Crown Heights Was Cookin’ in Brooklyn

This past Monday, the Crown Heights neighbourhood in Brooklyn was buzzing with excitement for the launch of a new book and a climatic end of a project that brought Black and Jewish youths together.

The "Crown Heights is Cookin'" book is not your ordinary cook book filled with a bunch of measurements and tablespoons. It is a testimony of the hard work of a community effort from the resources provided by the Jewish Community Council, oversight by the Crown Heights Community Mediation Center, leadership by local clergy and agency officials, the determination of the young women, and community residents welcoming the youths (and us) into their homes, kitchens and lives.

The cook book represents the diversity of this community delivering life lessons, healthy (and the not so healthy *yumm*) dishes to try and introduced readers to the new face of this community widely known for it's past racial tensions however not known for it's beauty!

These youths walked away from this project with homegrown anecdotes and friendships that will last them for a lifetime.

The Synch Ladies wish that all tensions, misunderstandings can be healed with more projects like these.

Amy Ellenbogen (Crown Heights Community Mediation Center); Rabbi Eli Cohen (Crown Heights Jewish Community Council); Sharon Ife Charles (Crown Heights Community Mediation Center)