Lanier, Elania: Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral histories: NYU Special Collections Finding Aids

Scope and Contents

In this interview, Elania Lanier describes her connection to Restoration, as well as changes she's observed both at Restoration and with the community in the greater Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. She discusses the positive impact Restoration's Youth Arts Academy (YAA) has had on her daughter, Kourtney Charles, and the YAA as a holistic support network for both youth and their parents. She compares Restoration with other cultural institutions. Lanier relates her fears for gentrification and displacement in Bedford-Stuyvesant. Interview conducted by Peggy Alston.

Biographical / Historical

Introduced to Restoration at age twelve, Elania Lanier's involvement with Restoration began in the 1980s. At the time of the 2008 interview, Lanier had recently received her master's degree in social work and juggled her new career with volunteer work at Restoration. She was also raising her teenage daughter, Kourtney Charles, who danced with the Youth Arts Academy's Dance Theater Junior Company. Additionally for Restoration, Lanier volunteered with the annual Kwanzaa celebrations and the annual Robert F. Kennedy party, and was the lead volunteer for the Dance Africa program.

Conditions Governing Access and Use

Access to the interview is available onsite at the Brooklyn Historical Society's Othmer Library. Use of the oral histories other than for private study, scholarship, or research requires permission from BHS by contacting library@brooklynhistory.org.

Subjects

Organizations

Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation; Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation. Center for Art and Culture; Billie Holiday Theatre

Topics

Places

Bedford-Stuyvesant (New York, N.Y.); Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.)

Lanier, Elania, 2008 May, inclusive