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The Legacy of Elizabeth Street Garden & the Fight for Green Spaces
If you have lived in or visited New York, and have experienced the Elizabeth Street Garden, you know that you have been truly blessed. Folks like Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese have submitted letters to the City of New York advocating to protect this landmark. Nestled between Prince and Spring Streets, it is more than just a patch of green space; it’s a cherished sanctuary that has woven itself into the heart of New York City’s Nolita neighborhood. For many, it serves as a core memory—an oasis of tranquility amidst the bustling streets, frequented by locals and travelers alike. As I write this, Elizabeth Street Garden is at risk. At the heart of the legal dispute, is a potential development project for affordable housing. The problem is that there are other much more viable options. In fact, many members of the NYC community- far and wide- have been fighting to save this space. But within the last few weeks, it seems like the development project that will take the garden away from us has been greenlit. The truth is that we are still hopeful.
Once a derelict lot left vacant after the demolition of P.S. 21 in the 1970s, the garden’s transformation began in 1991 when Allan Reiver took the initiative to breathe life back into the forgotten area. As the owner of the neighboring Elizabeth Street Gallery, Reiver saw potential in the barren land. Leasing it on a month-to-month basis, he meticulously cleaned it up, and filled it with sculptures and architectural artifacts from his extensive collection. Today, the garden is a fairytale-like safe haven with an eclectic mix of plants and sculptures, creating a tranquil retreat for all who visit. In September of 2022, Patti Smith famously played a free concert to raise awareness about the garden, drawing over 600 attendees who came together to celebrate its importance.
The garden has become a sanctuary for many in a city that lacks green spaces, which is undeniably valuable for everyone’s mental health. It has hosted countless stories of connection and joy: couples have proposed and gotten married among its flowers, while families have raised their children within its tranquil embrace. Renee Green, the garden’s Chair, often recounts how it has become a vital meeting point for seniors in the community. This is crucial in a city like New York which doesn’t have many natural third spaces, and isn’t necessarily always accessible for some folks. Elizabeth Street Garden has created a place where folks get to know their neighbors and a culture where that extends outside of the garden. When asked to share some stories or experiences from visitors that illustrate the impact of the garden on the community, Rieves mentioned there are many elderly who come to the garden on a daily basis. He tells a story of an elderly Chinese woman who speaks little English, who has formed a unique bond with the space. She helps weave vines through the gates and along sculptures. It is people like her that exemplify the importance of this garden.
The garden is maintained by devoted volunteers and the nonprofit Elizabeth Street Garden Inc. (ESG), and it has become a vital communal space. Since 2013, ESG has worked diligently to keep the garden open year-round, hosting community events that nurture both body and soul. In a city where green space is a precious commodity, they invite people to partake in yoga sessions, eco-gardening workshops, and cultural collaborations with organizations like MoMA and the Lower East Side Ecology Center. The garden has also served as an outdoor classroom for local elementary school students, where they learned about sustainable practices during the pandemic. Through ongoing workshops with local public schools, children are not only given the opportunity to connect with nature but also to get their hands in the dirt and contribute to a shared space. They learn about planting and sustainable stewardship, while also expressing their creativity through poetry and garden design. An example of environmental stewardship and sustainability, the garden teaches visitors about the significance of community- led green spaces in urban environments—not merely as pockets of nature amidst concrete but as vital havens for mental health. Knowing there are spaces for communities to gather, interculturally and intergenerationally while building neighboring relationships, is essential in the West with big cities like New York. We have been stripped of our community and the interconnected support in places we call home. The garden fills a void many New Yorkers seek.
Elizabeth Street Garden is a vibrant community space and artistic haven. It blends nature with architectural elements and sculptures, which are recognized both locally and globally. Its preservation underscores the importance of prioritizing public green spaces in urban development. It is also free to the public, which embodies the community spirit and the nurturing power of nature. Spaces like these help us all foster connections and create cherished memories. Ultimately, the garden’s magic can be described in a quote by Joseph Reiver, the garden’s director who reflects on his experience: “I’ve learned a lot about how to shape a place while accepting how it grows organically, balancing vision with the need to listen to the garden.”
Get Involved! Go to elizabethstreetgarden.com/volunteer to find out how to support this rare and historical “third space” in New York city.
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{
"article":
{
"title" : "The Legacy of Elizabeth Street Garden & the Fight for Green Spaces",
"author" : "Yassa Almokhamad-Sarkisian",
"category" : "essays",
"tags" : "public space, urban development",
"url" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/readings/elizabeth-st-garden",
"date" : "2024-11-01 12:08:00 -0400",
"img" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/uploads/elizabeth-1.jpg",
"excerpt" : "If you have lived in or visited New York, and have experienced the Elizabeth Street Garden, you know that you have been truly blessed. Folks like Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese have submitted letters to the City of New York advocating to protect this landmark. Nestled between Prince and Spring Streets, it is more than just a patch of green space; it’s a cherished sanctuary that has woven itself into the heart of New York City’s Nolita neighborhood. For many, it serves as a core memory—an oasis of tranquility amidst the bustling streets, frequented by locals and travelers alike. As I write this, Elizabeth Street Garden is at risk. At the heart of the legal dispute, is a potential development project for affordable housing. The problem is that there are other much more viable options. In fact, many members of the NYC community- far and wide- have been fighting to save this space. But within the last few weeks, it seems like the development project that will take the garden away from us has been greenlit. The truth is that we are still hopeful.",
"content" : "If you have lived in or visited New York, and have experienced the Elizabeth Street Garden, you know that you have been truly blessed. Folks like Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese have submitted letters to the City of New York advocating to protect this landmark. Nestled between Prince and Spring Streets, it is more than just a patch of green space; it’s a cherished sanctuary that has woven itself into the heart of New York City’s Nolita neighborhood. For many, it serves as a core memory—an oasis of tranquility amidst the bustling streets, frequented by locals and travelers alike. As I write this, Elizabeth Street Garden is at risk. At the heart of the legal dispute, is a potential development project for affordable housing. The problem is that there are other much more viable options. In fact, many members of the NYC community- far and wide- have been fighting to save this space. But within the last few weeks, it seems like the development project that will take the garden away from us has been greenlit. The truth is that we are still hopeful.Once a derelict lot left vacant after the demolition of P.S. 21 in the 1970s, the garden’s transformation began in 1991 when Allan Reiver took the initiative to breathe life back into the forgotten area. As the owner of the neighboring Elizabeth Street Gallery, Reiver saw potential in the barren land. Leasing it on a month-to-month basis, he meticulously cleaned it up, and filled it with sculptures and architectural artifacts from his extensive collection. Today, the garden is a fairytale-like safe haven with an eclectic mix of plants and sculptures, creating a tranquil retreat for all who visit. In September of 2022, Patti Smith famously played a free concert to raise awareness about the garden, drawing over 600 attendees who came together to celebrate its importance.The garden has become a sanctuary for many in a city that lacks green spaces, which is undeniably valuable for everyone’s mental health. It has hosted countless stories of connection and joy: couples have proposed and gotten married among its flowers, while families have raised their children within its tranquil embrace. Renee Green, the garden’s Chair, often recounts how it has become a vital meeting point for seniors in the community. This is crucial in a city like New York which doesn’t have many natural third spaces, and isn’t necessarily always accessible for some folks. Elizabeth Street Garden has created a place where folks get to know their neighbors and a culture where that extends outside of the garden. When asked to share some stories or experiences from visitors that illustrate the impact of the garden on the community, Rieves mentioned there are many elderly who come to the garden on a daily basis. He tells a story of an elderly Chinese woman who speaks little English, who has formed a unique bond with the space. She helps weave vines through the gates and along sculptures. It is people like her that exemplify the importance of this garden.The garden is maintained by devoted volunteers and the nonprofit Elizabeth Street Garden Inc. (ESG), and it has become a vital communal space. Since 2013, ESG has worked diligently to keep the garden open year-round, hosting community events that nurture both body and soul. In a city where green space is a precious commodity, they invite people to partake in yoga sessions, eco-gardening workshops, and cultural collaborations with organizations like MoMA and the Lower East Side Ecology Center. The garden has also served as an outdoor classroom for local elementary school students, where they learned about sustainable practices during the pandemic. Through ongoing workshops with local public schools, children are not only given the opportunity to connect with nature but also to get their hands in the dirt and contribute to a shared space. They learn about planting and sustainable stewardship, while also expressing their creativity through poetry and garden design. An example of environmental stewardship and sustainability, the garden teaches visitors about the significance of community- led green spaces in urban environments—not merely as pockets of nature amidst concrete but as vital havens for mental health. Knowing there are spaces for communities to gather, interculturally and intergenerationally while building neighboring relationships, is essential in the West with big cities like New York. We have been stripped of our community and the interconnected support in places we call home. The garden fills a void many New Yorkers seek.Elizabeth Street Garden is a vibrant community space and artistic haven. It blends nature with architectural elements and sculptures, which are recognized both locally and globally. Its preservation underscores the importance of prioritizing public green spaces in urban development. It is also free to the public, which embodies the community spirit and the nurturing power of nature. Spaces like these help us all foster connections and create cherished memories. Ultimately, the garden’s magic can be described in a quote by Joseph Reiver, the garden’s director who reflects on his experience: “I’ve learned a lot about how to shape a place while accepting how it grows organically, balancing vision with the need to listen to the garden.”Get Involved! Go to elizabethstreetgarden.com/volunteer to find out how to support this rare and historical “third space” in New York city."
}
,
"relatedposts": [
{
"title" : "Neptune Frost",
"author" : "Saul Williams, Anisia Uzeyman",
"category" : "screenings",
"tags" : "",
"url" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/readings/eip-screening-neptune-frost",
"date" : "2025-07-12 16:00:00 -0400",
"img" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/uploads/netune-frost-movie-poster.jpg",
"excerpt" : "Join us on Saturday, July 12 for a special screening, followed by an exclusive Q&A with the directors of Neptune Frost. Part of our member screening series, tune in live or anytime in the next 24 hours, from anywhere in the world!",
"content" : "Join us on Saturday, July 12 for a special screening, followed by an exclusive Q&A with the directors of Neptune Frost. Part of our member screening series, tune in live or anytime in the next 24 hours, from anywhere in the world!Multi-hyphenate, multidisciplinary artist Saul Williams brings his unique dynamism to this Afrofuturist vision, a sci-fi punk musical that’s a visually wondrous amalgamation of themes, ideas, and songs that Williams has explored in his work, notably his 2016 album MartyrLoserKing. Co-directed with the Rwandan-born artist and cinematographer Anisia Uzeyman, the film takes place in the hilltops of Burundi, where a group of escaped coltan miners form an anti-colonialist computer hacker collective. From their camp in an otherworldly e-waste dump, they attempt a takeover of the authoritarian regime exploiting the region’s natural resources – and its people. When an intersex runaway and an escaped coltan miner find each other through cosmic forces, their connection sparks glitches within the greater divine circuitry. Set between states of being – past and present, dream and waking life, colonized and free, male and female, memory and prescience – Neptune Frost is an invigorating and empowering direct download to the cerebral cortex and a call to reclaim technology for progressive political ends."
}
,
{
"title" : "Socialist Girl Summer: How Capitalism Spent Billions to Demonize Socialism — And Why That Spell Is Breaking",
"author" : "Céline Semaan",
"category" : "essays",
"tags" : "",
"url" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/readings/socialist-girl-summer-demonize-socialism-why-spell-breaking",
"date" : "2025-07-03 22:00:00 -0400",
"img" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/uploads/EIP_SocialistGirlSummer.jpg",
"excerpt" : "As the founder of Slow Factory, I design everything you see—every typeface, every framework, every campaign. I don’t outsource the vision. I shape it. And I started Slow with one goal in mind: to rebrand socialism, justice, and environmentalism—not as niche causes, but as cultural movements essential to our survival. Design isn’t just about aesthetics. It’s about power. And I use design as a tool to imagine, demand, and build better worlds.For nearly a century, the United States has spent billions of dollars, media bandwidth, and educational muscle to ensure one thing: that the word socialism would strike fear in the public imagination. That’s not because socialism failed. It’s because socialism threatens power—especially the kind of power that hoards land, labor, and life for profit.But something is shifting. The re-election of Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani in New York—an openly socialist organizer who unapologetically defends tenants, workers, and Palestinians—marks a rupture in that narrative. A new generation no longer flinches at the word. They embrace it. They are building it. They are winning.But before we can move forward, we must understand what we are up against.",
"content" : "As the founder of Slow Factory, I design everything you see—every typeface, every framework, every campaign. I don’t outsource the vision. I shape it. And I started Slow with one goal in mind: to rebrand socialism, justice, and environmentalism—not as niche causes, but as cultural movements essential to our survival. Design isn’t just about aesthetics. It’s about power. And I use design as a tool to imagine, demand, and build better worlds.For nearly a century, the United States has spent billions of dollars, media bandwidth, and educational muscle to ensure one thing: that the word socialism would strike fear in the public imagination. That’s not because socialism failed. It’s because socialism threatens power—especially the kind of power that hoards land, labor, and life for profit.But something is shifting. The re-election of Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani in New York—an openly socialist organizer who unapologetically defends tenants, workers, and Palestinians—marks a rupture in that narrative. A new generation no longer flinches at the word. They embrace it. They are building it. They are winning.But before we can move forward, we must understand what we are up against.A Propaganda Empire Built on FearFrom Cold War cinema to first-grade civics books, socialism was rendered as the enemy. Not because it endangered democracy, but because it questioned private property, militarism, and capitalism’s sacred cow: unlimited profit.The U.S. government, backed by its capitalist elite, responded with a sweeping cultural war. The Red Scare and McCarthyism turned union leaders, civil rights activists, and artists into traitors. The FBI surveilled and imprisoned people for organizing against poverty and racial capitalism. Hollywood blacklists sanitized storytelling and sold capitalist mythology as aspirational truth. CIA coups, from Chile to Iran to the Congo, dismantled democratically elected socialist governments because they dared to nationalize oil, land, and education. This wasn’t a fear of failure. It was a fear of redistribution.Why the Spell Is BreakingCapitalism made big promises. But it delivered gig work, burnout, debt, climate collapse, and endless war. A growing number of people—especially Gen Z and Millennials—aren’t buying the myth anymore.According to Pew Research (2023), 70% of younger Americans support some form of socialism.Mutual aid groups, public power campaigns, and tenant unions are taking root in cities across the U.S.And politicians like Mamdani, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Summer Lee, and others are bringing these values to governance—publicly, unapologetically.This isn’t a rebrand. This is a return. A remembering.Designing LiberationDesign has always been political. It’s a tool used by empires—and also a tool of resistance. Every successful propaganda campaign used design to criminalize solidarity and glorify capitalism.Mid-century posters showed socialism as monstrous: Stalin as an octopus devouring the planet. Red flags engulfing American homes in flames. Inspectors peering through windows. These visuals weren’t neutral. They were weapons.But today, we’re flipping the frame.As a designer, I use visual culture to demystify and disrupt these fear-based narratives. We design not just what we see—but how we see. And when we shift that perspective, we make new futures possible.My work at Slow Factory has always been about this: telling stories rooted in care, equity, and ecological justice. Whether through open education, cultural programming, or climate justice campaigns, I’m reprogramming what power looks like—and who it belongs to.Zohran Mamdani and the Future of StorytellingMamdani’s victory isn’t just electoral. It’s cultural. He won while calling for an end to genocide in Gaza, organizing with workers instead of corporations, and speaking openly about the harms of capitalism and imperialism.He won while the establishment poured millions into defeating him.His win is proof: the old script is wearing thin.Reclaiming the Word, Reclaiming the WorldSocialism has always been about care—public housing, free healthcare, universal education, the right to rest and exist without fear. These are not fringe demands. These are the bare minimum for a livable planet.The villain was never socialism. The villain was the empire that told us we didn’t deserve care unless we could afford it.We are entering the Possible Futures era. And it’s being led by people who no longer fear justice—but are terrified of its absence.Designing that future means unlearning propaganda and replacing it with stories of survival, resistance, and imagination. We must reclaim the visual language of dignity—transforming symbols of domination into frameworks for liberation.We don’t just need to rebrand socialism.We need to remember it.And redesign everything."
}
,
{
"title" : "Who’s Profiting from Genocide? What Francesca Albanese’s Report Reveals—and Why It Matters for the Climate",
"author" : "EIP Editors",
"category" : "essays",
"tags" : "",
"url" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/readings/profiting-from-genocide-what-francesca-albanese-report",
"date" : "2025-07-02 18:33:00 -0400",
"img" : "https://everythingispolitical.com/uploads/EIP_Francesca_Report.jpg",
"excerpt" : "Let’s be clear: genocide is never just a military operation. It’s an economy.",
"content" : "Let’s be clear: genocide is never just a military operation. It’s an economy.This week, UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese released a groundbreaking report—“From the Economy of Occupation to the Economy of Genocide” naming dozens of global corporations complicit in and benefitting from Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. The report makes what many of us have long known impossible to ignore: multinational corporations are not just “doing business” with Israel—they are profiting from displacement, resource theft, and mass death.And it’s not just harming people. It’s killing the planet.Albanese’s report lays out how corporations across defense, tech, finance, construction, and agriculture are directly enabling Israel’s assault on Gaza. This is not indirect. This is not abstract. These companies are not passive observers—they are profiteers. Weapon Manufacturers like Lockheed Martin, Elbit Systems, Boeing, BAE Systems, and General Dynamics are supplying the bombs raining down on hospitals and refugee camps. Tech Giants like Google, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, and Palantir provide the cloud computing, AI surveillance, and targeting software that power Israel’s military intelligence. Construction Firms like Caterpillar, HD Hyundai, and Volvo provide bulldozers used to demolish Palestinian homes—often paid for with public funds or foreign aid. Hospitality Platforms like Booking.com and Airbnb list vacation rentals on stolen Palestinian land, laundering settler colonialism into leisure. Financial Institutions including BlackRock, Barclays, Citigroup, JPMorgan, and Deutsche Bank fund Israeli military bonds and invest in all the above sectors. This is what an economy of genocide looks like: global, profitable, and deeply entrenched in the status quo.Genocide and Ecocide Are Two Sides of the Same CoinThe same companies enabling genocide are actively destroying ecosystems. This isn’t a coincidence—it’s a pattern.Caterpillar, already infamous for displacing Palestinian families, is a major contributor to fossil fuel extraction and mining projects that poison Indigenous lands in the Global South.Palantir, which boasts about using AI to “optimize” military surveillance, is also deployed by ICE in the United States to track, detain, and deport climate refugees and migrants.Netafim, an Israeli irrigation company profiting off stolen Palestinian water, is celebrated as “sustainable innovation” in the ag-tech world—masking eco-apartheid as green tech.In short: genocide and ecocide share a supply chain. And we need to cut the cord.Elbit Systems, an Israeli weapons manufacturer, supplies drones and surveillance tech to police at the U.S.-Mexico border—and to ICE.HP and Google provide AI and cloud infrastructure for the Israeli military while also marketing themselves as “green tech” leaders.Chevron and ExxonMobil continue to fund and extract from the Eastern Mediterranean, leveraging Israel’s military occupation to secure infrastructure.This is greenwashing meets genocide—a deadly symbiosis between environmental harm and militarized violence.What This Means for UsThis moment calls for more than statements. It calls for a total redefinition of what sustainability means—because there is nothing sustainable about silence in the face of genocide.If you are a brand, an artist, a designer, a policymaker, a curator, or a student: you are being called in. Your work, your budget, your institution may be entangled—knowingly or not—with the companies Albanese has exposed. Now is the time to do the work.What We Must Do—Now1. Follow the MoneyStudy the companies listed in Albanese’s report. If you work with—or fund—any of them, ask questions. Divest. Cut ties.2. Demand Institutional AccountabilityMuseums, universities, nonprofits, and sustainability conferences are often quietly sponsored by companies profiting from Israeli apartheid. Push for transparency. Refuse complicity. Call it what it is.3. Connect the StrugglesThe fight for Palestinian liberation is not separate from climate justice. This is all one system: extraction, occupation, militarization, profit. As we say often: everything is political—because everything is connected.4. Build and Invest in AlternativesMutual aid, abolitionist design, food sovereignty, fossil-free infrastructure, and Indigenous stewardship—these are not just buzzwords. They are the way forward. Center Global South leadership. Fund frontline communities.5. Say PalestineRefuse the pressure to sanitize. Refuse the pressure to stay neutral. In the face of genocide, neutrality is complicity. If your liberation practice does not include Palestine, it is incomplete.A Propaganda Crisis, TooThese companies aren’t just selling tools of war—they’re shaping narratives. They sponsor art exhibitions, climate conferences, design summits. They greenwash occupation and brand apartheid as “security innovation.”The most dangerous lie today is that “sustainability” can coexist with genocide. It can’t.No climate justice without Palestinian liberation. No sustainable future while apartheid is profitable.So What Can We Do?DivestCampaign for your workplace, university, or city to divest from the companies named in the report. Check your retirement funds. Audit your donors. Pull the receipts.ExposeIf your favorite brand or cultural institution is collaborating with Amazon, Palantir, or Caterpillar—say something. Publicly. Email them. Call it what it is: complicity.Cut the Narrative LoopRefuse to use language that normalizes occupation: “conflict,” “both sides,” “retaliation.” This is genocide.Build AlternativesSupport community-owned energy, Palestinian agricultural cooperatives, and local solidarity economies. Join land back and degrowth movements—they are connected.Organize for PolicyPush for legislation that bans military trade with apartheid regimes and prohibits companies from profiting off human rights abuses.Tell the Truth, ConsistentlyUse your platform to amplify the names, the facts, the systems. Share this report. Write your own version. Make the invisible visible.The Link Between Genocide and Climate HarmWe can’t talk about genocide without talking about resource theft, land colonization, and environmental destruction. The same weapons being used to bomb hospitals and schools in Gaza are being manufactured by companies who also profit from climate collapse—polluting ecosystems, propping up fossil fuel economies, and creating the conditions for displacement that militarized borders are then built to contain.We must hold the line. Genocide is not inevitable—it is designed. And anything that is designed can be dismantled. If we want to build a just, livable future, we must start by divesting from the machinery of death—and investing in life.Let this be the beginning."
}
]
}
