February 14, 2025 • 10 mins
Dr. Vanessa Tyler talks with Karen Taylor, founder and Executive Director of 'While We Are Still Here', an organization dedicated to preserving the history of Harlem, NY. The group has an initiative called the 'Signs Of The Times: Harlem Markers Project' where they are installing historic markers around the city to honor events, people and organizations vital to the city of Harlem. Future plans include developing a tourist app, where people can walk the city and the app will show the historical significance of each marker.
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Paul Robeson lived there.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
He was an activist in war with a god given
baritone voice. Prize fighter Joe Lewis also lived there.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Max There former heavyweight champions mes Yoonlist, the young Sensational
Brown Bomber.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
The building five point fifty five Edgecombe Avenue in Harlem,
New York. And there that's the block on one hundred
and thirty fifth Street. Tennis champ Alphea Gibson was discovered
the first black woman to win the French Open. Now
(00:46):
everyone will know because there are markers in Harlem.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
The project is called Signs of the Times, the Hall
of Markers Project.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
Let's take a tour now in Blackland and now as a.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Brown person, he just feels so invisible where we're from,
Brothers and sisters. I welcome you to this joyful day
we celebrate freedom. Where we are I know someone heard
something and where we're going. We the people means all
the people. The Black Information Network presents Blackland with your
(01:21):
host Vanessa Tyler. Look around.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
Things look very different in Harlem, like they do in
a lot of black communities. But Harlem, New York, a
place with so much Black history, black breakthroughs, Black culture.
While we are still here is the name of a
five oh one c three organization that is making sure,
with the multi million dollar condos, sidewalk cafes, and changing faces,
(01:50):
we never forget. Karen Taylor is the founder and executive director,
and she made it her mission to make sure we
always remember. Karen, welcome, Thank you very much for having me.
Tell us what have you done in Harlem with these markers.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
The project is called Signs of the Times, the Harlem
Markers Project, and with the help of Bent Legs of
the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund and New York Life,
we've been able to have manufactured and installed these gorgeous
purple and gold cast aluminum signs. They're probably I think
(02:30):
they're three feet by four feet, and we've gotten a
really good response to them from the community. And so basically,
hopefully one day we'll have twenty five more markers because
there's just that much history in Harlem.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
I'm originally from Harlem.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
It has changed, How is it different?
Speaker 3 (02:53):
It is much wider. I've lived in the building living
for probably around thirty five years, and before that I
lived in other places in Harlem, I'd say for like
around five years. So forty years in total. It's so
(03:15):
very different.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Karen Taylor says she remembers the time when the vibe
was different in Harlem. It felt very black, especially for
those who left every morning and went downtown to work
every day.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
I would get off the train at fifty ninth Street,
you know, and because they were in the old GM building.
But I always felt that it was wonderful to have
Harlem to come back home too, because you didn't have
to deal with the hostility of the environment. You didn't
have to deal with, you know, white supremacy and you know,
(03:49):
just through racism, and it was wonderful, as I said,
to come off the train at one hundred and forty
fifth Street and you're like immersed in a little black
community where your validity is not judged based on your race.
You're just who you are, you know, and people were
far more accepting, you know, than where I was working downtown.
(04:16):
I'm not trying to say that Harlem was this perfect
idellic situation, but I just felt discomfort here that honestly
is kind of going away from me in a way
because of the sometimes the passive, aggressive and outright aggressive
hostility that I've experienced from the new White residence.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
So the marker project's mission don't forget Harlem that's slipping away.
Both black and white are learning history. It even may
be a conversation starter between old and new neighbor to neighbor.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
I think that I'd have to say that if I
had to choose a favorite marker, it would be the
marker for Dorothy Maynor, who was the founder of the
Harlem School of the Arts. You may know that the
building was renovated, you know, a few times over the years,
(05:13):
and Herb Alpert, the Herb Alpert Foundation and Mary J.
Blige initially and probably around two thousand and six or
two thousand and seven, offered the school money. Herb Alpert
gave maybe nine million dollars if memory serves, and Mary J.
(05:33):
Blige gave a million dollars. So over the years, the
Alpert Foundation offered more support for capital development, you know,
renovating the building, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. And
we noticed that, you know, we'd passed by, you know,
(05:54):
it's a construction site, and we just see this name
and lights. It's emblazoned on the side of the building.
The Herb Alpert Center, and so essentially myself and some
of our board members sent the Herb Alpert Foundation, you know,
a very respectful letter, you know, because we actually expected
(06:16):
that he would eventually put miss Maynor's name on the
building because she was the founder of the Harlem School
of the Arts since nineteen sixty four. And essentially the
foundation said something like, we're going to do something very
special for Dorothy Maynor. And so they have this kind
(06:37):
of in the lobby of the building, like these huge
blown up pictures of her, but it's not anything that
you can see from the street. You know. I don't
think her name is like up there, though I could
be wrong about that, but it's definitely not on the
facade of the building. So we re installed a marker
in front of Harlem School of the Arts to honor
(07:00):
Dorothy Mayner and her extraordinary commitment to the black children
of Harlem.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
You are an educator, In fact, you were the director
of public history at Columbia.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
University at for Teachers College.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
What's happening to our history? How quickly are some trying
to rese it?
Speaker 3 (07:18):
It's hostile, it's infantile, and it just goes to show
the level of dishonesty that white supremacists engage in to
make themselves feel superior.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
The effort is to get even more markers covering not
just people, but also the seismic events in Harlem.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
Harlem has so many different aspects to its history, and
one of the primary aspects that I think I'm seeing,
it's kind of this pattern that's emerging. It's the activism
that occurred here. And so we had, you know, political
activism at Bloomstein. People sat in, people you know, picketed
(08:05):
the store. They did not buy where they could not work.
And so that resulted in the owner of Bloomstein saying, Okay,
you know, I'm tapping out right now. I will hire
thirty four black folks in this store. And that's that
was why that was so important, you know, that don't
(08:25):
buy where you can't work campaign, And Adam Clayton Powell
is frequently cited as you know, a primary organizer of
the Bloomstein struggle.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
The next move more demonstrations, keep on the pressure, keep
them squirming it.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
But there was also a man by the name of
Sufi Ahmed who essentially was from Chicago, and he had
a don't buy where you can't work campaign initially on
one hundred and thirty fifth Street, and so he was
the inspiration for the Bloomstein's protest. But he was a
(09:06):
very eccentric kind of guy, and he had this reputation
of being anti Jewish, so he's kind of been written
out of history, but he was pretty important to that struggle. However,
as you know far better than I because you were
born and raised in Harlem, so many other events happened here.
(09:27):
So many other cultural, culturally important, culturally influential things happened
in Harlem, and we hope to be able to bring
those things to the fore.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Taylor says. The feedback has been phenomenal. The plan is
to raise the funds to place twenty five more markers
the group's website while we are still here dot org
look for the signs of the Times Harlem markers.
Speaker 3 (09:52):
And we're in the process now of developing a tourist
app for your phone or for your iPad or whatever.
It'll be a walking tour app and it'll have some
kind of gamification features. We're working with two young women
(10:13):
of color to develop that app, and since they're younger,
they'll put all the hip cool stuff in there because
we would like to attract younger people to this history.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Aaron Taylor, while we are still here. Thank you for
preserving the truth.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
I'm Vanessa Tyler. Join me next time.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
On Blackland, a new episode drops every week.
Paul Robeson lived there.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
He was an activist in war with a god given
baritone voice. Prize fighter Joe Lewis also lived there.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Max There former heavyweight champions mes Yoonlist, the young Sensational
Brown Bomber.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
The building five point fifty five Edgecombe Avenue in Harlem,
New York. And there that's the block on one hundred
and thirty fifth Street. Tennis champ Alphea Gibson was discovered
the first black woman to win the French Open. Now
(00:46):
everyone will know because there are markers in Harlem.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
The project is called Signs of the Times, the Hall
of Markers Project.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
Let's take a tour now in Blackland and now as a.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Brown person, he just feels so invisible where we're from,
Brothers and sisters. I welcome you to this joyful day
we celebrate freedom. Where we are I know someone heard
something and where we're going. We the people means all
the people. The Black Information Network presents Blackland with your
(01:21):
host Vanessa Tyler. Look around.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
Things look very different in Harlem, like they do in
a lot of black communities. But Harlem, New York, a
place with so much Black history, black breakthroughs, Black culture.
While we are still here is the name of a
five oh one c three organization that is making sure,
with the multi million dollar condos, sidewalk cafes, and changing faces,
(01:50):
we never forget. Karen Taylor is the founder and executive director,
and she made it her mission to make sure we
always remember. Karen, welcome, Thank you very much for having me.
Tell us what have you done in Harlem with these markers.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
The project is called Signs of the Times, the Harlem
Markers Project, and with the help of Bent Legs of
the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund and New York Life,
we've been able to have manufactured and installed these gorgeous
purple and gold cast aluminum signs. They're probably I think
(02:30):
they're three feet by four feet, and we've gotten a
really good response to them from the community. And so basically,
hopefully one day we'll have twenty five more markers because
there's just that much history in Harlem.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
I'm originally from Harlem.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
It has changed, How is it different?
Speaker 3 (02:53):
It is much wider. I've lived in the building living
for probably around thirty five years, and before that I
lived in other places in Harlem, I'd say for like
around five years. So forty years in total. It's so
(03:15):
very different.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Karen Taylor says she remembers the time when the vibe
was different in Harlem. It felt very black, especially for
those who left every morning and went downtown to work
every day.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
I would get off the train at fifty ninth Street,
you know, and because they were in the old GM building.
But I always felt that it was wonderful to have
Harlem to come back home too, because you didn't have
to deal with the hostility of the environment. You didn't
have to deal with, you know, white supremacy and you know,
(03:49):
just through racism, and it was wonderful, as I said,
to come off the train at one hundred and forty
fifth Street and you're like immersed in a little black
community where your validity is not judged based on your race.
You're just who you are, you know, and people were
far more accepting, you know, than where I was working downtown.
(04:16):
I'm not trying to say that Harlem was this perfect
idellic situation, but I just felt discomfort here that honestly
is kind of going away from me in a way
because of the sometimes the passive, aggressive and outright aggressive
hostility that I've experienced from the new White residence.
Speaker 2 (04:39):
So the marker project's mission don't forget Harlem that's slipping away.
Both black and white are learning history. It even may
be a conversation starter between old and new neighbor to neighbor.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
I think that I'd have to say that if I
had to choose a favorite marker, it would be the
marker for Dorothy Maynor, who was the founder of the
Harlem School of the Arts. You may know that the
building was renovated, you know, a few times over the years,
(05:13):
and Herb Alpert, the Herb Alpert Foundation and Mary J.
Blige initially and probably around two thousand and six or
two thousand and seven, offered the school money. Herb Alpert
gave maybe nine million dollars if memory serves, and Mary J.
(05:33):
Blige gave a million dollars. So over the years, the
Alpert Foundation offered more support for capital development, you know,
renovating the building, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. And
we noticed that, you know, we'd passed by, you know,
(05:54):
it's a construction site, and we just see this name
and lights. It's emblazoned on the side of the building.
The Herb Alpert Center, and so essentially myself and some
of our board members sent the Herb Alpert Foundation, you know,
a very respectful letter, you know, because we actually expected
(06:16):
that he would eventually put miss Maynor's name on the
building because she was the founder of the Harlem School
of the Arts since nineteen sixty four. And essentially the
foundation said something like, we're going to do something very
special for Dorothy Maynor. And so they have this kind
(06:37):
of in the lobby of the building, like these huge
blown up pictures of her, but it's not anything that
you can see from the street. You know. I don't
think her name is like up there, though I could
be wrong about that, but it's definitely not on the
facade of the building. So we re installed a marker
in front of Harlem School of the Arts to honor
(07:00):
Dorothy Mayner and her extraordinary commitment to the black children
of Harlem.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
You are an educator, In fact, you were the director
of public history at Columbia.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
University at for Teachers College.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
What's happening to our history? How quickly are some trying
to rese it?
Speaker 3 (07:18):
It's hostile, it's infantile, and it just goes to show
the level of dishonesty that white supremacists engage in to
make themselves feel superior.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
The effort is to get even more markers covering not
just people, but also the seismic events in Harlem.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
Harlem has so many different aspects to its history, and
one of the primary aspects that I think I'm seeing,
it's kind of this pattern that's emerging. It's the activism
that occurred here. And so we had, you know, political
activism at Bloomstein. People sat in, people you know, picketed
(08:05):
the store. They did not buy where they could not work.
And so that resulted in the owner of Bloomstein saying, Okay,
you know, I'm tapping out right now. I will hire
thirty four black folks in this store. And that's that
was why that was so important, you know, that don't
(08:25):
buy where you can't work campaign, And Adam Clayton Powell
is frequently cited as you know, a primary organizer of
the Bloomstein struggle.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
The next move more demonstrations, keep on the pressure, keep
them squirming it.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
But there was also a man by the name of
Sufi Ahmed who essentially was from Chicago, and he had
a don't buy where you can't work campaign initially on
one hundred and thirty fifth Street, and so he was
the inspiration for the Bloomstein's protest. But he was a
(09:06):
very eccentric kind of guy, and he had this reputation
of being anti Jewish, so he's kind of been written
out of history, but he was pretty important to that struggle. However,
as you know far better than I because you were
born and raised in Harlem, so many other events happened here.
(09:27):
So many other cultural, culturally important, culturally influential things happened
in Harlem, and we hope to be able to bring
those things to the fore.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Taylor says. The feedback has been phenomenal. The plan is
to raise the funds to place twenty five more markers
the group's website while we are still here dot org
look for the signs of the Times Harlem markers.
Speaker 3 (09:52):
And we're in the process now of developing a tourist
app for your phone or for your iPad or whatever.
It'll be a walking tour app and it'll have some
kind of gamification features. We're working with two young women
(10:13):
of color to develop that app, and since they're younger,
they'll put all the hip cool stuff in there because
we would like to attract younger people to this history.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Aaron Taylor, while we are still here. Thank you for
preserving the truth.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
I'm Vanessa Tyler. Join me next time.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
On Blackland, a new episode drops every week.
Host
Vanessa Tyler
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