Loser pol: Rival put a Caribbean hex on me
By Julia Marsh
January 4, 2014 | 3:14am
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Loser pol: Rival put a Caribbean hex on me
‘COCK’ FIGHT: Gwen Goodwin (right, above) says misfortune befell her after an arts program headed by Melissa Mark-Viverito (right, below) painted this mural of a rooster on Goodwin’s East Harlem building.
A rival of Melissa Mark-Viverito filed a million-dollar lawsuit against the front-runner for City Council speaker — claiming she put a Caribbean hex on her while the two were running for the same council seat, in the form of a black-magic mural on her building.
Gwen Goodwin, 52, who spectacularly lost the Democratic primary to Mark-Viverito in September, says her nemesis targeted her East 100th Street building as the canvas for a five-story image of a bodiless rooster atop wooden poles.
The head is just below the window of the apartment where Goodwin has lived since 1997.
Mark-Viverito is expected to be voted in as the next City Council speaker on Thursday.
“According to neighbors of Puerto Rican and other backgrounds, in the Caribbean culture, this constituted a curse and a death threat, as a swastika or a noose would symbolize typically to many Jews or African-Americans,” Goodwin alleges in a Manhattan Supreme Court suit she filed Friday.
Many New York Puerto Ricans practice a hybrid religion called Santeria, which is based on Catholicism but includes voodoo-like ceremonies and animal sacrifices. East Harlem even boasts a specialty shop dedicated to the religion called Justo Botanica, at East 104th Street and Lexington Avenue.
Mark-Viverito was the head of an urban-art campaign launched last summer called Los Muros Hablan (“the walls speak”). The effort celebrates Latino culture by painting murals on walls across the five boroughs.
She partnered with Goodwin’s landlord, Eastside Managers Associates, for the East Harlem project, which was dedicated on Sept. 1.
But Goodwin claims her rival’s motives were pure evil.
“This is supposed to be a professional politician who came and graffitied the side of my building,” Goodwin told The Post.
“I really felt that people needed to understand who they were giving power to as the next most powerful person behind the mayor of New York City,” she said.
Mark-Viverito has also faced criticism for taking taxpayer subsidies meant for low- and moderate-income New Yorkers for an interest-free mortgage, even though her net worth is estimated at more than $1.5 million.
Goodwin said she endured “emotional distress” from the alleged spell that distracted her from running a winning campaign.
“This intimated me and caused me fear. I’m a Christian. I don’t believe outside my religion, but strange things were happening,” Goodwin claimed.
She said that she suddenly got a blood clot in her foot and that a close friend began “acting crazy” right after the mural went up.
The landlord did not return calls for comment.
Eric Koch, a spokesman for the councilwoman, blasted the suit.
“These desperate and ridiculous allegations by a failed political opponent of Melissa are false, absurd and a waste of the court’s precious time. It’s sad but expected that Melissa’s opponents are resorting to these kinds of tactics,” Koch said.
Good Morning Met and all, lol @ this story but Obeah deh everywhere this woman just brave enough to call it as it is, whether it is or not we don’t know, she might be accusing the woman falsely, but I can say this, imagery projects reality, this is why people can use pictures of persons to spiritually harm them, also symbology is very import in all things especially witchcraft or sprituality to harm or to heal. The mural on the building depicts the head of a bird and in metaphysics what this says to me (if dis a obeah fi true, it may just be coincidence) is that it represents what we Africans call IYAMI OSORONGA OR MY MOTHERS OR AJE, OR ELDERS OF THE NIGHT OR NIGHT PEOPLE IN OTHER WORDS WITCHES!!!. the bird is their signature because they FLY, CATS ARE ALSO THEIR MESSENGERS. They are real and they are malevolent, neverthe less God yes Our God gave them power over the world to do with as they please, cyaa badda explain, but none the less ah suh it go. If in fact the woman is guilty of using the IYAMIS against this woman then this is something separate and apart of SANTERIA REAL NAME IS LUCUMI….On the other hand the complainer mussi know wha she ah sey, maybe she received consultations and was told this. A bad deed done will surely be rewarded!!!
So y she neva complain from the painting went up? she shuldn’t wait until he loose. Can the court do anything about this type of science”. How will they prove it?
You on it Obara!!! But this is also a form of racism too. The woman filing the lawsuit is WHITE and she lost a position of power to a caribbean *PuertoRican* woman. This white woman is playing into the fears of other whites by accusing the PR woman of being into a religion that is not seen as EQUAL to Catholicism, malevolent even. The PR lady could have allowed the mural to go up as a CELEBRATION of the Santaria roots but have nothing to do w/it nor putting any spell against the woman. :siul
I got you Ebony and you are correct, but never doubt that these “W” PEOPLE are into dem sauce, except dem mask it very, very well,this is Spirituality is my work I have seem some people and some things…as a matter a fact dem love it badddd!, only dat de lean to de wicked pawt ah it, yup they do!!