march updates
Greetings to all, and I trust you’re well. I’m here with updates from The BRO Experience Foundation (including more great progress) and I'd like to invite you to an upcoming event.
Please join me for Coffee With Coop!
This will be a virtual get-together to discuss our transformational education work with young men of color. If you have an interest in mental health, education policy, men’s & family issues, and violence prevention, please join us and lend your presence to the conversation.
There are two 30-minute sessions to choose from:
See you there, and feel free to spread the word and invite others.
Introducing Borough President Antonio Reynoso and City Council Member Chi Ossé at a recent Wellness Wednesdays event at Restoration Plaza
Ossé and Reynoso for the Win!
We’re hugely grateful to the office of City Council Member Chi Ossé (of the 36th district covering Bedford-Stuyvesant and northern Crown Heights) and Antonio Reynoso (our new Borough President).
Together they granted $10,000 in funding to The BRO Experience to continue our programming in Brooklyn. Thank you for investing in our youth’s future! We stand with you to engage the community of Brooklyn with what wellness should be!!!
"I was hoping to see that we would firmly approach [gun violence] from a mental health standpoint," Cooper said of Adams' plan.
"He used the police-officer approach."
My Conversation with the Mayor
You’ve likely been following the debate around violence prevention and policing since Mayor Adams rolled out his Blueprint to End Gun Violence. This is a complex set of issues and policies, to be sure, and much has yet to be seen. But I’ve continued to assert that unless we are making a real commitment to youth development and mental health, more policing will only deepen our city’s existing wounds.
A recent article in the Brooklyn Patch covers a conversation I had with Mayor Adams about these critical issues.
A Friend's Plea To Eric Adams: We Don't Need More Cops
Shootings continue in our neighborhood, including a 14-year-old who was wounded by gunfire in the middle of the day in a busy area of Stuyvesant Heights. These debates are not theoretical, they’re life and death. Please let me know your thoughts on these topics and let’s continue the conversation.
Stay Connected
A reminder that support from people like you helps keep us going. Follow us in realtime on Instagram (check out this recent Amazing moment). And become a monthly donor to The BRO Experience. It’s quick to sign up, and your donations are tax-deductible.
Lastly, don’t forget to RSVP for a Coffee with Coop Zoom Session. I promise to be well-caffeinated and full of thought-provoking topics. See you next week!
With much love and dedication,
–Barry Cooper, Founder and Executive Director