T he Syracuse Strong won a national championship in January when they beat the Virginia Titans in the Sunshine Bowl in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Strong dominated the game 32-0. “We went out with 27 guys kind of nervous, but everyone stepped up and got the job done,” Head Coach Ed Watkins said. “It was my first national championship with …

At first they didn’t believe in marriage. Fate had other plans, changed their perceptions. The trend of more and more young adults waiting to get married continues, according to a 2018 U.S. census report. The nation saw a 30 percent decrease in the numbers of young couples tying the knot over the last 40 years. Although large percentages of married …

Trauma Response Team partners with startup to develop an alert system, engagement tool On a snowy Saturday morning last month, 18 residents gathered at Syracuse Community Connections. Participants helped themselves to some breakfast on one end of the room and took a seat at the tables filled with colored sharpies, black sheets of paper, name tags and stickers.They were there …

CNY Roots hosted its third meeting for the Soul to Soul: I-81 Impact community dialogue series Feb. 27 at the Tech Garden. Co-founder of CNY Roots Juhanna Rogers invited broadcast journalist Jennifer Sanders to engage community members with a cultural connective point by talking about the history of the community.Sanders shared what the community looked like before I-81, which she …

The crowd cheers as community organizer and social worker Gwen Chaffin announced that activists and organizers were at ArtRage Gallery to correct misconceptions about the Black Panther Party during the “From Panther 21 to 21st Century Revolutions” panel discussion held Feb. 23. Guests included Sekou Odinga, an original member of the Black Panther Party and a member of Panther 21; …

Are decisions on Syracuse’s South Side Inclusive? While a swarm of proposals affecting the South Side have been announced, much of the chatter over the past few months seems to center on missed opportunities. From Crouse Hospital’s now-canceled Sears building renovation to confusion over where $200 million from the newly announced Syracuse Surge would be spent to the ongoing quagmire …

Two Syracuse couples talk about how their long-lasting love defies stereotypes

Residents from two continents capture images of their hometowns from their own perspectives

PEACE Inc.’s recently hired case manager returns to jail after two months on the job

In this issue, meet two couples defying the stereotype that black love — especially married love — doesn’t last. View a list of local Black History Month events and take a moment to reflect on historic black figures in Reggie Seigler’s “The Friendly Five” column. Also, hear from project collaborators of the soon-to-open Freedom Commons who explain the purpose of …