Save Staten Island in the News
There's something good on our Island
After MTV negativity, siblings begin 'Save Staten Island' project to chronicle what borough has to offer
Sunday, January 21, 2007
By MELISSA ANELLI
STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE
It was about a week after MTV aired its (in)famous "True Life: I'm a Staten Island Girl" special, chronicling the lives of three local young women. The series seemed, to many, to paint Staten Island in an unflattering, fake-tan-orange light, and instantly became the subject of gossiping and gabbing borough-wide.
Neither Mary Ellen Rozak or her brother, Nick Rozak, had seen the full special when, a week after it debuted, they found themselves talking about the series and the effect it's had on their borough. They talked about all the negative stereotypes promoted by the show, but before they knew it, they had switched tacks. They were suddenly talking about what they loved about Staten Island, and why they felt MTV was wrong. And then they were talking about doing something about it.
"The idea just kind of developed over what we thought was 10 minutes of talking," said Mary Ellen. "When we realized it had been a 45-minute conversation, we ran home and got our father's camera and learned how to work it."
Mary Ellen, a 34-year-old financial analyst, has never taken a professional picture or shot professional footage in her life. To this day she still doesn't know what type of camera she uses. Nick, 22, was a little more savvy, but not a professional. Yet they took out the camera and became grassroots documentarians, conducting man-on-the-street interviews with Staten Islanders who felt the same way they did. Soon, their idea gelled, and they set up a new Web site on which they printed their bold new mission:
Save Staten Island.
What Staten Island needs saving from has been the question of debate for years. According to the Rozaks, it's not the mixture of isolation, accent and attitude that the three girls profiled on the MTV special made it out to be. Staten Island doesn't need saving from itself, they say; it needs saving from the people who think it needs saving from itself. It needs an image boost. After all, the show, called "True Life: I'm a Staten Island Girl," was immediately preceded by "True Life: I have Tourette's Syndrome," and "True Life: I'm Addicted to Crystal Meth." Simply living on Staten Island was deemed as worthy of inspection as illness and drug addiction, and the Rozaks feel that's a problem.
HITTING THE STREETS
So, the new filmmakers hit the streets. Within a week, the duo was overcome with messages on their Web site (www.savestatenisland.com). They first visited establishments where they were regulars, as they learned that residents were skittish about talking into a camera to people they didn't know -- another outgrowth of the MTV exposure.
At first, local entrepreneurs and residents just spewed vitriol about the stereotypes and their own personal gripes with the borough, but as the Rozaks persisted, they found a yearning undercurrent.
"You felt something like, 'Wow, Staten Islanders really want some help here.'," said Nick. "We went with that. They all had the same feeling, like Staten Islanders are struggling to survive within New York City, and we keep getting pushed aside for bad stereotype reasons."
Mary Ellen has lived on Staten Island since she was 2. A single mom, her son, Jack, is a 12-year-old liver transplant survivor. Nick is a lifelong Islander and bagpiper. They say they both found fulfillment on the Island and can't understand why it gets such a bad name. The MTV show is still a sore spot.
"I have to watch it in five minute increments," says Mary Ellen. "You sit there and you want to die. They really came in looking for three people who fit the stereotypes."
She admits, though, that the show is merely myopic, not 100 percent off base.
HELP FROM ALL OVER
"We're partially to blame [for the stereotypes] because we do some of the stuff that we say they do, though sometimes there's real reasons behind it," she said. "We sometimes isolate ourselves. We take our car to Manhattan -- we should really park at the ferry but we don't. One person did tell us that we seem to lack pride in ourselves, and that every time someone knocks Staten Island we say, 'Yes, you're right.' But there's got to be something said for the fact that when you look at crime rates in the city and problems in schools, we always come out on top."
Now that the Rozaks' effort is rolling along, they've gotten a considerable amount of help. They've been contacted by hordes of local businesses who want to take part, including a film crew that does the paranormal show "Scared" on Staten Island cable, that has offered significant guidance and assistance. They've also heard from local shop owners, curators and even a hip-hop studio called "That's What's Up," the owners of which were hesitant at first but have now become some of the Rozak's most enthusiastic participants.
The duo pays for everything themselves, from film tapes to gas. A professional editor, Allison Curtis, has offered her film editing services for free, saving thousands of dollars as the footage goes from endless and raw to refined and cinematic.
When it's done, the Rozaks hope for borough- and citywide exposure, but say that's not the end of the Save Staten Island mission. They'll continue using their Web site as a gathering spot, and pull as many people together as they can and do whatever it takes to reverse the image that got reflected on MTV.
"It's a project, more than just a film," says Mary Ellen. "We're showing people that there's more to the Island, and that some of us have a lot of pride and we're trying to do something. Maybe the rest of the city will start to see that there's something great over here."
Picture by Joshua Carp/Staten Island Advance
S.I. loves a parade
By Rob Bailey ... For more than four decades, the Advance has been giving Staten Islanders the heads-up about the pot of gold at the end of Forest Avenue. This year, we decided to let you tell us what makes our St. Patrick's Day Parade the best. We asked dozens of Islanders what the beloved shamrock stampede means to them, their families and the overall culture of Richmond County. Most of you said it was about much more than green beer and bar tabs at Jody's and Duffy's.
Here are some of your answers:
In the Blarney Now: Nick Rozak, 22, St. George -- This junior member of Staten Island Pipes and Drums got into kilt culture about five years ago while looking for a costume on a lark.
"Now it's my life," said Rozak with adopted Irish pride. Yeah, that's right, this bagpiper in full Celtic military uniform isn't actually Irish. And that, in his opinion, is exactly what makes the parade such a powerful force on S.I.
"It's one of the few all-ages community events we have on Staten Island that brings all types of people together," said the a senior anthropology major at Hunter College. "Too often the streets are dead and the bars are half empty. This brings everybody out -- and they stay out, too, for the after parties."
So, exactly how hardcore is this dude of Ukranian descent about Irish tradition? Well, he's blowing the gloriously mournful tones of his instruments this year at eight parades. He also offers free lessons via UkiPiper.com and SIpipesanddrums.org.
But what about that enduring commando myth?
"As we always say, if I was wearing anything under the kilt -- it would be a skirt."
Rest of Article on SILive, the Staten Island Advance Website
FINDING THE FORGOTTEN BOROUGH
Staten Island still exists somewhere out there, but rediscovering it is proving to be a daunting task
By John DeSio
“That’s where the dump is, right? Does it smell bad?” For as far back as I can remember, those words or some variation of them greeted me whenever I told someone that I was from Staten Island. Even native New Yorkers, people who have been to Staten Island, would ask about the smell emanating from the now-closed Fresh Kills Landfill, though that likely has more to do with their own need to insult the fifth borough than any real concern about the olfactory health of its residents.
If you happen to check out MTV from time to time, you’ve probably come across the latest slander of Staten Island, broadcast from coast to coast. In “True Life: I’m A Staten Island Girl,” MTV followed three “typical” Island female residents around for a few days and chronicled how they lived. If you haven’t seen the show, don’t bother. Just think of the worst Tri-State suburban Italian stereotypes you can imagine, like a bad episode of “The Sopranos.” Everybody is so tan they are orange. One Island girl is desperate to move off the Island and work and live in Manhattan. Another is dying to be an actress, but is convinced that her heavy Staten Island accent will prevent her from getting serious roles. A third is only interested in “Staten Island guys,” with their spiky hair, orange skin and steroid-esque muscles. Everyone lives at home with their parents.
Since it first aired, the jokes have moved from the garbage to the girls. Their often appalling, train wreck behavior, complete with refrains of “whutevah” when faced with adversity, have become the new butt of jokes for those looking to diss Staten Island. I’ve been asked about my lack of spiked hair or ultra-fake tan more often than I care for in the last few months. The general response to the show from my friends has been embarrassment. No matter what you do or who you are, simply by living on Staten Island, or having been born and bred there like myself, you are that stereotype, whether it’s true or not. You might not be Italian and you might not live at home, but tell someone you’re from Staten Island and they figure that on the weekends you spike up your hair, put on your tightest shirt and head to the club for six hours of bad house music and overpriced vodka. All after a good blast in the tanning booth, of course.
Some Staten Islanders are attempting to differentiate themselves from that stereotype. If you’re familiar with the borough, you know that there is a huge chasm between residents of the Island’s north and south shores. North shore residents probably heard about the MTV show and quickly dismissed it. “Nah, that’s not me,” they would likely say—“those people live on the south shore. We are a more cosmopolitan community on the north shore, and we do not tolerate such over-the-top ethnicity-based fakery. Any girl caught expressing such uncouth ways is assuredly from the south shore, and has no bearing on me, or my life.” I certainly felt this way, having grown up on the north shore, that is, until I saw the show. Our desperate-for-Manhattan entrant into the stereotype Olympics, while shopping for a cute outfit to go clubbing in, walked past the street I grew up on. You could almost see my house. This problem affects us all.
One brother and sister team has taken up the challenge of restoring Staten Island’s credibility and showing the world it’s not just filled with techno-bumping goombas. In November of last year Mary Ellen and Nick Rosak, collectively known as The Very Nice People Society, launched www.SaveStatenIsland.com, dedicated to producing a documentary film showcasing the Island’s burgeoning arts scene and other cultural attractions, and shattering the image that MTV has helped push forward.
“We want to show people all of the great things that are happening on Staten Island,” said Mary Ellen, a resident of the north shore. The Rosaks are not scripting the film, but are simply asking anyone interested in getting involved three simple questions: what is the worst stereotype about Staten Island, what do they like the most and what could be done to make the Island better. Though the responses on the film vary, respondents on the website’s forum make it clear that the borough’s low brow image is the worst part of Island living. All the more reason to make the film.
The Rosaks have been seeking out people of substance for the film. At one point, she even heard from one of the three girls featured on the MTV show, desperate to fix her own image and tell her side of the story. “We never heard from her again,” laughs Mary Ellen. Another famous Island resident is Tristan Wilds, star of HBO’s “The Wire.” When asked what good qualities he sees in Staten Island, Mary Ellen said Wilds’ answer was simple: it’s home.
Wilds has a point. If you have a family and want to own a home within the five boroughs, your best bet is usually Staten Island. Real estate is cheaper, backyards are more common and apartment living is almost unheard of. A top complaint about the Island, said Mary Ellen, is the total lack of public transportation. The ferry takes forever and there is no subway, as there is in every other borough. But while those factors might drive up commute times, they do keep home prices down.
Mary Ellen has been pitching her case to anyone who will listen. The group’s MySpace page grows everyday, and numerous community meetings and civic groups have invited her and her brother to speak before them. Even there, the gap between both sides of the Island is evident. While they have presented their camera and questions multiple times on the north shore, south shore residents, probably more personally affected by their MTV portrayal, have been less likely to seek them out. “I’m begging to get on the south shore. I can’t get people to invite me over,” said Mary Ellen.
The Rosaks hope to have the film completed by June, after which they will make the ultimate pitch to MTV: You damaged our home, now do what you can to rebuild it. Until the film is complete, Mary Ellen said they will have no contact with the network, preferring to show them a completed project. “They’re either going to be totally not interested in this or way too interested. I want to be prepared,” said Mary Ellen.
Compared to the other four boroughs, Staten Island is something of an anomaly. While the Republican Party has been dying elsewhere in the City, it thrives on the Island, living in an apartment rather than a house is sacrilege and everyone drives. Why all the cars? The meager public transportation that does exist on the Island is, frankly, awful (imagine only being able to take a bus from Wall Street to Washington Heights and you start to get the idea). If the Island is known for anything, it is known for its negatives.
Alas, despite some cultural and public image progress, MTV is not the only culprit when it comes to Staten Island slams. A few years ago, Snapple sold bottles with jokes and trivia written on the underside of the caps. Snapple’s question: “The most recognized smell in the world is -----?” Snapple’s answer: “No, it’s not Staten Island. It’s coffee.” Ah, dump jokes. How I long for those days.
Copyright © 2006 Very Nice People Society. All Rights Reserved.