When I started this blog one of my aims was to organize the community in order to take back our Forest Park from those men who have been using it as a "cruising" spot to not just find sexual partners but to use the park as a place to have sex. Not only is this activity illegal, gross and dangerous but it is negatively affecting the environment of the park through the trash these men leave - condom wrappers, bottles, cigarettes, etc. This is unacceptable.
There has been a dialogue going about this problem for years now between the public and the police department, the parks department and our city council representatives with no real noticeable solution or action having ever being taken. This dialogue has now extended itself to the blogs and forums online and most recently has gotten quite heated with residents finally just fed up. One forum member at queenscentral.com has a wonderful idea to get everyone organized to make a big show of our community solidarity on this issue and I think her plan can work if we get everyone involved. Please see her latest post below and contact her for involvement information and make sure to let our city council members and candidates know how important this is to our community:
Thanks, anyone who wants to get involved, please contact me at forestparkcomplaints@hotmail.com
Once we have enough people committed to a march and we make signs, etc,and have a date... I will contact all the political representatives for the districts that the park covers. I will demand that they join us in our cause, or they will be complicit to the problem. I am sure that we can also get the parks dept. people involved, and I was told that PS54 has tried to get their kids involved in park protection activism. I will contact the other school district principals, and PTA's as well as the community board.
And lastly, all the help we can get from all media outlets---it's a lot of people to notify, so I could really use the help......It would help a lot once we have flyers made if there would be volunteers to cover all the entrances to Forest Park, and give out flyers with the date of the march. I can see if we can get a place to donate the printing of the flyers, or ask a small donation from everyone...
Thank you very much for putting the word out about this hidden disgrace of such a beautiful park that Frederick Law Olmsted certainly did not design for this purpose. The park was meant to be walked through, hence the wandering design and pastoral feel to it. It is shameful that we cannot take our children onto the paths to discover the environmental wonders of the park, it's link to its glacial past.
ReplyDeleteThe men that are perpetuating these acts feel even bold enough now, to do it only a few feet from the main asphalt walk.
How would you feel if your child picked up or fell onto a condom or other blood laden object? The city must take responsibility for this problem, and we must hold them to it. I am very willing to take the lead in organizing this endeavor, and I would be so grateful for all the help and participation that it is offered.
The wooded forest is not meant as a refuge for sexually deviant behavior, but unfortunately because of a lack of consistent attention to this dangerous situation, and a lack of community involvement, there is obviously no sense of fear of any punishment.
There is a definite need for the parks dept. to erect signs on the paths,by doing this they will both acknowledge the problem, warn others of danger, and for those that are seeking pleasure in the bushes, clear notice that they will be committing a crime that is punishable by arrest.
I have created a community group on yahoo, called TAKEBACKFORESTPARK, please join it if you want to be involved and that is where I will keep all of you posted as to our progress.
Thanks to all, and please remember if you see anything that is illegal or litter in the park, please call 311 and make a report and forward me the complaint#.
janie
email: takebackforestpark@yahoo.com
email: forestparkcomplaints@hotmail.com
Letter sent to Councilwoman Crowley on April 21, 2009.
ReplyDeleteDear Councilwoman Crowley,
My name is Kevin Jamison and I am the owner of the Kew Gardens Blog at kewgardensblog.blogspot.com. I just wanted to alert you to a situation in Forest Park that I am sure you are aware of - the sexual activity and inherent environmental degradation that has been an on-going
problem for years. Right now on a www.queenscentral.com forum there is
a heated discussion of motivated residents of Kew Gardens and the
surrounding area to begin major protests with news coverage to get the
city to finally combat this problem. You can see the forum here -
http://www.queenscentral.com/forums/topic.php?id=1979
I wish that the community, who all have their own lives and careers,
did not have to mobilize themselves on seemingly every issue to get
something corrected which is someone else's job to do. We understand
that this is a serious problem that does not have an easy fix, but
there are several obvious ways to attempt to get a handle on this
problem that is now beginning to dangerously get out of control, i.e.
get Police in the park, just like every other NYC park, on a constant
basis. I am in there everday with my family and dog and we never see
police. Fix the lights in the park. Start making arrests and publicize
them. Keep cleaning the areas they use and pollute with bottles,
cigarettes and used condoms and their wrappers so that there are
officials constantly in the area to deter these men ( the broken
window theory applies here as well, if they go back there and see
garbage they are more likely to keep leaving it there)
Please see the forum to see everyone's real concerns and let us know
how you can help.