Harlem Week entertains while tackling tough subjects
NEW YORK - Harlem Week expanded to a two-week celebration of the community this year, bringing together the largest crowds the festival has ever seen. Organizers used entertainment to tackle more serious topics like wealth and health. This year's theme is "Be The Change."
With a new campaign called "Speak Up!" the Black Health Matters nonprofit joined the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce to host the annual health fair to de-mystify finding trustworthy doctors and de-stigmatize mental health.
"Make sure you're not encumbered, speak up," said Black Health Matters president and founder Roslyn Young-Daniels. "Something's bothering you? Don't wait, and if they're not going to listen, find someone who will."
Beyond the health fair, Harlem Week included block parties and celebrity chats along with financial workshops, tying mental health to increasing wealth.
"If nothing worries you more, it's your financial situation," said Harlem Week executive director Winston Majette, "so Healthy Eating, Healthy Living is one of our mottos at the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce."
Event organizers especially target older Harlemites through connections to care to keep them active.
"I want to live to be 100-something," said attendee Nathan Halsey, Jr. "I have my nieces I have to take care of, so I want to be in the best health possible, not wait until the last minute and have to wind up in the emergency room."
To mark the occasion, Sen. Cordell Cleare introduced legislation to lift medical requirements for the Heating and Energy Assistance Program, and experts led a climate conference to examine the neighborhood's rising temperatures.
The health fair also included a special appearance by NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan and CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen, who pushed people to be prepared for the next COVID-19 booster coming out in September, as cases rise once more.
"We will see more virus circulate as we get into the fall and winter, as we do every year," Cohen said, "so we have to use the tools that we have."
Harlem Week wraps up over the weekend at three stages along West 135th Street, filled with entertainment including Broadway acts and celebrations of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, along with tributes to Harry Belafonte and Tina Turner.
To see the full lineup of events, click here.
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