Surely! NYC Council approves Annual Shirley Chisholm Day
On Nov. 30, New Yorkers will not only commemorate the centenary birthdate of Cong. Shirley Chisholm, but also the anniversary with a day dedicated in her honor.
The NYCC passed a resolution designating Shirley Chisholm Day on Nov. 19 to honor the trailblazer who dared to run for the highest elected office in America.
Slated for effect this year on the anniversary of her 100th birthday, the date also closes out a month when the Democratic Party lost its bid to elect the first Black, female president of the United States.
“This legislation is more than a recognition but an affirmation of the contribution of Shirley Anita Chisholm who unlocked and opened doors for generations of political leaders who were excluded simply for being Black,” Brooklyn Council member Farah Louis said.
The legislator who sponsored the resolution reiterated reasons the seven term congressional representative from the 12th District in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn is deserving of the honor. Adding the decision: “would show young people in our city, particularly Black women and women of color, that their dreams are valid and their voices matter.”
Reputedly a feisty, outspoken advocate for the underclass, the Democrat is acclaimed for describing herself as “unbought and unbossed.”
Proud of her Caribbean heritage she spent much of her youth on the island and often bragged about her Barbadian upbringing. She attributed much of her decisive, determined reasoning shaped decisions she made throughout her political career in the NYS Assembly as well as in Congress. She served in Washington DC — her pioneering position from 1969 to 1983 when she retired.
Following retirement she was appointed ambassador to Jamaica. Cong. Chisholm died in 2005.
A decade later, she was awarded a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom.
In addition to the distinction of being the first Black female elected to Congress, the trailblazer is renowned for amplifying issues of concern by the disfranchised poor communities.
Beyond her career, she continues to receive numerous accolades, structural memorials and a statue in Prospect park.
There is a 407-acre state park named for Cong. Shirley Chisholm.
Finally! Four Centuries Later, Brazil Approves Zumbi Jamboree
It has been well documented that the resistance movement against the Portuguese in Brazil was led by Zumbi dos Palmares.
Born in 1655, the warrior died Nov. 20, 1695.
Four hundred and 25 years later, Brazil declared a new holiday on the the anniversary.
For the first time in Brazil, Black Consciousness Day honored the hero, abolitionist, freedom fighter and rebellion leader of quilombolo with a joyous day for celebration.
Some regard Zumbi as the king of the Afro-Brazilian resistance movement against colonialism and slavery.
According to Wikipedia: “He was also the last of the kings of the Quilombo dos Palmares, a settlement of Afro-Brazilian people who liberated themselves from enslavement in the present day state of Alagoas, Brazil.”
Panama Showcases “Ramon” An Immigrant Story
A poignant and humorous film about an undocumented Afro-Latino father of seven, spotlights the many adversities immigrants encounter in a showcase titled “Ramon.”
Slated for a Dec. 2 screening at Roulette Intermedium, 509 Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn, the film will be presented at 7 p.m.
Reportedly, the Council on Arts in collaboration with Day of Independence Committee of Panama in New York endorses the presentation which features Panamanians in Brooklyn.
For more information, contact the group at dicpny@gmail.com
Catch You On The Inside!
