Mr, DiBitetto does it again. He takes a purposely complicated issue and simplifies it so ANYONE can understand it.
I especially like the "Straighten Up And Fly Right" reference to the Tuskegee Airman Theme, "Straighten Up and Fly Right."
“U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder described Sutton as “a man who combined equal measure of intelligence, passion, commitment, courage and style.”
“The opportunities that my generation has been given were paid for by his hard work and sacrifice," he said. "Without him, there would be no me.”Holder read a statement from President Obama and his wife, Michelle, in which they called Sutton “a master of the law, a savvy businessman, and tireless champion of the city.”
Melba Moore sang "Amazing Grace." Stevie Wonder, who flew overnight to make the service, sang “I’ll Be Loving You Always” while changing one line for Sutton: “Percy will be loving us always.”
All of this was in tribute to a man born in the Jim Crow south who came of age in 1950s Harlem, and was elected Manhattan borough president. He served as a Tuskegee Airman during World War II and was a civil rights freedom rider who challenged racial segregation laws that denied blacks the right to use public facilities, like restaurants and hotels. He became Malcolm X’s lawyer and assumed the role of friend and guardian of Betty Shabazz and her family after her husband was assassinated.
He became a media mogul with his acquisition of New York radio stations WLIB and WBLS. In the 1980s, his broadcasting company bought the bankrupt Apollo Theater and oversaw its renovation and reopening.
In the eulogy, the Rev. Al Sharpton talked about Sutton not as a media mogul or millionaire, but as a man who put his life in danger for causes he believed in, and whose dreams inspired Harlem.
"We are here because he invested in a community that didn't believe in itself," Sharpton said.
Those Tuskegee Airmen:
No comments:
Post a Comment
You can add your voice to this blog by posting a comment.