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Sunny Mindel/Edward Skyler (212) 788-2958 |
The next bill before me, Introductory Number 722, sponsored by Council Members Michels and Marshall, would name the southwest corner of Convent Avenue and West 143rd Street in Manhattan as W. Haywood Burns Corner.
W. Haywood Burns was born in 1940 in New York City. He went on to become a Harvard Scholar and later received his law degree from Yale University Law School in 1966. Subsequently, he became Assistant Counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and was later the co-founder and Director of the National Conference of Black Lawyers.
His love of teaching led him to accept various teaching positions throughout his career, including Dean and Professor of Law at the City University of New York School of Law and Visiting Professor at Yale Law School. In the 1960's he represented Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Poor People's Campaign. Unfortunately W. Haywood Burns was killed in a traffic accident in 1996.
Therefore, on behalf of all his efforts to further civil rights, and his dedication to education, it is fitting to name the southwest corner of Convent Avenue and West 143rd Street as W. Haywood Burns Corner.
For the reasons previously stated, I will now sign the bill.