File #: Res 0087-2010    Version: * Name: Honoring the life of the Honorable Percy E. Sutton by proclaiming Sunday, July 25, 2010, as “Percy E. Sutton Day.”
Type: Resolution Status: Filed
Committee: Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations
On agenda: 3/25/2010
Enactment date: Law number:
Title: Resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Percy E. Sutton by proclaiming Sunday, July 25, 2010, as “Percy E. Sutton Day.”
Sponsors: Inez E. Dickens, Gale A. Brewer, Margaret S. Chin, Leroy G. Comrie, Jr., Daniel Dromm , Lewis A. Fidler, Robert Jackson, G. Oliver Koppell, Karen Koslowitz, Brad S. Lander, Melissa Mark-Viverito, Darlene Mealy, Michael C. Nelson, Annabel Palma, Domenic M. Recchia, Jr., Jumaane D. Williams, Ydanis A. Rodriguez, Daniel J. Halloran III, Peter A. Koo
Council Member Sponsors: 19
Res. No. 87
 
 
Resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Percy E. Sutton by proclaiming Sunday, July 25, 2010, as "Percy E. Sutton Day."
 
 
By Council Members Dickens, Brewer, Chin, Comrie, Dromm, Fidler, Jackson, Koppell, Koslowitz, Lander, Mark-Viverito, Mealy, Nelson, Palma, Recchia, Williams, Rodriguez, Halloran and Koo
 
Whereas, Percy Ellis Sutton was born on November 24, 1920, the youngest of 15 children, in San Antonio, Texas and moved to New York when he was 12 years old; and
Whereas, He served valiantly in both World War II with the Tuskegee Airmen and in the Korean War; and
Whereas, After completing law school at Brooklyn Law in 1950, Mr. Sutton opened a law practice in Harlem; and
Whereas, He used his legal expertise to represent over 200 civil rights activists arrested in protests in the South; and
Whereas, Mr. Sutton also represented Malcolm X during the Civil Rights Movement, and after Malcolm X passed away, Mr. Sutton successfully secured burial rights for him; and
Whereas, Mr. Sutton worked on political campaigns, for himself and others, beginning in the 1950's, and was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1964; and
Whereas, He served on the New York City Council from 1966-1977, helping the City through the fiscal crisis of the mid 1970's; and
Whereas, Mr. Sutton also invested heavily in the New York Amsterdam News, the largest black-run newspaper in the City, and co-owned 18 radio stations throughout the Northeast; and
Whereas, He also purchased, renovated, and revitalized the Apollo Theater in 1981, leading to the production of the nationally-syndicated, "It's Showtime at the Apollo" program; and
Whereas, Countless prominent African-American leaders, including Governor David Paterson and President Barack Obama, have hailed Mr. Sutton as a hero to African-Americans in New York City and around the country; and
Whereas, July 25, 2010 will mark the beginning of Harlem week, which began in 1974 as Harlem Day, and is a period of time during which Harlem celebrates and showcases its rich history and important contributions of its culture and people; and
Whereas, This would be a fitting day to honor Percy Sutton and his numerous contributions to his beloved Village of Harlem; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York honors the life of the Honorable Percy E. Sutton by proclaiming Sunday, July 25, 2010, as "Percy E. Sutton Day."
 
 
AC/jp
LS#8030
3/8/10