Mfalme is the founder and Executive Minister of a mutual self improvement fraternity, called the Ujamaa Fraternal Dynasty, which is known as UFD. He’s so far been unsuccessful in getting the New York Department of Corrections and Community supervision to approve prison chapters of UFD, though he has a legal case pending.

Mfalme says he was recently sentenced to five months in solitary confinement at Marcy Correctional Facility for possession of documents relating to UFD. He’s applied for clemency so he can continue the work of UFD from the outside, but Governor Cuomo has yet to grant his request. 

Bruce McIntyre is trying to do something about that.  His partner died after an emergency C-section at a Bronx hospital in late April. McIntyre says her death is an example of long-standing inequities in the health care system for women of color. And that’s why he founded the Save A Rose Foundation. It’s dedicated to shedding light on issues of maternal mortality among women of color in the U.S.

WFUV's George Bodarky recently talked with McIntyre on Zoom about the love of his life, Amber Rose Isaac, and his efforts to prevent other families from going through similar heartache. 

In the age of distance learning, The Bronx Borough President’s office has been working with non-profit organizations to sound the alarm over the digital divide in the borough. They say a lack of access to computers and the internet is standing in the way of an education for many students in the Bronx who come from low-income families.

Rose DeStefano is Senior Director of Collective Impact at Children's Aid Society. She’s among those working to level the playing field for low-income families and communities of color, and she’s our guest on this edition of Community Dialogues. 

My Next Move is an aftercare support program led by credible messenger mentors. The mentors are “credible” because they, too, experienced court involvement when they were teens.

In this episode of Community Dialogues, we’re talking with Ed Gorch, Clinical Director of Justice for Youth and Families Programs at Rising Ground, along with Rohee Ramnath and Chazz Lynes, both credible messenger mentors with the My Next Move program.

In New York City, the South Bronx is among the areas hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. The nonprofit organization, BronxWorks, says it’s seen a sharp increase in the need for help.

Our guest on this edition of Community Dialogues is John Weed, Assistant Executive Director at BronxWorks.