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The Star
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Star
Report: Princess Diana's sons are failing to do the 1 thing she wanted most
Princess Diana with her two children. Photo: Filepic Nearly three decades after the death of Princess Diana, the estrangement of her beloved children are the focus of a new investigation by People in its latest exclusive cover story. Princess Diana had always been steadfast in professing that her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, should always remain close and be there for one another. Sadly, her vision for the future is not how things stand in 2025. Prince William and Kate Middleton are raising their three children in Windsor, while Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's two children are growing up in Montecito, California. Aside from the geographical distance, the two brothers do not appear to have a relationship. 'Diana always used to say she had two boys for a reason – the younger would be there to support the older in the lonely task as future king,' Diana's biographer Andrew Morton told People . 'There is no doubt Diana would have tried to act as a peacemaker between them,' says Morton, whose latest book, Winston And The Windsors , is out in October. 'If she had been around, they would have worked things out in a different way.' It's now been nearly 28 years to the day since Princess Diana's passing on Aug 31, 1997, and brothers William and Harry continue to be devoted to their mother. However, they're still estranged and it appears as though reconciliation is not on the horizon, the story on goes on to explain. The Prince of Wales, age 43, and the Duke of Sussex, 40, grew up sharing the spotlight as integral part of the royal family – something they lived on a daily basis – especially during the time of their parents' scandalous divorce, and enduring the insurmountable pain of losing their mother to a car crash in Paris when they were only 15 and 12 years old. Their estrangement was exposed back in 2020 when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex opted to withdraw from royal duties and royal life. 'Things were said that sparked the initial rift, and it's never healed,' says Morton. But throughout all of their differences, the siblings still share a common bond and are united as they continue to honour their mother's memory. William has followed her lead in his work to help the homeless, continuing with a cause Diana had introduced to her boys early on, and Harry supports young people affected by AIDS in Southern Africa. 'This is the sadness of it – they aren't supporting each other like they should be,' says a source close to the royal household. 'That's what any mother would want – that they are there for each other.' – Staten Island Advance/Tribune News Service
New York Post
06-08-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Mamdani vows to declare war against charter schools if electioned mayor, survey reveals
Socialist Zohran Mamdani plans to declare war on charter schools if he's elected mayor, according to a survey he answered — sparking outrage from advocates and parents who called the frontrunner candidate's views 'very misguided.' The 33-year-old Queens assemblyman said he would fight efforts to open more charters, which largely educate minority, working-class students, and even opposed the schools sharing space in city-owned buildings. 'I oppose efforts by the state to mandate an expansion of charter school operations in New York City,' he said in a Staten Island Advance questionnaire before the June 24 Democratic primary. Advertisement 4 Socialist Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani plans to declare war against charter schools that largely educate minority students if he's elected mayor, according to a survey he answered. REUTERS Mamdani's hostility to charter schools, which are privately-run, publicly funded — puts him in sync with the United Federation of Teachers union, which endorsed him in the November general election following his primary victory over ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo and others. But charter school parents and operators suggested Mamdani was deviating from his affordability agenda — touting he'll choke off classrooms that educate mostly black and Latino students from working class and low-income neighborhoods he claims to be championing. Advertisement 'I don't understand why Mamdani would be hostile to charter schools. I think he's very misinformed,' said mom Arlene Rosado, whose son, Mano, is a tenth-grader at the Nuasin Next Generation K-12 charter school in The Bronx. Rosado transferred her son there because he was getting bullied at the traditional neighborhood public school, and she said he is now safe and not getting picked on. 'Charter schools are helping kids in the community. You should always have a choice. Taking that choice away is not cool,' Rosado told The Post. The Rev. Raymond Rivera — founder of the Family Life Academy charter school network in The Bronx — said that Mamdani must support charter schools if he really cares about kids of color. Advertisement 4 A Staten Island Advance questionnaire has the 33-year-old Queens assemblyman saying, 'I oppose efforts by the state to mandate an expansion of charter school operations in New York City.' Stephen Yang 'Ninety five percent of children in our charter schools are students of color,' he told The Post. 'We believe our parents should have a choice.' Mamdani, in the SI Advance questionnaire, vowed to audit charter schools that are co-located in city Department of Education buildings, suggesting they received too much public funding. 'I also oppose the co-locating of charter schools inside DOE school buildings, but for those already co-located my administration would undertake a comprehensive review of charter school funding to address the unevenness of our system,' the survey said. Advertisement 'Matching funds, overcharged rent, and Foundation Aid funding would be part of this audit as my administration determined how to manage the reality of co-located schools and legal entitlements,' Mamdani claimed. 4 Mamdani's public view on charter schools strikes a similar viewpoint of the United Federation of Teachers union, which has endorsed him for mayor in the upcoming November general election. Stephen Yang It's not the only controversial part of his education platform — which also includes wanting to cede the mayor's control over the nation's largest school system. Charter school advocates said Mamdani was a foe, not an ally, during his four years in the state Assembly. 'As a member of the Assembly, Mr. Mamdani has made clear that he was not supportive of charter schools or even the families that chose them, but he has recently and repeatedly said he would be a mayor for all New Yorkers — and that, of course, has to include the nearly 150,000 charter school students and their families,' said NYC Charter School Center CEO James Merriman. Merriman said he wants to meet Mamdani's team to correct 'misinformation' about the charter school sector. 4 The Democratic nominee's viewpoints on charter schools are a controversial part of his platform, while advocates call out Mamdani for being a foe to the charter school system during his time in the state Assembly. Stephen Yang Arthur Samuels, executive director of the Math, Engineering, and Science Academy (MESA) Charter High School, argued charter schools are serving Mamdani's affordability mission by providing a free education to struggling families who can't afford to pay private tuition or move to the suburbs. Advertisement 'I can't think of anything more empowering to those families than providing choice and agency,' said Samuels, who is opening a second MESA charter school in Dyker Heights this fall. There are 286 charter schools in the city serving about 150,000 students, or 15 of publicly-funded schools. Students in charter schools typically outperform their counterparts in traditional schools on the state's English Language Arts and math standardized exams. Most charters have a longer school day and school year than traditional schools, and their teaching staff are non-union. Advertisement Last year, 58.2% of charter students scored proficient on the ELA test — 9.1 percentage points higher than their district counterparts, 49.1%. Meanwhile, 66.3% of charter students passed the math test, compared to 53.4% of traditional public school students. — a near 13-percentage-point gap. Former Mayor Bill de Blasio sought to stymie the charter school sector. But a state law approved by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the legislature forced the city to provide space to charter schools or pay their rent to operate in a private building. The current Democratic-run legislature has opposed charter school expansion.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Griffin Fossella, 27-year-old son of Staten Island borough president, to run for City Council
Griffin Fossella, son of Staten Island borough president Vito Fossella, announced Saturday his plans to run for the New York City Council. At his campaign kick-off event at La Fontana in Oakwood, the 27-year-old finance worker from Great Kills said he's pursuing politics because of his deep-seated affection for his hometown, the Staten Island Advance reported. 'Many of you are probably wondering why on Earth I'm doing this,' Fossella said. 'I can tell you in one sentence: I love Staten Island.' 'Given the opportunity to serve as your councilman, I promise to fight day and night for you, and I know that it is a privilege and massive responsibility to be an elective representative.' The young professional is running for the 51st Council District seat representing the South Shore. The seat was vacated by Republican Joseph Borelli, who resigned at the end of last month to take a job in the private sector — spurring a special election planned for April 29. The 2015 Monsignor Farrell High School grad listed crime, drugs and violence in other boroughs as his main concern. And he worried that kids growing up on Staten Island don't have the same sense of safety he had growing up, the outlet reported. 'It's no secret that a lot of bad stuff is happening not too far from us, and if we don't hold government accountable, before we know it, the problems of the other boroughs will become our own,' he said. In a Sunday statement to The Post, Fossella reiterated his love for his island and said that if elected, he'd bring energy and vision to the City Council. 'I'm committed to fighting for a more affordable city with better schools, safer neighborhoods, strong support for our police officers, improved transportation, and a higher quality of life for all residents,' he said. His dad, Vito, told the Advance that his son's announcement filled him with pride — and added that Griffin's heart is 'in the right place.' 'I think at the core of it is — he said it in one sentence — we love Staten Island,' the borough prez said. 'We want to do what's best for the people of Staten Island, fight on their behalf, fight against people who want to hurt Staten Island.' Vito won a special City Council election in 1994 to represent the South Shore and was elected to the US Congress three years later. The Republican repped Staten Island and South Brooklyn for 11 years until 2009 when he left the lower chamber after a drunk driving arrest and a revelation that he had a secret, second family in Virginia. But he was elected to the largely ceremonial position of Staten Island borough president in 2022, continuing decades of GOP dominance over that position. With Post wires
