Celebrating The History Of Black New Yorkers - exhibition at the chomburg Center for Research in Black Culture features the role of African Americans in the history of New York City - Brief Article

American Visions, Oct, 1999 by S.F.

The 375-year sojourn and contributions of people of African descent within the city of New York are examined and celebrated in the exhibition "Black New Yorkers/ Black New York," which opens in October at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Inspired both by the New York City Centennial and by questions long unanswered regarding the impact of blacks on the city's history, the Harlem-based research division of the New York Public Library has mounted a display and published an illustrated chronology (see "Finding Treasures in Fall Publishers' Catalogs," American Visions, August/September 1999) that places black citizens solidly in the midst of New York's development.

Says Schomburg Center chief Howard Dodson: "'Black New Yorkers/Black New York' is the center's centennial tribute to people of African descent--of diverse ethnic, religious, cultural, economic and political backgrounds--who have helped make New York City the greatest city in America. The documents used to tell this story reveal the extraordinary ways in which black New Yorkers have been actively involved in all spheres of human endeavor in New York and around the world."

Drawing from the library's world-renowned collection of archival materials, and from a few outside sources, the exhibit surveys the lives of black people--from Africa, the American South, the Caribbean, Central and South America--and describes how they enriched the New York landscape. Photographs, prints, rare manuscripts, books and artworks are joined by charts, graphs, sound recordings and audiovisual media to examine the complexities of New York City history and the many ways that blacks helped create what former Mayor David Dinkins often described as "the mosaic" of this metropolis.