The Buffalodown, Vol. 2, Issue 8
Stories & Events for Social Connection
By Seamus Gallivan
- Please share with Western New Yorkers interested in social connection!
- Musings on Music: Rallying for Jack Rabbit
- Featured Events: 20 is the new norm, welcoming submissions!
- Listening Links: Ezra Klein stays interpreting the times
- Reading Rundown: Local-State-National-Global
Welcome to the Buffalodown! Always welcoming submissions.
Last week I received a familiar message – the kind that’s led me to this line of work. One of our now-subscribers wrote:
“My boyfriend wants to get involved in some social justice activities and events given the state of our country right now. He wants feel like he is doing something to help the community/country. Do you know any groups he could get involved involved with?”
I’m honored to be someone sought for such direction – this is why I identify as a connecter, the purpose behind the conception of Reconnecter, and the motivation to keep delivering this Buffalodown each week. Please peruse the events below, and let me know if you go
Become a paying member to support social connection!
Musings on Music
Rallying for Jack Rabbit
This is a call to support Elmwood Village bar/restaurant/music venue Jack Rabbit in the face of a few upset nearby residents and subsequent threats of fines and restrictions by the New York State Liquor Authority (SLA).
In this space, we revere the “third space” – a place beyond home and work where community members can, well, commune – a word defined as, “1) to converse or talk together, usually with profound intensity, intimacy, etc.; interchange thoughts or feelings. 2) to be in intimate communication or rapport.”
Commercial districts are created to bunch such third spaces together, uplift each other and inspire more investment while providing quality of life for residents; naturally, the closer one lives to a commercial district, the more they’ll hear and hustle and bustle, though such logic often eludes a few residents who earn the nickname of “NIMBY,” standing for Not in My Back Yard.
This latest in the saga of NIMBYism vs. Jack Rabbit is a classic case.
Since opening in 2021 in a beautiful brick building at 1010 Elmwood formerly known as JP Bullfeathers, around the same time that much of Buffalo was emerging from pandemic restrictions, Jack Rabbit has been a bustling beacon of good vibes, great music, and heaping helpings of comfort food. They’ve also quietly answered countless calls to support community causes, as I can attest with a list from fundraisers to feeding folks in the wake of the 5/14 white supremacist massacre. As music journalist Jeff Miers wrote in a heated defense:
“It’s a hub of our music scene.
“It’s a core component of what it means to be a lover of music and the arts in Buffalo.
“It’s a community clubhouse.
“It’s a place where neighbors gather and act neighborly.
“It’s a showcase venue for a broad, diverse array of musical artists, crossing demographic, cultural and stylistic lines.
“It’s a place where multiple generations of musicians and music-lovers gather in a judgement-free environment of inclusion.
“It is, in short, a cultural asset.”
They built a great stage with pro sound and have made adjustments through feedback from musicians and surrounding residents. For some, though, it might never be enough.
“Jack Rabbit’s music has bothered [nearby resident Natalie] Stoyanoff in the past, thumping into her home through open windows, but she said the noise has improved recently,” wrote Buffalo News reporter Francesca Bond. “That’s likely because Jack Rabbit installed a series of noise mitigation measures following the advice of a sound expert, Mullin said. The bar installed a sound dampening curtain around its windows, installed acrylic window panels and added sound baffling throughout the restaurant. All of the measures were ‘substantial’ in reducing noise, [co-owner Josh] Mullin said.”
Added Stoyanoff, “I’m blessed to have a full backyard and I have not been able to sit back there and enjoy it.”
And there it is, NIMBYism clear as day.
That said, personally, I respect such concerns, and believe there’s a place for compromise between conflicting parties – and if that fails, government intervention. In this case, as a regular of the place and resident of the neighborhood, I’ve seen and heard enough there to advocate for Jack Rabbit. If you agree, you can join the 5,000+ people who’ve sent a whole lotta love to Jack Rabbit by signing this petition in support, sending a respectful message to those seeking to stunt Jack Rabbit’s signature vibe – to quote Led Zeppelin by way of Grosh at Jack Rabbit in the video below, “you need coolin’, I’m not foolin’.”
More coverage by WGRZ-TV
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Events in the Week Ahead
Thanks to all who’ve submitted their events! Welcoming submissions with a flyer and link to seamus@reconnecter.org.
Become a paying member to help us promote community events!
Listening Links
What are you listening to? Please send links!
Preserving Legacy: Robert Traynham Coles’ Humboldt Studio & The Cole’s House Project – WBFO What’s Next – “…an initiative meant to restore the house, engage the community, and highlight its role in resisting harmful infrastructure.”
Inside the Trump Purge: Federal Workers Tell Their Stories – The Daily by The New York Times – “dozens of federal workers explain what it’s been like to live through it.”
MAGA’s Big Tech Divide – The Ezra Klein Show – “How the New Right’s intellectual scene has evolved, the renewed fascination with Ted Kaczynski’s manifesto, why some of the most passionate critics of tech are also the most online, how Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fits into this world, the New Right’s ideas about masculinity and how much Donald Trump cares about any of this.”
In the Flamingo Lounge with Rockabilly Greg, episode 150: Seamus Gallivan – who wants to listen to a whole hour of me rambling?! Seriously grateful for Greg and this historical document of Buffalo’s music scene, now 150 episodes of open-ended stories behind the scenes – hopefully you’ll find this episode enjoyable, especially if you’ve bothered to subscribe to Reconnecter and read this far into it.
Reading Rundown
Always welcoming links to read and share at seamus@reconnecter.org.
What is the next move for Kensington Expressway tunnel project? – The Buffalo News – “For decades, community groups have advocated for change in hopes of mending what they refer to as the scar left by the Kensington Expressway, which divided neighborhoods and became for some a symbol of suburban sprawl, as well as Buffalo’s racial and class divisions.”
WNY federal employees, nonprofits losing out under Trump cuts – The Buffalo News – “Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing depends on which side you’re on.”
ICE abuse of detainees in Batavia facility – Investigative Post – “Federal audits of the detention center cite excessive use of force among the problems. Detainees and their attorneys tell of beatings and punitive punishments, including long stretches in solitary confinement.”
How a Guards’ Strike Plunged New York Prisons Into Turmoil and Why the Timing Is Curious – The Marshall Project – “Correctional officers complain of unsafe conditions, but critics say the protests were meant to deflect attention from ‘a moment of reckoning.’”
Even neo-Nazis say it’s getting a ‘little excessive’ following Steve Bannon’s CPAC salute – The Independent – “It’s getting a little too real.”
Thank YOU for reading this far and being part of it all – extra thanks to everyone supporting this work with a membership at www.reconnecter.org!
Please share with friends to sign up for next Tuesday’s Buffalodown, and reach out with any feedback, all ideas welcome!
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