miss her smooth, youthful skin and I want her to be young and healthy — especially if I have to cash my entire 401K in to afford it.We told her parents that we were going to basically bring her back from the dead and her father threatened to shoot any abomination that we brought into this world.One month later, on a day that Jess was particularly ill, the doorbell rang.Jess and I dragged the box through the door and laid it on the living room floor. I gently cut along the lines and when I opened the flaps, there,she,was.The last time my heart fluttered like this was the day I met her.Jess helped me lift I.T. out of the box and sit I.T. up.I.T. was warm and soft. I.T. was mine. I paid for I.T. I own I.T.Machines like this don't have rights — even though they are part biological, the governments recognize them in the same way they would a lawnmower — so, as I said, I.T. is my possession.The science behind uploading a digital consciousness is so cutting edge, that the laws just haven't caught up yet.Jess turned I.T. on and I.T. looked right into my eyes. I was in love — with two women, but, it was the same woman. We hadn't uploaded Jess' consciousness yet, so, I.T. was running on basic programming, but I.T. was gorgeous.Jess asked me what I wanted to do, and for the first time in a very long time — I lied to her.I told her we should go shopping and buy I.T. some clothes.I.T. doesn't seem to have a personality yet.“Hello…. Smile…”Jess picked outfits for both of them and we went for a walk through the park together. It was amazing — I was so happy.We walked down a cozy little trail and found a tuck away to sit and talk.I.T. watched and studied every move Jess and I made. I.T. was learning and adapting.I.T. was becoming aware.At one point Jess and I got distracted and I.T. wandered off. When we found I.T., I.T. was gazing at the sky.I asked I.T. what it was doing. I.T. said, “Where do I come from?”“You come from Heaven. You are my angel.”That answer seemed to work for I.T. We all walked back to the car and headed home.When we got home, Jess immediately started coughing. She fell to the ground and I tried to help her, but I didn't know what to do.Jess passed away right then. It was finally over.I called her family and the police. It took an hour for them to remove the body. I had Jess 2.0 sitting in my back room waiting for them to leave.After the police left, I plugged I.T. into my laptop and downloaded Jess' consciousness.After the download was complete, we walked outside and I looked into her gigantic brown eyes. I asked her, “Is it you, Jess?”She smiled and said, “It is, silly — now kiss me.”Her head slammed back. I didn't know if she was glitching or what and then I heard a bang and saw a hole above her left eye.My beautiful Jessica died twice today. I was crushed.Over the next two decades, I fell into a deep, dark, alcohol-fueled depression. Although I had developed a serious alcohol problem, I was able to work and save every single penny I earned.After twenty years of saving, I decided I wanted both of them back — the twenty-year-old Jess and the forty-year-old Jess.I sent my entire life savings off to I.T. and in one month, my doorbell rang.I cut the box open and wept when I saw my angel(s).I turned them on.I also clothed them. The younger version of me may have left them in the nude, but at this age, I just want my companion(s) back.The ladies helped me back to my room to lay down. I was so tired from all the excitement.I've waited and worked an entire lifetime to be with the woman I love. And now, at long last — she is beside me.I died, on that very night as a happy man.One day later, the doorbell rang. It seems my beautiful Jessicas used my direct deposit life insurance benefit to make a purchase.They gently cut the box open.And turned me on.You ask where technology will be in 2050?We will be everywhere.LeonSpecial thanks:Cameron — Dear friend. Thank you so much for all your help with bringing this idea to life. You are awesome. I'm proud to call you friend.Kinsalynn — My sister and friend. Your help with makeup and photography was an absolute godsend — thank you so much. I love and appreciate you. P.S. you took over 300 pictures in an eight hour span. Thank you from the bottom of my heart:)Brooke — Even with a bullet hole in the head, you are deliciously gorgeous. You spent eight hours modeling for my Quora answer today and never once did you fail to impress or inspire me. I am honored to be friends with you.Jess — The love of my life. I'm not sure I can even put into words how appreciative I am of you. You have seen me through the dark and help me shine brighter than I ever thought possible. Thank you for everything — including sticking your tongue in Cameron's ear.