LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION mourning the death of Harlem political pioneer
Percy Ellis Sutton

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to the
lives of those esteemed individuals of renown who distinguished them-
selves through their life's work; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to pay proper trib-
ute to individuals of great character whose lives exemplify the highest
ideals of humanity; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton was a civil-rights activist, entrepreneur and
lawyer; he died on Saturday, December 26, 2009, at the age of 89; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton was born on November 24, 1920, in San Antonio,
Texas, the youngest child of Samuel J. and Lillian Smith; his parents
were both born into slavery and became educators; they were determined
that their children would be provided the best opportunities available;
Percy and all of his siblings went on to college, and they helped each
other financially to complete their educations; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton attended Prairie View Agricultural and Mechan-
ical College in Texas, Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and Hampton Insti-
tute in Virginia; he learned to fly at the same time and earned money as
a stunt pilot at county fairs; and
WHEREAS, When World War II came along, Percy Sutton moved to New York
City to enlist in the United States Army Air Corps; he served with the
famous Tuskegee Airmen and won combat stars as an intelligence officer
with the 332nd Fighter Group's black 99th Pursuit Squadron in the Itali-
an and Mediterranean theaters; and
WHEREAS, After being honorably discharged from the Air Corps as a
Captain, Percy Sutton entered the Columbia University School of Law on
his GI Bill benefits, before switching to the Brooklyn College School of
Law; he received his Juris Doctor in 1950 and passed the New York State
Bar Exam the following year; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton served in the military again during the Korean
War as an Air Force intelligence officer in Washington, D.C.; later, he
became the Air Force's first black Trial Judge Advocate before leaving
the service for the second time in 1953; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton set up a law partnership on 125th Street in 1953
with his brother, Oliver, and George Covington which spanned over 40
years; and
WHEREAS, In 1961 and again in 1962, Percy Sutton was elected President
of the New York branch of the NAACP, after a succession of positions;
and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton was elected to the New York State Assembly in
the November 1964 election and took his seat on January 1, 1965; he was
selected spokesperson for the black assemblymen and under his leader-
ship, black assemblymen became members of every major committee and one
was chosen as the Majority Whip; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton was a major supporter of state funding to build
the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black
Culture and the Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge (SEEK)
program which gave promising students from disadvantaged backgrounds an
opportunity to attend college; he was voted Assemblyman of the Year in
1966 by the Intercollegiate Legislative Assembly; and
WHEREAS, In 1966, the New York City Council chose Percy Sutton to fill
the unexpired term as Manhattan Borough President; he held onto the
position and for 11 years, was the highest elected African-American
official in the State; and

WHEREAS, On December 10, 1972, Percy Sutton chaired a public hearing
on crime in Harlem, sponsored by the Haryou Act Community Corporation;
he expressed the view that effective police and judicial work, along
with a cooperative effort by the City government to eliminate problems
on housing, unemployment, and drug trafficking, were needed to solve the
problem of urban crime; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton was Chairman of Queens Inner Unity Cable System,
a cable television system in New York City; he was the major founder of
the Street Literacy Clinic and the Magic of Learning, a computer-based,
interactive, multimedia learning system that teachers use to help young
people improve basic skills in reading, writing, and functioning in the
language of their environment; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton co-founded the Inner City Broadcasting
Corporation with his brother Oliver and Clarence B. Jones in 1971 and
also purchased radio station, WLIB-AM, making it the first black-owned
station in New York City; that same year, he formed AMNEWS, and
purchased the NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS, the second largest black weekly
in the United States; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton left public office in December of 1977 and
retired and became Chairman emeritus in 1991 for City Broadcasting; he
served as a guest lecturer on college campuses, discussing the subjects
of Communications, High Technology, Finance, Business Law and Politics
at City College of New York, and Princeton University among others; and
WHEREAS, In January of 1995, Percy Sutton became a member of a deleg-
ation of leading American business people representing the United States
at the Group of Seven (G-7) Nations roundtable meeting on Telecommuni-
cations and High Technology in Brussels; he was selected by his European
colleagues to attend follow-up discussions in Brussels and Washington,
D.C.; in May of 1996, he served as a United States delegate to the G-7
and developing nations Intelligence Technology Conference in Midrand,
South Africa; and
WHEREAS, Percy Sutton received hundreds of national, international and
local awards honoring his contributions in the fields of Communications
and High Technology, Human Rights, Civil Rights, Business and Philan-
thropy; and
WHEREAS, Survived by his wife, Leatrice, and their two children,
Pierre and Cheryl Lynn, Percy Sutton was armed with a humanistic spirit,
imbued with a sense of compassion, and comforted by a loving family; he
leaves behind a legacy which will long endure the passage of time and
will remain as a comforting memory to all he served and befriended; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
mourn the death of Harlem political pioneer Percy Ellis Sutton; and be
it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the family of Percy Ellis Sutton.