« Atlantic Yards and the Sustainability Test? | Main | Gotbaum backs new downzoning »
June 5, 2007
SCREENINGS: Home-Land Security
Proof that "real estate developer" has joined "lawyer" and "politician" in the ranks of most despised professions, three films are making waves this summer:
Sat June 23: 4
Sun June 24: 6
Mon June 25: 1:30
Walter Reade Theater/Lincoln Center
Tickets for the 2007 Human Rights Watch International Film Festival are available at both the Walter Reade Theater box office (212-875-5600) and online at www.filmlinc.com.
Laura Dunn's beautifully crafted documentary, "The Unforeseen," follows the career of Gary Bradley, an ambitious west Texas farm boy who went to Austin and became one of the state's most powerful real estate developers, capitalizing on Austin's boomtown growth beginning in the 1970s. At the peak of his powers, Bradley transformed 4000 acres of pristine Hill Country into one of the state's largest and fastest-selling subdivisions. When the development threatened a local treasure, "Barton Springs"—a natural spring-fed swimming hole—the community fought back and the subdivision became a lightning rod for environmental activism of the kind that flourished under Governor Ann Richards. However, when George W. Bush became governor, development laws change, and the water quality at Barton Springs, as well as the surrounding landscape of Austin, was irreversibly altered. "The Unforeseen" is a powerful meditation on the destruction of the natural world and the American Dream as it falls victim to the cannibalizing forces of unchecked development. It is an intricate tale of personal hopes, victories, and failures, and debates over land, economics, property rights, and the public good.
Friday, June 22, 7pm
Jersey Shore Arts CenterScreening, Panel and Reception
Limited seating is available, and reservations are required.
[Please call 732-380-1592 to reserve your seat. There is a suggested tax-deductible donation of $20.]
Angie, 91, lived through three decades of rust, riot and ruin in Asbury Park, the one-time postcard paradise. Now the tiny bungalow that she has called home, for half her life, will be seized by eminent domain. Hundreds of homes, apartment buildings and local businesses are boarded up, ready for the wrecking ball. Angie’s may be next.
The screening will mark the second anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Kelo v. City of New London, in which the court ruled that private property may be seized on the mere promise of increased tax revenue and jobs. New Jersey has felt the wrath of this decision, and remains one of the worst abusers of eminent domain in the country.
The evening will also include a panel discussion featuring Dana Berliner, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice who represented the homeowners in Kelo, as well as community members and homeowners affected by eminent domain abuse and filmmaker Christina Eliopoulous. A reception and meet-and-greet with panelists and special guests will follow the discussion.
No single event will have a more drastic and long-lasting impact on Brooklyn than the proposed Atlantic Yards development. This uncommon proposal, however, is mostly misunderstood. Brooklyn Matters is an insightful documentary that reveals the fuller truth about the Atlantic Yards proposal and highlights how a few powerful men are circumventing community participation and planning principles to try to push their own interests forward.
Screening at a neighborhood location near you:
Friday, June 8, 7:00 pm — Spoke the Hub Re:Creation Center
748 Union Street, Bklyn, Local Produce Festival (sponsored by Spoke the Hub),
RSVP: 718-408-3234
Saturday, June 9, 6:30 pm — St. Cyril Belarusian Church
401 Atlantic Avenue
Wednesday, June 13 6:00 pm (6:00 pm reception, 6:30 pm screening)
87 Lafayette Street, NYC,
Sponsored by Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project
Friday, June 15, 7:00 pm — Spoke the Hub Re:Creation Center
748 Union Street, Bklyn, Local Produce Festival (sponsored by Spoke the Hub),
RSVP: 718-408-3234
Tuesday, June 19, 7:00 pm — Fifth Avenue Committee
621 DeGraw Street, Bklyn,
RSVP: 718-237-2017 x 171
Wednesday, June 20, 7:00 pm — St. Gregory's RC Church
224 Brooklyn Avenue
Sponsored by the Crown Heights North Association, Inc.
Thursday, June 21, 7:00 pm
1320 Eighth Avenue, BKLYN
Panel to follow with Council Member Letitia James, Daniel Goldstein, Ron Shiffman and Michelle de la Uz, and Isabel Hill.
Sponsored by the Park Slope Jewish Center and Jews for Racial & Economic Justice
Friday, June 22 7:00 pm — Spoke the Hub Re:Creation Center
748 Union Street, Bklyn, Local Produce Festival (sponsored by Spoke the Hub),
RSVP: 718-408-3234
Posted by lumi at June 5, 2007 10:46 AM