National Times Newswire - April 14, 2007
Watchtower Headquarters Unveils New Roller Derby Rink
by Arthur - Times Staff Writer
Roller derby rink at 124 Columbia Heights
New York - Many residents of Brooklyn Heights are not happy these days. Some long time residents have complained about the large chunks of real estate that have been purchased by the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society; the legal corporation of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The Jehovah’s Witnesses world headquarters, which contains numerous office and residence buildings, has been located in Brooklyn Heights for over a century. With the occasional complaints by some; most residents have peacefully tolerated the religious sect’s presence in their community. However, the community’s relationship with the Watchtower Society has gone through some serious bumps of late.
In March of this year, the Watchtower headquarters, completed a state of the art roller derby rink in the basement of it’s 124 Columbia Heights building. The renovation and construction project was estimated to have cost in upwards of $10 million. What was once a huge dreary dining room and storage area, is now a center of entertainment for Brooklyn headquarters staff. The large facility has a spectator capacity of 500, includes a baptismal pool, large video screen displays, and thirty-seven contribution boxes.
According to interviews with headquarters staff; Watchtower roller derbies are held on Saturday afternoons, and on Monday nights after the group’s weekly Watchtower study. Unlike other roller derbies, there is no rock music played here, but rather, there is Watchtower Society conducted "Kingdom Melodies" that are blasted over the rink’s state of the art sound system.
The Watchtower Society has created four roller derby teams made up of young women that race regularly. The four teams that the Jehovah’s Witnesses have created are named: the "Rolling Rahabs", "Door to Door Divas", "Submissive Mates on Skates" and the "Thunder Thigh Theocrats".
Residents have voiced irritation over the added noise that the roller derby has created on Columbia Heights street. Brooklyn Borough Hall, as well as the New York city council have been besieged by angry emails and phone calls regarding the roller derby.
Joe Schiraldi, a Brooklyn Heights resident of thirty years laments: "I wish they could just keep it down sometimes. Those Watchtower guys start hollering and whistling, and with that loud, creepy Jehovah music; it just bothers me."
Headquarters staff enjoying a Saturday night derby
Not all of the complaints have come from outside of the Watchtower community. Many Jehovah’s Witnesses themselves are upset by the roller derby. A major issue involves the millions of dollars that were poured into the project. The Watchtower Society has been making major changes at the headquarters to cut costs; including the dismissal of some long time staff. According to inside sources, several hundred headquarters staff were dismissed in the Summer of 2006 due to cutbacks. The dismissals took many by surprise and even angered some.
One former staff member who spoke on condition of anonymity expressed his anger: "I was at Bethel for over twenty-one years. I gave them the best years of my life. And then, they told us they had to let us go because of cost-cutting. I was crushed. But, I thought that Jehovah’s way was best. When I found out about this roller derby thing, I was furious. How could they cut costs like that, and then spend millions of dollars on something so worldly? I’ll tell you this whole thing smells like Beth Sarim."
According to current staff members, not all of the members of the Bethel family were happy about the rink, either. According to unnamed sources, members of the Governing Body had voiced strong displeasure. One member referred to the roller derby as "treacherous, and appealing to the flesh". Another member lamented: "what’s next; temple prostitutes?"
In an effort to deal with complaints in the community; the Watchtower Society issued a press release regarding the affair. The Watchtower Society’s spokesman P.R. Brown made the following statement: "Jehovah’s Witnesses are devoted to upholding Scriptural standards in every area of life. As members of the community, we are dedicated to orderliness and cleanliness. As members of a clean congregation, we strive to continue in wholesome acts conduct, ever mindful of our King Jesus Christ."
It appears for now, that Watchtower roller derbies are here to stay. After watching the documentary DVD "Knocking", the New York city council voted to allow the Watchtower to keep the roller derbies in operation. Also, according to unnamed sources, the Governing Body members who had been opposed to the rink changed their minds once they attended one of the derbies. Most of their comments became favorable, after seeing the team’s black leather uniforms.
The Governing Body members were especially pleased when they reviewed the latest figures from the Bethel Personnel Department. Since the opening of the roller derby rink, Brooklyn Bethel applications have increased 357%.