BY DEAN MOSES
On Feb. 21, Brooklyn leaders
and artist Kenny Altidor celebrated
the historic life of John
Lewis on what would have been
his 82nd birthday.
Commemorating both the
late Congressman’s birthday
and Black History Month, Community
Advocate Monique
Chandler-Waterman and artist
Kenny Altidor hosted a neighborhood
event Friday in front
of a freshly painted mural on
East 56th Street and Clarendon
Road.
“Today, as we honor John
Lewis, and his legacy I call
on all of us here to roll up our
sleeves to make a difference,
Kenny has given us art, some
of us run food pantries, host
protests, volunteer at community
centers or even join the
PTA-we all have a role to play to
uplift our community,” Chandler
Waterman said. “I have
joined many of you at anti-violence
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rallies, at resource fairs
to share knowledge with our
communities and at our worst
I’ve joined with you at funerals
and vigils of people senselessly
taken away from us. Let’s
elevate our future and create a
world that is better than we left
it. That is what John Lewis and
so many other freedom fi ghters
did for us.”
Altidor strove to include the
surrounding community in his
work by allowing passersby to
make their mark on the piece
with a few brush strokes of
their own. For Altidor, the legacy
of Lewis will forever be entrenched
in American history,
and as artist Altidor continues
to work on the mural of the renowned
congressman, he hopes
everyone will remember the
importance of advocacy and
the fi ght for reform.
“We just wanted to do a special
remembrance of all that he
did, the voting rights, fi ghting
against segregation, and his
work as a freedom rider and
Democrat leader pushing for
reform. This should be visible
to everyone and for everyone to
know, with the gun violence, we
wanted to make sure we echo
that for his birthday.”
Known as one of the “Big
Six,” Lewis was an instrumental
civil rights leader during
the 1960s (his counterparts included:
Martin Luther King Jr.,
James Farmer, A. Philip Randolph,
Roy Wilkins and Whitney
Young).
Born on Feb. 21, 1940, in
Troy, Alabama during the Jim
Crow Laws, segregation, and
rampant racism, Lewis became
a staunch advocate for justice.
Inspired by Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr.’s nonviolent protest,
he began to fi ght for civil rights
through sit-ins at segregated
locations and then joined the
Freedom Riders—individuals
who challenged segregated interstate
bus terminals in the
South.
Not just on Lewis’ birthday
and not only in Black History
Month, Altidor hopes this mural
will aid in keeping all that
Lewis fought for at the forefront
of society’s minds, including
the momentous 1964 March on
Washington.
“Civil Rights Movement,
freedom of speech NYS, and
our democratic leaders have
been pushing for reforms and
this should be visible to everyone,”
Altidor said.
While some progress was
made with the 1964 Civil
Rights Act, the Southern states
proved to be diffi cult in this effort,
so Lewis decided to lead a
march with Hosea Williams
from Selma to Montgomery on
March 7, 1965—a day that became
known as Bloody Sunday
when state troopers beat
the marchers as they walked
across Edmund Pettus Bridge
in Selma. His efforts are said to
be the reason why the 1965 Voting
Rights Act was expedited.
While these acts brought
equality a step forward there
were still insurmountable inequities,
especially regarding
the rights of minority voters.
In 1986 he was elected to Congress
and helped continuously
update the Voting Rights Act.
For decades he fought against
gun violence, voter repression,
and for social justice. I
Honoring a legend!
Artist, East Flatbush community celebrates
late John Lewis’ birthday with new mural
A look inside the new exhibit, “In Pursuit of Freedom,” at the Weeksville
Heritage Center. Photo by Susan De Vries
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