Lucy J. Brown
Lucy J. Brown | |
|---|---|
 2024 bronze statue of Brown by Meredith Bergmann | |
| Board Member of the Ithaca City School District | |
| Member of the Ithaca Board of Public Works | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ithaca, New York, U.S. |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | Ithaca High School |
| Occupation | activist, public servant |
Lucy J. Brown is an American social justice activist and public servant. She was the co-founder of Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services in Ithaca, New York. Brown also served on the Ithaca City School District Board and on the Ithaca Board of Public Works.
Early life and education
[edit]Brown was born on Albany Street in Ithaca.[1][2] She attended Central Elementary School, Boynton Junior High School, and Ithaca High School.[2]
Career
[edit]After finishing high school, Brown worked for Cornell University in the Department of Education.[2] Later, she worked in Cornell's Martha Van Rensselaer Hall and for the dean of the New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University.[2]
She worked as an activist for racial justice, educational equity, and affordable housing.[3][4] In 1976, she co-founded Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services, a non-profit organization focusing on affordable housing in the Finger Lakes and Southern Tier regions of New York.[3] As a board member of Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services, Brown acted as an advocate for local residents in Ithaca's Southside neighborhood.[3][5] Brown was also active in the Civil rights movement and was present at the 1969 takeover of Willard Straight Hall.[2]
She served on the Ithaca City School District Board, the Ithaca Board of Public Works, and Ithaca Commons Council, and worked with the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency.[5][2] Brown also served as president of the board of trustees of the John W. Jones Museum in Elmira, New York.[2]
In 2008, Brown was received the Diane Sams Annual African American History Month Recognition Award.[2]
Personal life
[edit]Brown is married and has four children.[2][6]
She is a member of Cayuga Temple 54 of the Daughters of the Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the World.[2]
Legacy
[edit]Ithaca Housing Neighborhood Services created the Lucy Brown Community Award, given to community activists.[7]
A bronze statue of Brown, made by Meredith Bergmann and commissioned by the Ithaca Historic Statues Steering Committee,[8] was installed outside of the Henry St. John Building in Ithaca on August 16, 2024, and unveiled on August 17, 2024.[5][3][9] The statue, featuring a QR Code with a voice recording by Brown, is part of the Talking Statues network created by David Peter Fox.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ "Looking Back". August 1, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Senior Circle - Vol. 15 No. 3 - August 2011" (PDF).
- ^ a b c d Fetterly, Justina (August 20, 2024). "Ithaca Unveils New Life-Sized Statues Honoring Local Women Trailblazers".
- ^ "Two Sculptures Honoring Women To Be Unveiled in Ithaca Saturday". Finger Lakes Daily News. August 16, 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Statues of Lucy Brown and Frances Perkins".
- ^ "Campus and Community Organizing for Liberation, Then and Now". November 5, 2016.
- ^ "Savino Wins Lucy J. Brown Award". Ithaca Times. May 18, 2016.
- ^ Times, Ithaca. "Calendar". Ithaca Times.
- ^ "Unveiling of Statues of Lucy Brown and Frances Perkins". Tompkins Weekly. July 14, 2024.
- Living people
- Activists from New York (state)
- African-American activists
- African-American people in New York (state) politics
- African-American school board members
- African-American women in politics
- American women activists
- Cornell University staff
- Daughters of the Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the World
- Ithaca High School (Ithaca, New York) alumni
- People from Ithaca, New York
- School board members in New York (state)