Jefferson Avenue to be Co-Named "Bertram L. Baker Way"
Jefferson Avenue Block Association celebrates co-naming at 125th block anniversary
Jefferson Avenue, between Tompkins and Throop will be getting a new name soon: “Bertram L. Baker Way,” in honor of the former Bed-Stuy assemblyman and Brooklyn’s first black politician, the late Bertram L. Baker.
The proposal had been submitted to Community Board 3 in 2009 by the Jefferson Avenue TNT Block Association, which represents Bertram Baker’s former block.
The community board approved it and then forwarded the measure on to Council Member Al Van who included the proposal in an omnibus street co-naming bill with 66 other streets around New York City. The City Council voted on and approved the co-naming on December 9, 2010.
“Bertram Baker pioneered the way for black Brooklyn elected officials, such as myself,” said Vann. “I followed in his footsteps when I represented the offshoot of his district during my years in the New York State Assembly. The co-naming of his former block in his honor is well deserved. Bedford-Stuyvesant should be proud and hopefully all of our children will know the name of Bertram Baker and why Jefferson Avenue bears his name.”
The co-naming and celebration of the 125-year-old block will take place Saturday, July 16th, on Jefferson, between Tompkins and Throop at 3:00pm, during the block party celebration, which lasts from 12:00pm – 6:00pm.
The late Baker’s granddaughter, Diane Patrick and her husband, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, will be on hand for the historic naming ceremony.
Then, at 4:00pm, Gov. Patrick will join Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries at Common Grounds café, on 376 Tompkins Avenue, to talk about his powerful new memoir, A Reason to Believe, which tells how he overcame great obstacles to become the first Black Governor of Massachusetts.
Boukan Collins
12:22 pm on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I have dual reason to be excited about the recognition of Bertram L. Bakers’ pioneering achievements. A native Brooklynite born in Bedford-Stuyvesant, I am a tennis historian whose work chronicles the achievements of African-American tennis champions of the past, present and future. From 1936 until 1966, Mr. Baker served as the powerful executive secretary of the American Tennis Association (ATA). Journalist and author Doug Smith credits Baker with being a key force behind negotiations that in 1950 led to the United States Lawn Tennis Association’s acceptance of Althea Gibson’s application to become the first Black to ever compete in the U.S. National Championship at Forest Hills. In subsequent years, Mr. Baker hammered out an arrangement that enabled ATA champions (or sometimes his hand-picked selections) to obtain a wild card entry into the prestigious event. His ability to wield political power and to apply moral suasion helped athletes from around the nation gain standing against an entrenched segregated institution.