Bronx residents urge City Council to support
street co-naming for living civil rights activist
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Advocates are calling on legislation
to be passed to honor a civil
rights activist with a street co-naming
ceremony while she is still very
much alive.
Claudette Colvin, 80, a retired
nurse aide known as a pioneer of the
1950s civil rights movement, was arrested
at the age of 15 in Montgomery,
AL, after refusing to give up her
seat to a white woman on a crowded,
segregated bus.
Members of the Claudette Colvin
Committee—gathered at the
No. 6 Parkchester Train Station at
177nd St. on Monday, Oct. 28—say
it’s only right to name Unionport
Road between East Tremont and
Westchester Avenue, Claudette Colvin
Plaza.
The committee has initiated a
Change.org petition, which has received
58 signatures for the street
renaming.
“The whole world celebrated the
courageous act of Rosa Parks, and
none can take that away from her,
however, what the world celebrates
about her, truthfully belonged to
(From l. to r.) Father David Powers (Pastor of St Helena Catholic Church), Sheik Musa Drammeh (Chairman NY Peace Coalition)
Debra Oguamah and Dennis James urge City Council offi cials to pass legislation to honor civil rights activist Claudette
Colvin with a street co-naming ceremony. Photo by Aracelis Batista
Claudette Colvin,” said Sheik Musa
Drammeh, chairman of the New
York Peace Coalition.
Colvin was one of four plaintiffs—
along with Aurelia Browder,
Susie McDonald and Mary Louise
Smith—who fi led a lawsuit
against segregated bus seating in
the Browder vs. Gayle U.S. Supreme
Court case. The case was successful,
impacting public transportation
throughout the country, including
trains, airplanes and taxis.
The civil rights activist has
called Parkchester her home since
1958 and said farewell to her Bronx
community in October. A special
tribute was held in her honor celebrating
her contributions There
have been at least four living individuals
in New York City given a
street co-naming,” Drammeh said.
“We are calling all of the righteous
Bronxites to stand up, especially
those who live in Community
Board 9 to say enough is enough.”
Debra Oguamah, who has
lived in Parkchester for the past
20 years, came to show her support.
“My grandmother told me
that she Colvin was not the face
for the civil rights movement. She
was not the person that they chose,
but my family never explained to
me the whole entire story,” Oguamah
said.
When Oguamah received notice
that Colvin’s street co-naming was
delayed, she decided to continue
advocating on behalf of Colvin.
Oguamah and Drammeh are
urging Bronxites to sign the online
petition and send letters to local
politicians, including City Council
Speaker Corey Johnson.
“We need this co-naming and
I really feel that we’re still going
to get this co-naming regardless,”
Oguamah said. “We need to take
this plight nationally as well. We’re
not trying to take anything away
from Rosa Parks or the NAACP,
but we need this to be included in
our American history.”
3 BRONX WEEKLY November 3, 2019 www.BXTimes.com
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Workshop for the Future
On Thursday, October 17,
the Guidance Departments
from St. Raymond High
School for Boys and the St.
Raymond Academy for Girls
held their annual senior opportunity
event for their
graduating seniors. This
year’s event was held in cooperation
with Junior Achievement
of New York. Utilizing
their JA Career Success program,
the theme of the day
was the ‘Workplace of the
Future.’ Through a panel
discussion and workshops
the students learned about
what skills employers’ demand
from their workforce.
The panel consisted of
four individuals, three were
graduates of a St. Raymond
education. The panelists
were: St. Raymond Elementary
School graduate Aaliytha
Stevens, chief operating
offi cer, SPOTCO; Lucille
Crenwick, Communications
director, Social Justice
based foundation; SRHSB
graduate Merrick Lee ’04,
co-founder, Cross Ave.; and
SRHSB graduate Manny
Montilla ’98, founder/principal,
Boogie Down Media.
Carol Sharrouf, associate
director, Programs for JA,
assisted in preparing the
agenda for the day.
Following the panel
discussion on how college
prepared them for their
work career, the students
attended two breakout sessions
created by JA: Communication
and Confl ict
Management Skills and
Know Your Personal Brand.
Each session had a short
presentation followed by a
hands-on activity testing
what they learned about
resolving confl icts in the
workplace and the importance
of creating a positive
public image as they build
their careers.
St. Raymond students participate in ‘Workshop for the Future. St. Raymond High School for Boys
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