Bed Stuy's Successful 20th Century Fight Against Poverty Gets a Close Up

Bed Stuy has long been a historically significant place for Brooklyn’s African-American community. Now the story of how its residents empowered themselves through innovative community activism and helped reform urban policy throughout the U.S. in the 1950s and ’60s is getting a magnified look.

Battle for Bed-Stuy: The Long War on Poverty in New York City author Michael Woodsworth will discuss the role of the neighborhood in President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, community leaders such as Judge Thomas Jones, Bed Stuy’s longstanding black middle class, how a lawsuit against gerrymandering paved the way for Shirley Chisholm to be elected as the first African-American woman in Congress, and how 20th century reforms shape the neighborhood today. (You can read more about the recently published book here.)

The talk will take place Tuesday, January 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the Brooklyn Historical Society. Tickets are free for BHS members and $10 for non-members. For more information or to buy tickets, go here.

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