By Helaina Hovitz

On Monday, March 18, over 250 people braved the snow and sleet and traveled to Russell Simmons’ penthouse apartment at 114 Liberty Street. He has owned the apartment, directly across the street from the World Trade Center Site, for over fifteen years. Simmons is chairman of the Foundation For Ethnic Understanding, an organization that aims to strengthen “Muslim Jewish Relations, Black Jewish Relations and Latino-Jewish Relations.” The man of the house was hosting a ceremony honoring its “young leaders.” The apartment was packed shoulder to shoulder with socialites, models, and musicians like singer Jay-Sean and rapper Q-Tip — Anderson Cooper and Chelsea Clinton were no-shows.

Rabbi Marc Schneier, Paramdeep Singh and Russell Simmons. Photo courtesy FFEU.

The five honorees were listed in the event’s program with their bios, all of which include their professional achievements, none of which included their work with the foundation, mostly likely because reps confirmed that none of them has actually done anything besides donate money. However, for the past five years, the FFEU has hosted what they call a “Twinnings” week, offering learning/networking events geared at “building communication, reconciliation and cooperation between Muslims and Jews.” They have also fed the hungry and homeless as part of the week’s programming. On average, over 100 events take place in 20 countries during Twinnings week.

Among the honorees were billionaire entrepreneur Ben Bronman and high-profile lawyer Sal Strazzullo, who was being honored for his work with Muslim and Jewish community leaders (he represented boxer Sadam Ali, when he fought to compete in the Olympics). When asked what the foundation has managed to accomplish so far, Strazzullo, answered, “Well, it’s young. FFEU has been in a state of turmoil, first with 9/11, then with Obama being elected…” Strazzullo is best known for representing high-profile violence cases for chef David Burke, nightclub owner Adam Hock, and strippers Sophia Kandelaki (Scores) and Alexia Moore (Big Daddy Lou’s Hot Lap Dance Club).

Similarly, when asked what initiatives the foundation has successfully taken, honoree Paramdeep Singh answered, “They’re so young, it’s really a seed.”

The FFEU was founded in 1989.

DJ Fulano is becoming one of the hottest acts on the youth DJ scene. His mentor is DJ Cassidy, he’s met Russell Simmons, and he’s spun at some of NYC’s most exclusive events. Oh yeah, and he’s only 8 years old.

While most kids his age may be navel-gazing, he’s contemplating what song he’ll tweet to his followers. And this weekend he’ll be doing his thing at the turntables, working the crowd for Fulano’s Funhouse on Saturday from 4-8pm. It’s a dance party for kids and adults, and he’ll make sure your family is on the dance floor the whole time.

In anticipation of his upcoming family-friendly event we caught up with the young DJ to find out what he thinks of his career and what he does when he’s not mixing music.

How long have you been a DJ and what’s your favorite thing about being a DJ?
I’ve been a deejay since I was six years old, so I’ve been deejaying for almost three years. I like being a deejay because I like playing music and experiencing music and making everyone dance. I like the beat of it and I like scratching. It’s cool sounding. I’ve been listening to music since I was little.

Who are some of your favorite artists? What is your favorite musical genre?
Big Daddy Kane, The Juice Crew, Marley Marl, Biz Markie, Run-DMC, Young MC, Michael Jackson, Ghostface, Tina Marie, Janet Jackson, Change, James Brown, Herbie Handock, Daft Punk, Jay-Z, and Kanye West. I like all genres, but two of my favorites are Hip Hop and soul.

Your 8th birthday party was quite the celebration! What are your plans for your 9th birthday?
It might be a bowling party and I will deejay, with a great big birthday cake, cupcakes, and ice cream, and all sorts of stuff like that. Cassidy will deejay, because I’m gonna have to take a break.

What’s the best advice DJ Cassidy gave you about being a DJ?
He told me to cover my computer with a tee shirt so I can’t look at the screen and see the waves. He wants me to learn like he learned before computers.

How do you stay on top of your schoolwork with all your DJ gigs?
I do my homework during the day and practice deejaying at night. Then I watch Curb Your Enthusiasm or The Office.

To read the full article at New York Family Magazine click here.

Gunnin’ For That #1 Spot Directed by Adam Yauch

Midway through 2008, something surprising has happened: two films with human dimension and artful expression–Adam Yauch’s Gunnin’ For That #1 Spot and Jonathan Levine’s The Wackness–have flushed the toilet of summer movies. Neither is a special effects extravaganza but they stir emotion by emphasizing the human scale of what movies can show. (See my mid-year round-up below.)
Gunnin’ documents b-ball culture through eight high school basketball prodigies from across the country who participated in the “Elite 24 Hoops Classic.” It took place in 2006 at the street basketball mecca of Harlem’s Rucker Park, on the corner of 155th street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard, where stars like Dr. J. and Wilt Chamberlain first began. Reputations (nicknames) and legends are made at Rucker (“It’s where you get tough,” a fan says) and Yauch’s attention to the authentic passion of folk culture makes the movie vibrant. Gunnin’ is everything the fatuous, condescending Hoop Dreams was not.

As in his remarkable Beastie Boys concert film, Awesome: I Fuckin’ Shot That, Yauch elevates video technology with a hands-on, heart-felt, keen-eyed purpose. A b-ball fan who knows what to look for, he also utilizes the medium to catch fantastic moves: he even turns instant-replay into an art form of amazement and commemoration. The fish-eye lens expresses wide-eyed wonderment at New York life, while a witty scan of internet searches paces background info on the players. In Gunnin’, Yauch’s style has the intellectual and emotional rhythm that DePalma failed to achieve in Redacted.

Most docs are still made according to decades-old models but Gunnin’ has hiphop immediacy and this is not just a matter of technology. Yauch’s feeling for youth culture gives him insight into his subject. Imaginary stats cards for each of the players (Jerryd Bayless, [cq] Michael Beasley, Tyreke Evans, Donte Greene, Brandon Jennings, Kevin Love, Kyle Singler and Lance Stephenson) provide an affectionate motif, but Yauch also conveys how these talented kids get marked for success–hunted by NBA scouts, manufacturers, predatory bloggers and girls. The interview segments are terse but reveal the essence of diverse backgrounds, contrasting suburban genes to ghetto pedigrees. It coalesces different styles of American boyhood; these are the warmest, most recognizable gallery of faces since George Washington.

To read the full article at CityArts click here.

Aug. 23: ANONYMOUS, the hacker organization, endorses #occupywallstreet with a video promoting the upcoming Sept. 17 occupation. Until now, the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement was merely talk initiated by Adbusters, an anti-consumerist, not-for-profit organization out of Canada.

Sept. 17:  Zuccotti Park, formerly referred to as Liberty Plaza Park, is “liberated” and occupied by protesters from across the country. Socialists, communists and anarchists are among the protesters. OWS organizers say they have no single demand but rather wish to call attention to the anger and discontentment of their peers over corporate power and the wide gap in wealth distribution, among other issues. Actress Roseanne Barr, rappers Lupe Fiasco and Immortal Technique all speak at the inaugural General Assembly.

Sept. 24: During a march of approximately 500 people toward Union Square, the New York Police Department (NYPD) kettle a group of protesters using orange mesh nets. Roughly 80 are arrested.

In the hours and days following the march, video footage of NYPD officer Anthony Bologna pepper-spraying three women is circulated widely on the Internet. The video garners mainstream coverage by major news organizations of the OWS movement.

Sept. 30: As Occupy movements sprout up across the country (Occupy Boston, Occupy Chicago and Occupy San Francisco are a few of the largest, among many more) a rumor spreads that the band Radiohead will play an acoustic set at Zuccotti Park. Thousands of people flock to the park, despite numerous denials from a spokesperson for Radiohead and OWS. Ultimately it turns out to be a hoax, but media coverage increases.

Oct. 3: During a planned march over the Brooklyn Bridge, over 700 people are reportedly arrested by the NYPD.

Oct. 5:  Many unions and political organizations, including TWU, 1199SEIU and MoveOn.org, officially endorse OWS with a rally and march that starts in Foley Square. Over 20,000 people reportedly attend the rally. Later that evening, several protesters are arrested as they charge a barricade on Wall Street.

Oct. 10: Celebrities such as Kanye West, Russell Simmons visit Zuccotti Park. The Occupy movement is now using Meetupcom as a platform and there are over 1,300 occupations around the world.

Oct. 14: Brookfield Office Properties, the owners of Zuccotti Park, attempts to clear the park by announcing that they and the NYPD will be performing a cleaning of the park at 7 a.m. the next morning. Protesters spend the day cleaning the park themselves, MoveOn.org gathers more than 150,000 signatures on a petition asking Bloomberg not to allow their eviction and, by 6 a.m., with no response from either the city or Brookfield Properties, an estimated 5,000 people gather in Zuccotti Park to prevent the clearing of the park. At the last minute, Brookfield rescinds their request for cleaning as well as their request for NYPD support in removing the protesters.

PHOTOS BY: Gail Zawacki, Brennan Cavanaugh, Gail Zawacki, Jeremiah's s Vanishing New York, Alex Fradkin, Brennan Cavanaugh, Meetup.com, Brennan Cavanaugh, Cody Swanson

The protesters in Zuccotti Park have now been occupying Wall Street for almost a month. Although at first they suffered from a lack of coverage, now the mainstream media seems to be more or less on their side. With great press comes problems, however. As awareness of the protest is increased, it seems that the message of the protest is diluted. Over the weekend Kanye West and Russell Simmons stopped by Zuccotti Park — two men famous for their wealth stopped by an anti-capitalism protest… and it wasn’t a joke. Is the parade of celebrities stopping by Zuccotti Park (during the safety of the daytime of course) good or bad for the movement? Can celebrities ever truly help a counter-culture protest?

Slavoj Zizek, the famous philosopher, however, is an exception that proves the rule. He is a celebrity who will always be welcome at any protest. Zizek stopped by Zuccotti Park on October 9th and addressed this problem. He reminded the protesters not to “fall in love with yourselves, with the nice time we are having here. Carnivals come cheap – the true test of their worth is what remains the day after, how our normal daily life will be changed. Fall in love with hard and patient work – we are the beginning, not the end.” Most importantly Zizek warned them to “beware not only of enemies, but also of false friends who pretend to support us, but are already working hard to dilute our protest.” The power of celebrity is a double-edged sword; although they bring more press and more awareness to the protest, at the same time they “dilute” it, as Zizek says. The protesters cannot, obviously, prohibit celebrities from participating. But perhaps they should. When Kanye West, whose very image is based on his role as a conspicuous consumer and arbiter of the zeitgeist, walks around Zuccotti Park in gold chains and gold teeth, he is controlling the language and the message, not the protesters. He is diluting the protest, robbing it of its power, claiming its relevance for himself, to up his cool-quotient rather than to commit to any outsider political views.

Although the “Occupy” movement has truly taken off and spread across the country in only a couple weeks, its lasting power and influence remains to be seen. According to OccupyTogether.org, there are 1,471 “occupations” currently underway across the country, with the largest being Occupy Denver, Occupy Phoenix, Occupy San Diego, Occupy Los Angeles, Occupy San Francisco and Occupy Portland.

If the protesters at Occupy Wall Street (and the other occupations around the country) continue to let celebrities participate in these protests without commenting, critiquing, or using the juxtaposition to their advantage, they risk becoming nothing more than a pop-culture punch line.