Brooklyn street co-named in honor of Haitian pioneer
By Nelson A. King
Haitian-born Councilman
Dr. Mathieu Eugene on Sunday
spearheaded an initiative
to rename a huge section of a
street in Brooklyn in honor of
his late compatriot Jean Baptiste
Point Du Sable, who also
founded Chicago.
During a ceremony, at the
corner of Clarendon Road and
Flatbush Avenue in the Flatbush
section of Brooklyn, Dr.
Eugene, the first Haitian to be
elected to the Council, joined
elected officials and community
leaders in officially co-naming
Flatbush Avenue, between
Empire Boulevard and Foster
Avenue, as Jean Baptiste Point
Du Sable Boulevard.
“I want to thank everyone
who came here to join us,
because this is a momentous
occasion, a very important
event for the community,” said
Dr. Eugene, who represents
the primarily Caribbean 40th
Council District in Brooklyn.
“The reason we are here is
because we are going to coname
part of Flatbush Avenue
as Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable
Boulevard.
“Some people may ask,
‘Why”?’” added Dr. Eugene,
who, in January, will demit
office after serving, for 12
consecutive years, in the City
Council. New York Charter
forbids Eugene from serving
another four-year term.
He will be succeeded by
another compatriot, Rita
Joseph, a public school teacher
in Brooklyn.
“I think it is very important
that we embrace the legacy
of people who used to bring
other people together for the
common good,” Dr. Eugene
told the ceremony. “He (Jean
Baptiste Point Du Sable) was a
Haitian who came to the United
States of America. He set
out in Chicago, where he was
a business entrepreneur, and
he was somebody who used his
skill to bring people together
in order to better the community
in Chicago.
“He was a Black man, but,
more importantly, he was an
immigrant, which means he
was a very important person
for the immigrant community,
and that is what the American
Dream is about,” the councilman
continued. “Immigrants
come to the United States from
all over the world, seeking a
better life for themselves and
Caribbean Life, N 16 OVEMBER 19-25, 2021
Council Member Dr. Mathieu Eugene offi cially co-names Flatbush Avenue as Jean Baptiste
Point Du Sable Boulevard. New York City Council Press Offi ce
their children, but the most
important thing is they make
tremendous contributions to
The United States of America.
“The history of Jean Baptiste
Point Du Sable is the history
of so many immigrants,”
Dr. Eugene said. “That is why
we are here today, to not only
pay tribute to Jean Baptiste
Point Du Sable, but to also celebrate
the legacy of so many
members of the immigrant
community who came to the
United States to make America
such a wonderful country.”
The councilman described
Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable
as “a Haitian pioneer who
traveled to the United States
and settled in what is today
known as Peoria and Chicago,
Illinois, and he is recognized
by historians as the founder of
Chicago.
“His ability to translate for
different cultures, including
the English, French, Spanish,
and Native American people
solidified his role as a valued
entrepreneur and frontiersman,”
Dr. Eugene said. “Du
Sable will forever be remembered
for having been the catalyst
that transformed Chicago
from a small trading post into
the major metropolis and economic
center it is today.”
According to Alfred Theodore
Andreas, in his book,
“History of Chicago: From the
earliest period to the present
time,” Jean Baptiste Point du
Sable, was born before 1750
and died on Aug. 28, 1818.
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