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SUNY Brockport

Batavians make presence known at 'Back the Blue Rally' at Brockport Veterans Club on Saturday

By Press Release

Press release:

City Councilman-at-Large Bob Bialkowski attended the “Back the Blue Rally” Saturday afternoon at the Brockport Veterans Club along with Assemblyman Steve Hawley who was one of the guest speakers. The entire club was filled to capacity with attendees and local dignitaries.

This rally was hosted by State Sen. Robert Ortt and retired New York Police Department Captain Alison Esposito (photo at right), who is a candidate for the state’s lieutenant governor. The event was conducted as a protest to SUNY Brockport inviting Anthony Bottom, a convicted murderer, aka Jalil Abdul Muntaqim, as a speaker.

“This is a SUNY school who wants to give a platform to legitimize a domestic terrorist,” Esposito said. 

Bottom was convicted of murdering two New York City police officers in 1971. He's out of jail and living in the Rochester area.

Controversy erupted when SUNY Brockport invited Muntaqim to speak to students. "SUNY Brockport decided not to have the April 6 event paid, but made it virtual instead,” said SUNY Brockport President Heidi Macpherson.

Bialkowski said Esposito talked about the violent nature of Bottom when she described how Bottom lured Patrolman Joseph Piagentini and Patrolman Waverly Jones to a public housing project in Harlen and assassinated them.

Jones died instantly and after Mr. Bottom ran out of bullets, he took Piagentini's service weapon and shot him 13 times while he begged for his life.

One day after he was released from prison, Bottom registered to vote on Oct. 8, 2020, by falsifying his application, which is a felony.

“I do not comprehend how a convicted murderer can claim he was a political prisoner and also was treated with racism when one of the fine officers he murdered was an African-American,” Bialkowski said.

“He has no business using a taxpayer funded state university as a platform to attempt to influence students. SUNY Brockport needs to be held accountable for allowing this activity. And why our governor (Kathy Hochul) has been silent about this is extremely puzzling.”

Batavia also was represented by retired City Police Officers Lt. James Henning and Sgt. John Peck (left to right in photo at top).

Hawley says Anthony Bottom shouldn't speak at SUNY Brockport

By Press Release

Press release:

“While colleges and universities are indeed places where uncomfortable conversations about controversial subjects should take place, I am deeply disappointed that members of the SUNY Brockport Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion have decided to invite Anthony Bottom, a convicted cop-killer, onto campus while framing his experiences as those of a ‘political prisoner,’ all while using taxpayer grant funding to do so. It is nothing less than a slap in the face for the family of the two officers he murdered, as well as those serving currently in law enforcement who face very real threats from individuals like him daily in their work.

“In speaking with administrators of SUNY Brockport, I have been reassured this decision was one that was spearheaded by a subcommittee consisting of several faculty members in conjunction with the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Unless Mr. Bottom plans on speaking about how remorseful he is for his actions, he has no place on a SUNY campus, especially not as a paid speaker. I very much so hope a closer review of grant applications will be forthcoming.”

UPDATE:

Press release from Chris Jacobs:

Congressman Chris Jacobs (NY-27) was joined by Representatives Stefanik (NY-21), Malliotakis (NY-11), Garbarino (NY-02), Tenney (NY-22), Zeldin (NY-01), Reed (NY-23), and Katko (NY-24) in calling for SUNY Brockport to rescind its invitation to Jalil Muntaqim (a.k.a. Anthony Bottom) to deliver a speech entitled, "History of Black Resistance, U.S. Political Prisoners & Genocide: A Conversation with Jalil Muntaqim."

“As members of Congress representing thousands of brave police officers throughout New York State – we find it unsettling that a taxpayer funded College would believe it is acceptable to give a platform to an individual who was convicted of murdering two law enforcement officers, Joseph Piagentini and Waverly Jones, in cold blood, especially at a time when violent murders and ambushes of police have skyrocketed in this nation,” the Representatives wrote.

Jalil Muntaqim was convicted of the 1971 murders of NYPD Officers Joseph Piagentini and Waverly Jones. Muntaqim, along with others, ambushed the patrolmen after they were lured into public housing using a phony 911 call.

“We urge SUNY Brockport to withdraw its invitation to Jalil Muntaqim immediately and to apologize to the families of Joseph Piagentini and Waverly Jones as well as every law enforcement officer in our state,” the Representatives said.

89.1 The Point is collecting new and gently used donations for charity at Batavia Walmart Friday, Saturday

By Billie Owens

The on-campus radio station 89.1 The Point at SUNY Brockport is undertaking its Fall charity drive and this year the beneficiary is the Willow Domestic Violence Center in Rochester, which serves Genesee, Orleans and Monroe counties.

Students will be collecting various items for donation this Friday and Saturday at the Walmart in Batavia (and Brockport).

Batavia Walmart donations can be dropped off from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 18; and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 19.

The items wanted are new and gently used women's and children's clothing and shoes, personal care items, and pet care supplies.

For clothing and shoes -- Fall wear only please

  • Women’s casual clothing – tops and bottoms
  • Children’s clothing (sizes 12m -- 14/16)
  • Seasonal adult and children’s shoes (sneakers) 
  • New women’s underwear (sizes 5-14 only)
  • New children’s underwear and T-shirts (sizes 2T-XL)
  • Bras (sizes 44 and up only)
  • Bathrobes
  • Pants hangers

Personal care items

  • Softee-hair food with vitamin-E
  • Face cleanser
  • Lotion
  • Toothpaste
  • Shampoo
  • Conditioner
  • Hair combs
  • Lip balm

Infant/toddler

  • New umbrella strollers
  • New baby bottles
  • Baby wash & lotion
  • Baby oil
  • Baby wipes
  • Diapers– sizes newborn, 1, 2 & 6

Pet Care Supplies

  • Canned dog food (chicken and rice preferred)
  • Flea and tick collars or medicine
  • Gift cards for pet food
  • Kong dog toys
  • Heavy duty outdoor toys
  • Puzzle feeders/enrichment toys for dogs and cats
  • Cat toys (catnip mice, balls, pom poms, etc.)

Please contact our Donations Expert with questions at (585) 232-5200, ext. 224, or email SondraG@WillowCenterNY.org

Due to sorting, storage, and redistribution costs, we cannot accept items that are not on our Wish List.

The College at Brockport honors this Spring's academic achievers

By Billie Owens

Press release:

BROCKPORT, NY -- The College at Brockport, State University of New York, recently honored students who excelled academically by naming them to the dean's list for the Spring 2014 semester.

Students who earn a GPA of 3.70-3.99 are named to the dean's list with honors, while students who achieve a 3.40-3.69 are named to the dean's list.

Jennifer Alexander of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Eric Wood of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Kylie Britt of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Shonta Carpenter of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Jacob Jones of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Courtney Butzbach of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Lucas Phillips of Alexander, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Robert Adams of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Benjamin Cherry of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Steven Marchese of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Gianni Zambito of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Alyson Tardy of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Alicca Vigneri of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Mathew Klein of Alexander, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Ashley Walter of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Dalton Rarick of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Ryan Gugel of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Travis Fenstermaker of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Anthony Macaluso of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Dylan Versage of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Lindsay Stumpf of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Kayla Barclay of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Elizabeth Corrado of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Adam Hughes of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Kristin Aidala of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Patrick Carr of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Kelly Hoitink of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Victoria DiStefano of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jennifer Gremer of Linwood, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Keenan Hughes of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Elias Seward of Basom, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Micah Brill of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Sydney Gallup of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Sean Hale of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Benjamin Heintz of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Meghan Bishop of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Erin Suttell of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Claire Vanderberg of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Cody Pierce of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Yangyan Dong of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

James Mangefrida of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Olivia Talley of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Kristen Gaik of corfu, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Cady Hume of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Alexander Gunther of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jason Birch of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Gena Korn of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Anthony Young of Alexander, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jacob Sojda of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Casey Herman of Corfu, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Anne Culliton of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Ainsley Dungan of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Melanie Monroe of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jeana Pfalzer of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Alissa Phillips of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Lauren Hughes of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Haley Huey of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Brittni Loewke of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Eric Kowalik of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Meg Stucko of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Lisa Halat of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Bridget Chartraw of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Darren Kwiatkowski of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Cara Ferraro of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jenna Kent of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jennifer Alexander of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Eric Wood of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Kylie Britt of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Shonta Carpenter of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Jacob Jones of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Courtney Butzbach of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Lucas Phillips of Alexander, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Robert Adams of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Benjamin Cherry of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Steven Marchese of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Gianni Zambito of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Alyson Tardy of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Alicca Vigneri of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Mathew Klein of Alexander, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Ashley Walter of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Dalton Rarick of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Ryan Gugel of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Travis Fenstermaker of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Anthony Macaluso of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Dylan Versage of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Lindsay Stumpf of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Kayla Barclay of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Elizabeth Corrado of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List with Honors.

Adam Hughes of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Kristin Aidala of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Patrick Carr of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Kelly Hoitink of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Victoria DiStefano of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jennifer Gremer of Linwood, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Keenan Hughes of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Elias Seward of Basom, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Micah Brill of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Sydney Gallup of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Sean Hale of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Benjamin Heintz of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Meghan Bishop of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Erin Suttell of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Claire Vanderberg of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Cody Pierce of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Yangyan Dong of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

James Mangefrida of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Olivia Talley of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Kristen Gaik of corfu, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Cady Hume of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Alexander Gunther of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jason Birch of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Gena Korn of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Anthony Young of Alexander, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jacob Sojda of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Casey Herman of Corfu, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Anne Culliton of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Ainsley Dungan of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Melanie Monroe of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jeana Pfalzer of Le Roy, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Alissa Phillips of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Lauren Hughes of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Haley Huey of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Brittni Loewke of Bergen, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Eric Kowalik of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Meg Stucko of Elba, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Lisa Halat of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Bridget Chartraw of Oakfield, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Darren Kwiatkowski of Byron, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Cara Ferraro of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

Jenna Kent of Batavia, NY was named to the Dean's List.

The College at Brockport is a comprehensive four-year public college, located in Brockport, NY. The College offers 50 undergraduate majors, more than 50 graduate programs as well as 24 teacher certification programs. The College has been rated among a "Best Regional University" by US News & World Report and a "Best Value" by Kiplinger's Personal Finance.
 

GCC alumnus, Vietnam veteran is grateful for 'second chance'

By Daniel Crofts

Jim Lachman likes to tell people that in 1968 he went to Vietnam to kill Vietnamese, but in 2012 he went to paint their nails.

Lachman, of Brockport, is a 2010 graduate of Genesee Community College and is currently pursuing a Bachelors in Social Work at the College at Brockport. 

A Vietnam veteran, Lachman had the opportunity to return to the battleground this past year -- not as a soldier, but as a guest. Through Brockport's Vietnam Program, he earned 15 college credits studying Vietnamese culture and completed many hours of community service in the city of Danang. He chronicled his experience in a blog called "Danang again." (There's a link at the end of the article.)

On Nov. 13, he contrasted his two experiences in Vietnam in a speech titled "A Forty-Year Journey from Vietnam to Vietnam," which was held at his alma mater, GCC. We invited him to sit down with us and share some of his insights for readers of The Batavian.

Lachman and his wife, Bernie -- who joined him for part of his stay in Vietnam -- were interviewed at Coffee Culture in Batavia last week.

What did you do in the Vietnam War?

Jim: I was part of the C-130 Squadron in the Marines. I worked on large airplanes called VMGR 152s. We were stationed in Okinawa, but we had a sub-unit in Danang. I was there for three months, then I went back to Okinawa. Then I spent three months with the flight crew as a plane mechanic, so I was in and out of Vietnam, Thailand, and up and down different airstrips. We flew cargo and troops back and forth. Most of the missions I flew were flight-refueling operations.

So you didn't see any combat, correct?

Jim: No. I was one of the lucky few who weren't exposed to any of that.

How did you get involved in Brockport's Vietnam Program?

Jim: I was in a U.S. History class at GCC in 2010, and there was a little Asian woman sitting next to me. I asked her where she was from, and she said Vietnam. We developed a friendship -- I asked questions. She told me about a study abroad program in Vietnam at Brockport, and I said "Oh, okay..."

What exactly did you do while studying abroad in Vietnam?

Jim: I probably got about 100 hours of community service while I was in Vietnam.  There was a large community service component.

Each week we spent an hour and a half in a nursing home with ladies in their 80s and 90s (there were some men, too). We helped them pick mulberries and peanuts, and they loved to have their nails trimmed and painted.

Then we did an hour and a half a week at Agent Orange group home, and we also did home visits to kids who were too sick to come to the group home.  

Bernie: We know the effects of agent orange on American soldiers, but we don't know about the effect it had on the people who live in Vietnam. It has affected three generations with birth defects, mental sickness, (etc.) 

Jim: The way I like to put it is, we put poison in their backyard and it's still there.

We also did English instruction two nights a week and delivered food and medical supplies to a leper village. Then we got 15 credit hours studying Vietnamese history, politics, culture and language.

What was the big difference between your first visit and your second?

Jim: I contributed to the death of two million Vietnamese people by being part of the war. By contrast, in 2012 I learned about the culture and the people, and I connected with them on a human level. And I fell in love with them.

A former Viet Cong chairman who now writes for "Da Nang Today" (a Danang newspaper) interviewed me for an article on a "former invader who was coming back to do good." He asked me questions, and he was very curious. But if we had met 40 years ago, someone would have been taken prisoner.

Today, Vietnam is a wonderful vacation spot. You see people there from China, Australia, Russia...They have wonderful and very cheap accommodations, beautiful beaches...and the Vietnamese people don't like the sun, so we'd have the beach almost to ourselves (during the day).

Bernie: I came to visit Jim for a month. It was a two thousand dollar round trip by airplane, and that was the most money I spent the whole time.

I shopped at the tailor stores, which are family owned businesses. The Vietnamese are known through much of the world for their tailor-made clothes.

As a woman in Danang, I could walk safely at night. I couldn't do that in Batavia.  All the stores (in Danang) are street-level. (Store owners) got to know me, and I knew that if anyone ever tried to molest me in the street, they'd be all over them.

I went into a bookstore once, and no one there knew English. So they went two stores down and found someone who did. That's what they want -- they want to communicate.

And they revere the elderly. One time we went into a coffee shop, and one of the first questions they asked before seating us was, "How old are you?" Because we're over 40, we were always in the most honored spot.

Jim: And (accepting that courtesy) was part of my being a guest, part of accepting the culture as it was. One of the things the Vietnam Program page on the Brockport Web site says is that as students, we are guests of the Vietnamese government. So that's how I conducted myself. The last thing I wanted was to be an "ugly American."

At every other place I had served (in the Marines), I had the opportunity to connect with the people and the culture. Going back to Vietnam, it was like I had a second chance, you know?

Even if I didn't like an experience, I would try to write about it in a positive way on my blog. At the exit dinner (held at the end of the program), one of the chairmen said, "We've been enjoying your blog" -- "we" meaning the Communist Party.  When I told my son about that, he said: "Well, did you think they wouldn't?"  Honestly, I never thought about it -- I just wrote from the heart.

What would you want people today to know about the Vietnam War?

The man who taught my politics class was in charge of the Liberation Front (the enemy) in Danang back in '68. He said Vietnam has a "market economy with a socialist orientation." It seems to me that their government works as well for them as ours does for us. I often wonder what would have happened if the U.S. had allowed the Vietnamese to have their elections the way they had planned. When the U.S. got involved, it went from 1956-1975 until (the Vietnamese) could unify their country.

Bernie: People our age will ask us, "Did you go to North Vietnam or South Vietnam?" It's just Vietnam now.

Jim: I can think of two men in history who wanted to preserve national union: Abraham Lincoln and Ho Chi Minh. They both wanted the same thing.

After doing some research, I found out that what I was taught about Communism and Ho Chi Minh growing up might not have been the truth.

So then you would say that the Vietnam War was not worth it in the end?

Jim: In humanistic terms, I would have to say no. It wasn't worth all that death.

What I was told when I went over was that I was being sent to stop Communism.  After I came home, I discovered the real reason: The U.S. military was serving as the hired guns of capitalism. The reason (for the war) was that the capitalists in charge of the U.S. government wanted to control all trade in and out of Southeast Asia.

We would have been better off staying out of the whole thing and allowing the Vietnamese to have their elections and be the government they were going to be. It would have saved a lot of lives.

As an American military man in Vietnam, how were you treated when you returned home?

Jim: When I came back in July of 1969, I had heard the stories. So when I came into Travis Air Force Base in California, I put on civilian clothes in the bathroom. I made the choice not to call any attention to myself. Even today, I choose not to wear (my Marines hat), because I just got used to that.

Bernie: When I was a sergeant instructor in the Reserves (in the 1970s and 1980s), we were taught not to wear our uniforms when travelling on a civilian conveyance. Then when the Vietnam veterans insisted that the Desert Storm soldiers be honored, the culture changed. It went from "we're against the war" to "we support our troops."

What led you to speak about your experience at GCC on Nov. 13?

Jim: I was there because of Josephine Kerney, who was my sociology professor (at GCC). She does a lot of study abroad stuff, so in association with the Vietnam Program I'd run into her at fairs and such. I talked about the contrast between my first trip to Vietnam and my second, and it fascinated her. She wondered if I would come in and talk to her class about it, and that led to it being a larger event where anyone could come.

Do you have any thoughts on the current war in Afghanistan?

What I learned from my Vietnam experience was that I can't trust the government. I wonder what my government is lying to me about now. Is (the war in Afghanistan) about money? Is it about pharmaceutical interest in what we can extract from the poppy that grows there?

I've heard it said that "Afghanistan is where empires go to die." Alexander the Great tried (to invade), the Russians tried it, and now it's us.

A Kodak retiree, Lachman returned to school in 2008 out of a desire to become a counselor for military veterans. Currently in his junior year at Brockport, he plans to go on for a master's degree so that he can counsel veterans "who saw things that no one should have to see."

For more information on his experience, go to www.danangagain.blogspot.com.

Meet the NEW Intern!

By Tasia Boland

Hi everyone! My name is Tasia and I currently live in Batavia. I am an undergraduate  student at SUNY Brockport majoring in journalism. For the next four months I am going to be doing an internship with The Batavian and am very excited to get to know the community better.

 I enjoy spending time with my husband and my puppy, Jake. I love being outdoors and can not wait for summer time. I hope to have a novel published someday and I am always jotting things down in a notebook.

I am excited to cover the area's school districts and be an active positive voice in our community.

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