Albert Vann, a revered Bedford-Stuyvesant native, was honored in a memorial ceremony this week, reports The Brooklyn Paper.
The ceremony took place on August 12 and was followed by community block party on August 13. Vann passed away peacefully on July 15 at the age of 87.
A “Memorials and Reflections” was held at the Boys & Girls High School on Fulton Street. Family, friends and former colleagues joined together to remember Vann and the highlights of his life. And the following day, a community block party was held at Bed-Stuy’s Restoration Plaza.
“You can chronologize his achievements and accomplishments and what he’s meant to the community. The sentiment, though, is hard to capture and how people are now feeling this profound sense of loss in their community,” stated former Councilmember Robert Cornegy.
Vann was a prominent politician and activist. A lifelong Democrat, he began as a teacher, where he founded the African Teacher’s Association. And as a politician, Vann served in New York State Assembly for three decades. He went on to later serve three terms in the New York City Council.
Prominent politicians spoke at both events to honor Vann, including Mayor Eric Adams, Public Advocate Letitia James, Commissioner for Cultural Affairs and former Councilmember and Vann’s successor Robert Cornegy, among many others.
“There are people who can impact and make change in communities but are less likely and less willing to share the opportunity to lead, and I’m a direct product of his willingness for someone else to lead or to take the reins or to exercise a sense of continuity in a community that desperately needs that,” Cornegy said.
