This episode captures the memories of New York City Parks Department members as they recall the time period of social unrest during the COVID-19 crisis. Calls for social justice followed the deaths of Breonna Taylor in March 2020 in Louisville and George Floyd in May 2020 in Minneapolis. During the first wave of the pandemic, nationwide protests took place, with many turning to NYC Parks properties to make their voices heard. During this time the agency response included listening sessions with staff to hear their stories, and a program to rename Parks’ properties to honor and remember Black history.
Today our guests recall the era of social unrest in New York, and the groundswell of the social justice movement that often starts and ends on parkland. Our guests today are:
- Former NYC Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver;
- Assistant Commissioner for Community Outreach and Partnership Development Karina Smith;
- Urban Park Ranger Woo Sung Park;
- Van Cortlandt Park Administrator Stephanie Ehrlich.
We record our shows in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, at McCarren Park Play Center in the Media Education Lab. Our team is using the Media Lab and Parks volunteers to share our history with listeners, presenting some of the more than 100 oral history interviews conducted with Parkies.
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On this show we explore the first wave of the pandemic in 2020 and how we experienced the shutdown of many parts of New York City. As schools and offices closed, playgrounds were locked, and the fear set in. NYC Parks kept running. On this episode we meet veteran Parkies who faced new challenges every day.