A Richmond Hill man is accused of pretending to be an immigration officer so he could pull off $1.75 million of green card and real estate scams that exploited 19 West Indian immigrants. Shane Ramsundar, 50, allegedly dressed like an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer—armed with an air gun and a fake badge—and convinced immigrants he could help them buy property or become legal residents. more ›

A doctor who practices in NJ with admitting privileges at New York Presbyterian Hospital. His 94-year-old mother. Her $832,453 savings. And a wall collapse in Upper Manhattan. In a case Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau called "a mini-Astor case," Dr. Robin Motz was accused of stealing his mother's savings since 2003. more ›

With the notable exception of Brooklyn, the Outer Boroughs are a veritable wasteland when it comes, to bánh mí, or Vietnamese sandwiches. Despite repeated forays, we've yet to find any decent versions in Queens. Those that do exist are served in restaurants, and every bánh mí fiend worth his Sriracha knows that restaurants never serve a good Vietnamese sandwich; it's simply not in their best interests to sell $3.00 entrees. As with many sandwiches, the best bánh mí are found in mom and pop delis. We like to think that these refreshing sandwiches are at their best at delis because those joints specialize in bánh mí and little else. more ›

Millions of people flocked to Eastern Parkway to celebrate the West Indian American Day Parade yesterday. This was the 40th year of the parade, which had floats, dancers, and bands interacting with the crowds. Many of the spectators wore or waved flags of native countries and enjoying delicious food. more ›

Happy Labor Day! Today, government buildings and post offices, financial markets and banks are all closed. Alternate-side-of-the-street parking is suspended and there is no garbage or recycling collection. Mass transit is running on a Sunday schedule. There a number of events today (though we think that the West Indian American Day Carnival is the best bet) and it's also the last day of the year that city beaches and pools will be open. more ›

One of the city's biggest parades of the year, if not the largest, is tomorrow: The annual West Indian American Day Carnival. With millions in attendance and colorful sights, the parade is a Brooklyn highlight. more ›

September 3: West Indian–American Day Carnival more ›

MOVIE: The new Hairspray has set up special Sing-A-Long screenings! They begin nationwide today, and there will be three right here in New York. If you don't like rowdy theaters, skip this one! more ›

Carlos Lezama, who founded the West Indian Carnival Parade in Brooklyn back in the 1960s, died yesterday at Kings County Hospital at 83. Lezama was born in Trinidad and had participated in the West Indian Carnival in Harlem when he immigrated to the United States. Then Lezama, along with friend Rufus Goring, brought the parade to Brooklyn. The parade has evolved from a five block affair to being the city's biggest parade. The vibrant gathering, held on the first Monday of September, attracts about 2 million spectators and participants in colorful garb - see these photographs of last year's parade from ultraclay!. more ›

David’s Brisket House is an unlikely relic on a stretch of Nostrand Avenue mostly populated by 99 cent stores and West Indian delis. The space is narrow and dated, outfitted with mirrored walls (the sort mostly reserved for adult film sets) and ceiling tiles brown with the remnants of some ancient leak. It doesn’t have the fame of Carnegie Deli or the sprawling space and hypnotic neon glow of Katz’s. The clueless tourists and first-timers, the ones who order their pastrami with mayo (tsk) and request half sour pickles (tsk tsk), don’t come here. David’s is a place for locals and sandwich hedonists—the type who don’t mind the occasional visit from a neighborhood crazy if it means dining with the kind of mindless abandon the place requires. more ›

This week's New York cover story is about Mayor Bloomberg's presidential possibilities. It's a great look at how far the Mayor has come from the dog days of 2003 when his approval ratings were in the 20-30 point range and how, somehow, many New Yorkers seem to like Mike.

It’s the Tuesday after Labor Day, and Bloomberg and I are having lunch (though his idea of lunch is coffee and a slice of incinerated toast) at a diner in Tribeca. Bloomberg is dressed in a charcoal suit, a pink pin-striped shirt, and a pale-blue tie patterned with tiny yellow snails. He’s telling me a story about what a fabulous time he had the day before at the West Indian–American Day parade in Brooklyn—but the real subject is the affection, nay the devotion, the city has come to feel for him. more ›

Arguing over "rights" to a parking spot are common, but it's grim that some disputes have to become violent. Yesterday afternoon, a man was killed after fighting with another man over a parking spot in Brooklyn. Ricardo Sterling thought that a driver in a blue Jaguar had taken his spot near the Good Hope West Indian Restaurant on Flatbush Avenue. Sterling got into a fight with the driver and threatened him with a knife (the driver's friend tried to stop Sterling, but he was threatened, too). Then the fight moved into the restaurant, and the driver fatally shot Sterling. more ›

The police have arrested two men and have charged one in the murder of sanitation worker Damon Allen. Allen, who was in the news last December after catching a 4 year old from a burning building, was killed early Monday morning while leaving a party at 862 Prospect Place, Brooklyn. The police believe the shooting was random, but what's disturbing is that 50 bullets were fired during some sort of altercation. Yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg said during the West Indian American Day Parade, "Nearly one year ago, Damon Allen was the city's hero for saving the life of a little girl. Today, he lies dead. This is a very sad note to what should be a very joyous occasion. We've just got to stop this kind of violence. It is an outrage." more ›

Yesterday was the West Indian American Day Parade, and it was as festive as ever, especially with the gorgeous weather we had. Politicians were present - and who knew that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Suozzi had lived in Trinidad and Tobago years ago? Newsday reports he sang "Tiney Winey." But most of all, it was the parade marchers, dancers, and perfomers and all the spectators that made the event exciting. The parade was so moving that one tourist from North Carolina told the Daily News, "I love it. Now I want to move here. I love the vibe that is here." more ›

If there's a city parade, you bet it's an opportunity for politicians to get out to press the flesh. And yesterday's West Indian American Day Parade in Brooklyn was no different, with the primary showdown over the Congressional seat being vacated by Major Owens coming up next week. As it happens, the crowd in the Wyckoff Gardens Houses weren't too happy to hear Mayor Bloomberg and candidate-City Councilman David Yassky announce that $600,000 worth of security cameras would be installed. Someone ended up throwing a frosted doughnut near the Mayor, causing his girlfriend Diana Taylor to take "cover beneath a concrete overhang," as the Times puts it. Which only made the Mayor joke, "Well, just another reason why we need cameras." Newsday reports that another man was loudly murmuring in the back of the crowd, prompting the mayor to say, "If we could have some quiet back there, sir, it would be appreciated, thank you; we can't hear." Of course, the NYPD investigated the tasty treat toss, but came to the conclusion, "Nothing was ascertained with certainty, but there is no indication it was directed at the mayor. It may have just been tossed out the window or dropped." more ›

NY1 seems to have taken Labor Day off when it comes to today's weather. Ah, well, Gothamist will try to fill-in some of the blanks. Today will be a slightly warmer version of yesterday. In other words, nice enough to make up for Saturday's wetness. Look for mostly sunny skies and a high temperature approaching 80. Perfect for the West Indian Day parade! more ›

It looks like a gorgeous day for the West Indian Day Carnival's parade today. The Brooklyn parade is apparently the city's largest parade, with 2 million spectators, but what's especially awesome about it is that the spectators really feel like they are part of the parade. The parade starts at Eastern Parkway and Utica, and then goes west on Eastern Parkway to Grand Army Plaza, so expect lots of street closures and celebrating! And take pictures - the costumes are amazing. more ›

New York City boasts 578 miles of coastline. But nowhere exudes that relaxed island vibe like Culpepper’s in the landlocked neighborhood of Crown Heights, Brooklyn. With a Haitian joint just half a block away and an abundance of West Indian restaurants peppering the area, the Barbadian Culpepper’s could have been lost in the Caribbean crowd. more ›

The Transport Workers Union president Roger Toussaint will kick off his ten-day jail sentence - for last December's three-day transit strike - by having a rally outside King's County Supreme Court at 4PM. Then Toussaint and his supporters - including the Reverend Al Sharpton and John J. Sweeny of the AFL-CIO - will march across the Brooklyn Bridge and head over to the Tombs, where he needs to report at 6PM. But supporters will also hold sit-ins outside the jail. Toussaint tells the NY Times that his jail sentence is stupid, "It's one thing if you threaten a jail sentence while a strike is on. t's another thing to send someone to jail three months afterward." And he tells the Daily News that he's not worried about jail, but he's worried about his family worrying about, like his 10 year old son. The Post's reporter got threatened when he observed Toussaint's "last day of freedom" while eating in Boerum Hill ("curried chicken, accompanied by rice and beans and spicy cabbage at the West Indian home-style favorite Stir It Up on Atlantic Avenue"). more ›

This week, planning to go explore the 116th Street stop on the 6 train, we popped out of the subway on a chilly Saturday afternoon. After a few minutes walking around, scoping some West Indian shops, talking to locals and seeing the barren marketplace under the Metro North Viaduct above Park Avenue we decided to return there in the warmer months. We will probably wait till La Marqueta Internacional opens in the summer, all the better to include exploring what seems to be a great new project for a neighborhood whose diverse residents historically are quite proud their colorful heritages, and not shy about showing it off and sharing it with all. Really, after reading this how can we not be excited at the prospects. more ›

On what was surely one of the most beautiful "last day of the summer" in recent memory, millions of people celebrated in Brooklyn at the 38th West Indian American Day Carnival and Parade. While people with roots in the Caribbean were the main participants, they weren't the only ones: The NY Times reported that "four rabbinical students donned do-rags with the colors of the Jamaican flag." And Gothamist's favorite quote comes from Newsday, where Jason Ridges said, "I'm not from any island but Coney Island. This is the one day of the year I can feel Caribbean." more ›

Mayor Bloomberg criticized federal efforts to help Hurricane Katrina victims as he also reassured New Yorkers that our Office of Emergency Management had an evacuationg plan for the city if needed. At the West Indian Day Parade yesterday, the Mayor told a crowd:

The sad fact is that the vast majority of those who were left behind in New Orleans were either black or poor, or both. How could we have turned our backs on those who've needed our help for so long, for so many years that they were left to fend for themselves when disaster struck? As a nation, we all are to blame and we all must do better the next time.

Head over to Brooklyn for the West Indian Day Carnival and Parade on Eastern Parkway. The parade started 11AM, but festivities will continue until 6PM. Dancers with gorgeous costumes and wild floats will be out in full force, as well as Caribbean cooking. Plus, except to see a lot of local politicians gearing up for next week's primary. more ›

Xavier, Rising Star more ›

One woman was run over by a float car after falling off a float; she is in serious condition, but onlookers say it didn't seem to be the driver's fault. Still, this being the one of the few serious injuries yesterday, it's nice to know the parade was peaceful and enjoyable. more ›

Frances can not only move, it can remove. Hurricane Frances continues to slowly make her way toward Florida this morning. The hurricane has weakened a bit but is still a dangerous storm. more ›

Schaller Consulting has many other interesting taxi cab resources, including the newly released 2004 Taxi Cab Fact Book (PDF). more ›