PLEASE DO NOT SUPPORT ANTI-BLACK RACIST DEED FRAUD AND THEFT  !!

SUPPORT THE BOYCOTT OF THE CROWN HILL THEATRE AT 750 NOSTRAND AVE IN BROOKLYN, NY Initiated by The Black Lady Theatre, Save Our Properties, The People’s Coalition to Stop Deed Theft  & Equality for Flatbush (E4F)

We, the undersigned groups which represent Black and Brown home and property owners fighting deed fraud and theft in Brooklyn, NY are calling on theater and performance groups, musicians, activists and community/political organizations to take a stand:

1. Please DO NOT RENT, BOOK or HOLD  EVENTS  at “The Crown Hill Theatre" until further notice.  There are hundreds of other venues across New York City that do not profit from displacement and racial injustice. Please respect that there is still an on-going legal and community battle to restore 750 Nostrand Avenue back to the Hardy Family.  
2. Please DO NOT CROSS THE PICKET LINE, by attending events at “The Crown Hill Theatre".     Please feel free to privately or publicly tell current or potential renters about the boycott and why you will not be attending their event. Please encourage current or potential renters to use another venue.
3. Please let everyone know that “The Crown Hill Theatre” is NOT a BLACK CULTURAL INSTITUTION.  The property at 750 Nostrand Avenue was stolen in 2018 by 750 Nostrand 123 LLC, a shell company whose representative is white developer,  Mendel Gold. “The Crown Hill Theater”  did not open until 2023 .  Everyone affiliated with “The Crown Hill Theater” are paid employees of Mendel Gold.   

 Background and History 

"The Crown Hill Theatre" in Brooklyn, NY is  a venue built on the racist deed fraud and theft of the historic The Black Lady Theatre. 

750 Nostrand Avenue, located in the heart of #BlackBrooklyn has been the longtime home of the beloved  The Black Lady Theatre, owned and operated by the African-American father-son duo, Clarence Jr. 2X Hardy Shabazz & Chief Minister Omar Hardy since 1999. In January 2018, The Hardys discovered that the three-story building at 750 Nostrand Ave had been reportedly sold in a tax-lien foreclosure auction – an action for which the Hardys were never notified or properly served. What has unfolded since is not an isolated incident, but the continuation of a longstanding political and racial attack that began years earlier.  

The theatre’s founding member, Judge John L. Phillips Jr. faced political retaliation after deciding to run for office against then-District Attorney Charles “Joe” Hynes. The subsequent theft of this property represents the fallout of years of systemic targeting and planning, weaponizing legal and political power to dismantle a Black institution and seize its cultural and economic value. 

Today, Chief Minister Omar Hardy is still engulfed in a raging legal battle for the property’s return. Meanwhile, notorious landlord of The OutPost Club and predatory developer, Mendel Gold has since been indicted for fraud and submitting falsified documents in another case. 

Why Was The Boycott Called ?

Deed theft is one of the most devastating and overlooked injustices impacting Black and Brown communities across New York City and around the country due to gentrification.  Black and Brown families, elders, and legacy institutions  have been stripped of their property and cultural spaces through fraud and systemic racism . Brooklyn, NY, is  home to the highest concentration of Black people in all of the five boroughs of New York City.  Deed theft and fraud is rampant in Brooklyn, NY  leading to the forced permanent displacement of our people from historic Black and Brown enclaves . 

The Brooklyn community is still fighting to #SaveTheBlackLadyTheatre, an iconic Black institution and a cultural and spiritual landmark that has served generations of artists, thinkers and activists. The so-called “Crown Hill Theatre” now occupies that same space, impersonating the identity and legacy of The Black Lady Theatre to deceive the public into believing it remains a Black-owned institution – BUT IT IS NOT!

While the faces managing “Crown Hill” may appear Black, the profits are not circulated within the Black community. Every dollar spent there is funneled out of Black Brooklyn and into the hands of a predatory developer and his network – the very forces responsible for this theft and displacement.  

Adding insult to injury, the person currently operating “Crown Hill Theatre” is a former contractor of The Black Lady Theatre who once worked closely with the Hardy family, learned its operations, and later betrayed that trust to serve his own financial gain.

When events are held on stolen land, even unknowingly, it can unintentionally help legitimize that theft and deepen the harm to those fighting to reclaim their legacy, and for us all. This is why the national  boycott of “The Crown Hill Theatre” has been called to stop the racist exploitation of #BlackBrooklyn by predatory developers and slumlords like Mendel Gold and many others.

Please stand with us in the fight for justice, cultural preservation and truth!

Ways You Can Join the Fight To#SaveTheBlackLadyTheatre. 

Spread the Word of the Boycott & Use These Hashtags :

#BoycottTheCrownHillTheatre 

#SaveTheBlackLadyTheatre 

#StopDeedFraudNow 

#StopDeedTheftNow

#SaveOurProperties 

Follow us on  Instagram & Get Involved in Our Work

@theblackladytheatre 

@equality4flatbush

 @stopdeedtheft