BOROUGH PRESIDENT RICHARDS TO PRESIDE OVER STREET CO-NAMING CEREMONY

Saturday, March 20 at 2:00PM

(March 19, 2021 at 11:07am)

QUEENS, NY – Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, Jr., will preside over a street co-naming ceremony in honor of Sister Nzingha Abena (1939-2019), a beloved community leader in Rosedale, Queens, who was dedicated to advancing education, youth development and civil rights.

A street sign signifying the co-naming of a section of 233rd Street as “Nzingha Abena Way” will be unveiled during the ceremony, which will take place on Saturday, March 20 at 2:00 PM at the corner of 233rd Street and Francis Lewis Boulevard, near Ms. Abena’s longtime home in Rosedale.

The 1955 murder of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old African American who was lynched in Mississippi, galvanized the civil rights movement at the time and inspired a teenage Nzingha Abena to devote her life to working for justice, peace, and equality for all.

As a young woman. Ms. Abena worked on anti-poverty programs and volunteered in the public schools. She later obtained a master’s degree in Education from Fordham University and had a distinguished career as an educator in the New York City school system.

After she retired, Ms. Abena continued volunteering in the community in a number of capacities, including as Co-Chair of the Million Man/Woman March Coordinating Council of Queens, Inc., from 1995-2008. She also successfully secured paid internships for scores of young people and was one of the key organizers of the annual Black College Tour, which fostered the college aspirations of hundreds of African American middle and high school students by enabling them to visit historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the country.

WHAT:        Borough President Richards to Preside Over Street Co-Naming Ceremony

WHERE:      Corner of 233rd Street and Francis Lewis Boulevard in Rosedale, Queens

WHEN:        Saturday, March 20, 2021 at 2:00 PM

WHO:           DONOVAN RICHARDS, JR., Queens Borough President

                      COMMUNITY AND CIVIC LEADERS

                      FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF SISTER NZINGHA ABENA

Swiv biwo a nan Prezidan an Queens Borough via @QnsBPRichards sou Twitter ak @QueensBPRichards sou Facebook ak Instagram

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