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McCray’s interview with Essence magazine comes 34 years after she penned a 1979 essay for the publication about coming out as a gay woman. She said she fell in love with a man 'by putting aside the assumptions I had about the form and package my love would come in.'

Thousands of spectators decked out with Dominican flags and blowing whistles lined Sixth Ave. for the boisterous annual celebration. Almost every candidate for New York citywide offices showed up to court the large Dominican vote.

A federal court handed a big defeat to Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the New York Police Department today, ruling that the controversial “stop and frisk� program infringed on constitutional rights. Judge Shira Scheindlin appointed a federal monitor to oversee the NYPD and “reform� the practice, although that might prove impossible: A federal judge appointed an independent monitor Monday to oversee changes to the New York Police Department’s contentious policy known as stop, question and frisk, a significant judicial rebuke for what the mayor and police commissioner have defended as a life-saving, crime-fighting tool. …Four men had sued saying they were...

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg doesn’t just want to limit the use of cigarettes – but electronic cigarettes as well. In a newly leaked draft of three tobacco-related bills soon to be voted on by the NYC City Council, the new definition of “tobacco products” under city law would be changed to include e-cigarettes and related components, parts and accessories. If the ordinances pass, the display of e-cigarettes and smokeless tobacco would be banned in retail stores. Also, while tobacco and menthol flavored e-cigarettes would still be available in retail stores, all other flavored e-cigarettes could only be sold...

The Federal Reserves zero interest rate policy (ZIRP) and quantitative easing has clearly had an effect on the market. The stock market to be more specific. spxfedfundstraget Manhattan dwellers with budgets that would buy mansions in most of America are discovering it’s tough to find even a two-bedroom apartment in New York as the inventory of homes shrinks. The number of available units for less than $3 million — those generally considered nonluxury — has plunged by the most on record, creating a shortage that’s unlikely to be alleviated any time soon as developers focus on ultra high-end condos that...

As Anthony Weiner’s campaign New York mayoral campaign struggles in the wake of a sexting scandal, the candidate stirred some controversy on the other side of the Atlantic Thursday by mocking a British reporter’s accent in an interview. “It’s hard to take you seriously,” the 48-year-old Democrat told ITV’s Lucy Watson when she asked him about his motivations. In a follow-up, Watson asks if “anything [would] stop you?” “I just have a feeling I’ve, like, stepped into a Monty Python bit,” Weiner told her, laughing to himself. After posting the video, ITV called the exchange “the latest of a series...

After Detroit filed bankruptcy two weeks ago, the attention turned to America's other financially distraught cities. Think Motown is the only major U.S. city in a boatload of financial trouble? Think again. Detroit's bankruptcy filing sent shivers down the spine of municipal bondholders, government employees, and big-city urban residents all over the country. That's because many of the 61 largest U.S. cities are plagued with the same kinds of retirement legacy costs that sent Detroit into Chapter 9 bankruptcy this summer. These cities have amassed $118 billion in unfunded healthcare liabilities. These are legal promises to pay healthcare benefits...

The number of New York students passing state reading and math exams dropped drastically this year, education officials reported on Wednesday, unsettling parents, principals and teachers and posing new challenges to a national effort to toughen academic standards. In New York City, 26 percent of students in third through eighth grade passed the tests in English, and 30 percent passed in math, according to the New York State Education Department. The exams were some of the first in the nation to be aligned with a more rigorous set of standards known as the Common Core, which emphasize deep analysis and...

'I was expressing my frustration with the high cost of living in New York': Top Lacoste salesman is fired after posting his paycheck on Instagram A top salesman at Lacoste's flagship New York store has claimed that he was fired for posting a picture of his paycheck on Instagram. Wade Groom, from Brooklyn, New York, told Gothamist that he was merely 'expressing his frustration' with the expensive cost of living in New York, not with Lacoste in particular, when he shared a zoomed-out image of his pay slip.

(CNSNews.com) – As part of his ongoing campaign to transform New York City into what he calls “Fit City,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg is promoting “active design” for low-income housing developments being built there, including plans to prompt residents to use the stairs and rooftop gardens for growing “healthy” foods. In 2010, the Bloomberg Administration and other public and private sector groups issued the “Active Design Guidelines,” which promotes car-free neighborhoods, encourages “physical movement” inside buildings and “improves access to nutritious food.”The Center for Action Design was launched next as a resource for architects and developers who sign on to the...

Think Motown is the only major U.S. city in a boatload of financial trouble? Think again. Detroit’s bankruptcy filing sent shivers down the spine of municipal bondholders, government employees, and big-city urban residents all over the country. That’s because many of the 61 largest U.S. cities are plagued with the same kinds of retirement legacy costs that sent Detroit into Chapter 9 bankruptcy this summer. These cities have amassed $118 billion in unfunded healthcare liabilities. These are legal promises to pay healthcare benefits to municipal workers beyond the employee contributions to finance those funds. This is a giant fiscal sinkhole—and...

On Nov. 12, 2010, Tina Brown gathered the staff of her Web site The Daily Beast in the third-floor conference room at its Chelsea offices with its commanding views of the Hudson. Brimming with the fervor she has brought to all her endeavors, she delivered some surprising news: the Web site would merge with Newsweek, a once-proud but struggling magazine brand.

There’s Danger in the streets . . . Carlos Danger! Serial sexter and mayor wannabe Anthony Weiner appeared to be embracing his embarrassing online pseudonym and encouraged crowds that chanted, “Carlos!” and “Carlos Danger!” while marching in the Ecuadorean pride parade yesterday. Sporting bright blue pants, a bullhorn and an Ecuadorean flag, Weiner repeatedly shouted, “Que viva Ecuador!” to the crowd as he energetically ran down Northern Boulevard in Queens with his loyal interns following.

Just after 3 a.m. on Sunday, the pop of gunshots cut through the air. Two rookie police officers — barely a month out of the Police Academy, and now on foot patrol in the Bronx — hurried toward the sound. They headed east on East 151st Street to find a chase unfolding, one man running down the middle of the street, another following with a handgun. The officers ordered the second figure to drop his gun. Instead, another shot rang out. One of the officers fired a single shot. The bullet struck the gunman in his lower left jaw, killing...

Bloody end for gun kid: Cop shoots armed 14-year-old dead in Bronx By KIRSTAN CONLEY and C.J. SULLIVAN Last Updated: 6:08 AM, August 5, 2013 Posted: 1:56 AM, August 5, 2013 An armed 14-year-old with a violent rap sheet was shot dead in The Bronx yesterday by a cop who had been on the job for less than a month, officials said. Surveillance video shows Shaaliver Douse, a suspected gang member, chasing and shooting at a young rival on Courtlandt Avenue near East 151st Street just before 3 a.m., police said. Two rookie cops on patrol heard the gunfire and...

Eliot Spitzer has refused to deny claims that he is cheating on his wife Silda - again. The New York City comptroller candidate was given three opportunities this morning to defend himself against allegations he has a girlfriend, but instead chose to dodge reporters' questions. 'I am so tired of the personal attacks and I've answered all those questions,' he said at a Brooklyn campaign stop.

"Quinn resides in Chelsea, Manhattan, with wife, Kim Catullo, a lawyer.[27][28] The couple married on May 19, 2012,[29] and spend their summer weekends at a home that they purchased in 2004 in Bradley Beach, New Jersey.[30] Her former partner, Laura Morrison,[31] was chief of staff to former State Senator Thomas Duane"

Another court ruling has taken the fizz out of New York City's ban on big, sugary sodas. A New York appeals court on Tuesday ruled that the city Board of Health exceeded its legal authority and acted unconstitutionally when it tried to put a size limit on soft drinks served in city restaurants. "The Board of Health overstepped the boundaries of its lawfully delegated authority," the court said in its decision. The state Supreme Court Appellate Division, with its opinion, upheld an earlier ruling that stopped the ban from taking effect in March. The rule would stop many eateries from...

... “You’re not going to vote for Anthony Weiner, can you just say that?” [Chris] Matthews asked. “You don’t think he should be mayor of New York?” “Fair point,” Spitzer responded. “That is correct.” ...

More than 1,700 American cities and towns – including Boston, New York, and Miami – will have significant populations living below the high-water mark by the end of this century, a new climate change study has found. Those 1,700 towns are locked into a watery future by greenhouse gas emissions already built up in the atmosphere, the analysis published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday found. For nearly 80 of those cities, the watery future would come much sooner, within the next decade. "Even if we could just stop global emissions tomorrow on a dime,...

Food-stamp fraud in New York has turned into foreign aid — to black-market profiteers in the Dominican Republic. Last week, The Post revealed how New Yorkers on welfare are buying food with their benefit cards and shipping it in blue barrels to poor relatives in the Caribbean. But not everyone is giving the taxpayer-funded fare to starving children abroad. The Post last week found two people hawking barrels of American products for a profit on the streets of Santiago. “It’s a really easy way to make money, and it doesn’t cost me anything,” a seller named Maria-Teresa said Friday.The 47-year-old...

<p>EXCLUSIVE Food-stamp fraud has turned into foreign aid — to black-market profiteers in the Dominican Republic.... welfare recipients buy food with EBT cards and ship it to relatives. But not to starving children. The NY Post found people hawking barrels of American products on Dominican streets. “It’s a really easy way to make money, and it doesn’t cost me anything,” a seller said. She also vends EBT goods out of her Dominican home “I know a lot of people are doing it,” she said.</p>

After House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi finally ripped Anthony Weiner’s “clueless� and “reprehensible� conduct last week, he basically hinted that she should go take a hike — and he’s been insisting that his campaign is going to continue as planned regardless of the newly surfaced revelations about the extent and timing of his sexting scandal.In new poll last Thursday, however, found that support for Weiner among NYC Democrats took a sudden and gigantic plunge, with his favorability rating dropping from 52 percent in June down to 30 percent. Now, for the internal implosion, via the NYT: In a new sign...

**SNIP** He was devious enough to have the name Carlos Danger as an alias during his sexting and phone-sex bouts. Now the press has found Sydney Leathers, the young woman who was the recipient of Weiner's lust. She wants money for her story, CNN reports with negative innuendo -- while it, too, wants to make money off of her story. Smear the girl before she can say, "My name is…" if she will not play cricket with CNN. But after reviewing Weiner's politics, I wonder if the Democrats are not losing a good candidate. Weiner was the only member of...

"Progressivism leads inevitably to utter irrationality and eventually political, as well as moral, chaos." So writes editor R.V. Young in the summer issue of Modern Age, the journal of which Russell Kirk was founding editor. The magazine arrived with the latest post from our cultural capital, where the front-runner in the mayoral race, Anthony Weiner, aka Carlos Danger, has been caught again "sexting" photos of his privates, this time to a 22-year-old woman. That broke it for The New York Times: "The serially evasive Mr. Weiner should take his marital troubles and personal compulsions out of the public eye, away...

The Carlos Danger Name Generator Use our widget to get a name like Anthony Weiner’s alleged sexting pseudonym.

They all took the city’s firefighter exams in 1999 and 2002, but none got hired. Six months ago, thanks to a controversial ruling by Brooklyn Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis, all five — now older, a touch grayer and maybe just a little bit wiser — got a second chance at their dream job.

Submitted for your consideration without further comment:In Commemoration of National Weiner Day, July 23, 2013 Posted from: Dewey from Detroit

Allahpundit gave a great recap to one of the stranger political events of all time, the attempt by Anthony Weiner to argue for yet another opportunity for redemption. When he entered the mayoral race, Weiner said that he’d learned his lesson after the scandal broke in 2011 and was ready to return, but revelations in the past 24 hours show that he continued his extramarital Internet trolling well after the birth of his child last year. Nevertheless, his wife Huma Abedin stood by his side and declared that she supported Weiner and that the latest reports were old news and...

Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner jolted the New York City mayoral race on Tuesday, saying his habit of sending lewd pictures and messages to women he met online had continued well past his June 2011 resignation from Congress. "I said that other texts and photos were likely to come out, and today they have," Mr. Weiner said at a news conference. "While some things that have been posted today are true and some are not, there is no question that what I did was wrong. Mr. Weiner said he is no longer engaged in such behavior. The revelation, prompted by...

It was bound to happen sooner or later: An anonymous woman has claimed to the Arizona-based gossip and nudies site The Dirty that she carried on an explicit online affair with mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner — after he was busted and forced to resign from Congress for the exact same thing. "She was lured by Anthony Weiner post scandal via Facebook," wrote the site's editor Nik Ritchie yesterday. "They had a relationship for 6 months and she believed they were in love ... The relationship consisted of Anthony Weiner and Anonymous sending sexually explicit pictures of each other and having...

Confiscation? What are you talking about? We would never….. Posted on July 22, 2013 by Miguel Part of a letter from the friendly folks at NYPD, Licensing Division to NY City Gun Owners: See? If you surrender your weapon (under threat of coming down on your sorry ass with all the power that the City of NY and Mayor Bloomberg can exercise) , it cannot be confiscation! Now, who are you gonna believe? Us or them paranoid rednecks from the NRA? Related Article on Gun Watch: Gun Registration is Gun Confiscation 

<p>What a difference four decades makes. In the mid-’70s, New York City’s threat of bankruptcy was a horror that the state, feds and city ultimately avoided. Last week, Detroit declared bankruptcy because Michigan thought it was the best choice — and Washington stayed silent.</p>

INDIAN LAKE, NY — Don’t worry, New Yorkers. We’re in charge — really! Mayor Bloomberg and Gov. Cuomo channeled their inner mountain men — and showed off their office tans — during a white-water rafting race in the Adirondacks yesterday to promote upstate tourism. The pair, joined by crews of assorted relatives and staffers, engaged in a three-mile contest on the Indian River, about 310 miles north of Manhattan. (...) “He called me up and I said, ‘Oh, I can’t do that.’ And he said, ‘You will come,’ ” Bloomberg said. The two-day event cost taxpayers about $175,000. But Cuomo...

Papa don’t panic! New York City can be a terrifying place to raise kids, so some devoted dads are fighting their fears by disinfecting subway poles, logging the weights of poopy diapers down to the ounce, and keeping the plastic surgeon on speed-dial in casejunior gets a bad boo-boo. Heard of helicopter moms? Consider these hovering pops Black Hawk Dads. “It’s just better to be safe than sorry,” says Doug, 35, who hand washes cups and plates because he fears the dishwasher releases harmful chemicals, thoroughly cleans shopping carts before letting his 4-year-old daughter sit in them, and stocks his...

NEW YORK (MYFOXNY) -Police are searching for a second suspect accused of a sex attack on 16-year-old girl and then throwing her off a Brooklyn roof.Authorities say two men lured the girl to the East New York rooftop around 4 a.m. on July 14 and then raped her.  They then threw her off of the roof

Dr. James David Manning, the notoriously controversial chief pastor at the ATLAH World Missionary Church in New York City, recently delivered a bold and controversial message to his congregants about the black community’s perception of the George Zimmerman trial. He urged his mostly black congregation to stop viewing the world through their “black eyes” and start looking at it through the “blood of Jesus.” If they did that, the pastor explained, there would be no denying that the verdict in the Zimmerman was the correct one. He also told those who are convinced that Zimmerman is guilty that they only...

In a way, part of the outrage had always been about public space: Trayvon Martin, 17, carrying a can of iced tea and a bag of Skittles, was walking home when he was shot dead after a struggle with a neighborhood watch volunteer who had viewed him as suspicious.

"Sadly, all the facts in this tragic case will probably never be known," Bloomberg said in a prepared statement Sunday. "But one fact has long been crystal clear: 'shoot first' laws like those in Florida can inspire dangerous vigilantism and protect those who act recklessly with guns." He blamed "gun lobby extremists in Washington" for drafting the laws and said the legislation lets armed citizens think it's OK to shoot first and later defend themselves on the grounds that it was a justifiable homicide." Bloomberg touted his work with other civic leaders on the issue and said they are seeking...

She is a political analyst, blogger, columnist and commentator. She is a Democrat who regularly contributes to USA Today, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, Fox News and the Wall Street Journal among other publications. She formerly served under the Clinton administration from 1993-1998 and was appointed Deputy Assistant U.S Trade Representative for Public Affairs. In an interview with Focus on the Family, she shares how she converted from atheism to Christianity. She said: “I was not looking to be a Christian. The last thing in the world I wanted to be was a Christian. I had grown up as an Episcopalian,...

WASHINGTON — Sex. Drugs. Cheating on a spouse. Those words used to add up to shame. Put them in the same sentence as a politician’s name, and they ended careers.

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Emergency responders are at the scene of a partial building collapse in Chinatown.

Tyler Sargent was out for a nighttime run in Prospect Park two weeks ago, at around 9 p.m., when he heard some familiar music in the distance. It was the "Imperial March" — also known as Darth Vader's theme song — and it was growing louder. That's when an NYPD cruiser drove by him, "blasting" the song "at a volume that surely must have drowned out any emergencies being dispatched from the Death Star," Sargent (who happens to be the former bassist for the band Clap Yours Hands Say Yeah) tells Daily Intelligencer. "The cops were laughing like stoned high-school...

New York is a remarkable state, and New York City is simply one of the greatest cities in the world. The food, the theaters, the buildings, the businesses, the many cultures represented are all extraordinary. It is a city of excellence. It is no wonder New York City is the nation's most populated city, with over eight million people. The state's entire population reaches almost 20 million. It is because of these facts that the entire nation reads with disbelief the news of Anthony Weiner taking the lead in some polls on his run to be mayor of New York...

(...) As WCBS 880′s Peter Haskell and CBS 2′s Marcia Kramer reported, the former governor’s return to the campaign trail was not without hecklers, shouting things such as the following: “Spitzer, you cheated on your wife!” “You betrayed your constituents. You abandoned your wife. You betrayed everybody!” “This is about power. You just want power, man. If you want public service go volunteer somewhere!” “Did you leave your black socks on?” Spitzer appeared to take it in stride, as if he expected it. “This is what I look forward to — dealing with the public,” said Spitzer. “This is New...

Move over, Anthony Weiner! The New York City ballot this fall will have to make room for not just one disgraced ex-pol running for redemption on the taxpayers’ dime. Joining the King of the Selfies on the ballot will be former Governor Eliot Spitzer, who was forced to resign after his patronage of high-priced prostitutes became public knowledge. Spitzer wants taxpayers in the Big Apple to trust him with their money: That Spitzer is running for office again isn’t terribly surprising. He clearly regretted his decision to resign as Empire State governor in March 2008 amid revelations that he had...

(CNN) -- Eliot Spitzer, who resigned as governor of New York in the wake of a prostitution scandal, is looking at a return -- this time as comptroller of New York City. He said he hoped that voters would be able to see beyond his past. "I accepted responsibly for what I did," Spitzer told CNN late Sunday night. "I spent five years of working, doing useful things, and I hope the public will offer me an opportunity." Spitzer, a Democrat, resigned in 2008 after revelations about his relationship with a prostitute. Since stepping down, he has worked as a...

If you live in New York City, you probably know that your income taxes are high. A combined city and state tax rate of 10.4% kicks in at just $22,000 of taxable income for a single person. You probably don't know that New York City has some of the country's highest taxes on apartment buildings—and if you're not subject to rent control, much of that cost is flowing through to you as a renter. Not all property taxes are high here: New York actually has very low taxes on owner-occupied homes. Our property tax system is a perverse cross-subsidy from...

Egyptian security and medical officials say an American has been killed in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria during clashes between supporters and opponents of Egypt's embattled President Mohammed Morsi. Alexandria security chief Gen. Amin Ezz Eddin told Al-Jazeera TV that an American was killed Friday in Sidi Gabr Square while photographing the battles between opposition youth and members of the Muslim Brotherhood, from which Morsi hails. A medical official told The Associated Press the American was wounded by gunshots and died at the hospital. SNIP Six Egyptians have been killed in days of clashes ahead of nationwide protests Sunday...

It could spark terrorism! Mayor Bloomberg will urge Gov. Cuomo to veto legislation that would legalize the sale of sparklers outside New York City, arguing that terrorists could resort to using even kiddie fireworks to ignite a bomb. And that’s a risk not worth taking, City Hall officials said. The mayor opposes the measure, which the Legislature passed last week, even though it wouldn’t apply to the five boroughs, where a ban on sparklers — and all other fireworks — would remain in effect. The bill would allow the sale of sparklers and other small “novelty” fireworks only in counties...