Percy Sutton lived the kind of life you only hear about in the movies. He was one of the famed Tuskegee Airmen, a civil rights lawyer, a leading black politician and a communications and media mogul. His death on Saturday night leaves a hole in many people's heart but also a magnificent legacy that should be used to inspire young African Americans today.
Sutton, 89, was a lawyer for Malcolm X, a freedom rider and New York City's first serious black candidate for mayor. You could argue that he helped blaze a trail for leaders such as former New York City Mayor David Dinkins and President Barack Obama. He was also a man who recognized the importance of preserving African American history. His decades-long fight to make sure the Apollo Theatre in Harlem survived is just one example.
President Obama praised Sutton, saying:
"Percy Sutton was a true hero to African Americans in New York City and around the country. ...We will remember him for his service to the country as a Tuskegee Airman, to New York state as a state assemblyman, to New York City as Manhattan borough president, and to the community of Harlem in leading the effort to revitalize the world renowned Apollo Theater. His life-long dedication to the fight for civil rights and his career as an entrepreneur and public servant made the rise of countless young African Americans possible. Michelle and I extend our deepest condolences to his family on this sad day."
Over the years, Sutton served as the lawyer for civil rights activists down South. He also represented Malcolm X and his family during various legal issues. It just seems that he had a hand in all the important issues of his day. He's one of the best and most successful examples of merging entrepreneurism with activism.
According to the New York Times:
Mr. Sutton took many controversial stands. When Mike Tyson, the boxer and convicted rapist, returned to Harlem from prison in 1995, Mr. Sutton was there to greet him. After the Rev. Al Sharpton refused to pay damages for slandering the prosecutor in the Tawana Brawley case, Mr. Sutton helped pay the fine. Mr. Sutton was arrested for civil disobedience in protesting the shooting and killing of Amadou Diallo, a Guinean immigrant, by four police officers in 1999. ...In 1966, Mr. Sutton served as permanent chairman of the Democratic State Convention, the first time in American political history that a black had been selected as permanent chairman at a state convention. During Mr. Sutton's one term in the assembly, he helped establish open admissions at the city university, liberalize divorce and abortion laws, and get funding for the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.
I can't begin to imagine how many lives Sutton touched in his 89 years. If we could each touch half as many people, our future would look exponentially brighter.
Comments: (13)
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By: carychakra1 on 12/27/2009 9:21PM
Mr. Sutton is a great example of intelligence hard work and sacrifice paying off.He was and is the stellar epitome of charm grace and good manners.
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By: David on 12/28/2009 9:26AM
What a great life he lived. His life would make a interesting movie. Black multimillionaire celebrities should pool together their money and start making movies about the life of black people like this.
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By: FashionedByGod33 on 12/28/2009 10:01AM
I so agree with you David. I hope to see that happen but it may just be wishful thinking on my part. Mr. Sutton was definitely a pioneer and an an inspiration.
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By: Lonzo Lucas II on 12/29/2009 4:14AM
I couldn't agree more, check out this pic, my father and Raymond Walker another Tuskegee Airman right before he visited President Obama.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?ref=name&id=699864625#/photo.php?pid=2297110&id=699864625
This pic is one of the best...Do your research on who these men were, excellence is not an accident but a way of life for our people.
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By: jrrutledge07 on 1/08/2010 1:12PM
My mother worked for Mr. Sutton during the early 70's. He was a good man and will truly be missed.
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By: jsloroll on 12/28/2009 2:52PM
Mr. Sutton was a very nice and gracious man. I worked at one of his radio stations' in LA and when he visited he was engaging and made sure he knew your name. His legacy is forever etched in history as a prominent black man who did good for his people.
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By: Gail on 12/28/2009 10:17PM
Mr. Percy Sutton...God has been good to him...what a man, what a man, what a mighty good man....his life was very interesting....and if we all could see 89, who would complain?....He lived a long good life...He left a great legacy...Heaven has gain another soul....i pray for comfort for the family.
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By: michelle on 12/29/2009 4:11AM
thank you Percy! We were blessed to have you and we will miss you. Lord, please accept Percy into your Kingdom and lift him up high for he was truly your servant here on earth. bless him and keep him Lord, in the name of Jesus, Amen.
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By: Keri on 12/29/2009 2:20PM
Percy knew his work ect. Had alot of accomplishments in his Life, R.I.P my friend!
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By: Toni in Las Vegas on 12/30/2009 6:02PM
Thank you for this article. I'm a grateful great-grandmother who lived in Harlem during the 60's and early 70's. I use every opportunity to deposit the facts of our history into the lives of my 9 & 10 year old great-grandsons Rashaun and Jabari. I would have appreciated the inclusion of the heritage left to Percy by his father, SJ Sutton who was born enslaved, and his mother who delivered him, the last of 15 children. Percy's childhood training and experiance in Texas was the great and challanging beginning of the man he became. That information about him will be the real inspiration to our youth!
May you continue to research and write. The truth about us must be told by us.
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