Fern Gillespie
To celebrate Black History Month on February 7, the African American Clergy and Elected Officials Organization (AACEO) honored 2025 Modern Historians at a special program at Medgar Evers College featuring some of New York City’s leading political power brokers including Mayor Eric Adams, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark, NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, and Medgar Evers College President Dr Patricia Ramsey.

“My grandmother would not forgive me if I had the chance to speak with this much power in a room, and not speak truth,” said renowned civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, the keynote speaker.

“When you come to the Civil War, you’re talking about Black History. You must teach from sixth grade to 12th grade that slavery had positive benefits for the enslaved people,” he said spotlighting the change of Black History curriculum in public schools like Florida. “Think about the psychological trauma for our children.

They’re sitting in a classroom, and the other kids are saying, ‘Didn’t you hear the teacher? Slavery wasn’t bad, it was good for your grandmama and granddaddy?’ Can you imagine the psychological trauma?”

“I submit to you, brothers and sisters, our children and our community, our civil rights, and our culture are under attack. The right thing to do is to stand up and speak up for our Black children’s future. It’s the right thing to do, to fight for our Black children’s future,” he said.

“Black children, White children, Brown children, Red children–all of our children need to know all of our histories. They have to know that their cultures contributed to the greatness of America. We have to make sure that our children know that when we say Black Lives Matter that we mean it.”

“They are now talking about that you can’t celebrate Black history in the federal agencies around the country anymore,” he said. “It’s a deliberate and intentional attack to try to say that we have no worth, we have no value, that we did nothing to contribute to the greatness of this country.”

“The Black historians, the Black icons, like Medgar Evers, Frederick Douglass, Ida B. Wells, Carter G Woodson, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Coretta Scott King and Betty Shabazz, they were not the mere footnotes of American history. They were the heroes of American history,” he said.

“Dr. Martin Luther King said that the coward would ask the question is it safe? He said expediency would ask the question is it politically correct? Then he said conscious comes along and ask the question is it right?,” explained Crump. “Dr. King said there comes a time when one must take a position that’s neither popular or politically correct and not even safe. There comes a time when one must take a position because it’s the right thing to do. We have to speak truth to power. Every chance we get.”

The African American Clergy and Elected Officials Organization’s 2025 Modern Historians honored the modern historians of today that are making a great impact on our communities and the world.

Over 300 guests attended the event. Other honorees included ABC7 Emmy Award winning News Anchor/Reporter Phil Taitt, Debra Fraser Howze Founder/CEO Choose Healthy Life, Adrian Council and Jean Nash of Positive Community Magazine, photographer Gerald Peart, NYPD Chief Scott Henderson, NYPD Chief Judith Harrison, NYPD Chief Victoria Perry, Charles Jenkins, President, NYC CBTU (Coalition Black Trade Unionists) and Bernice Green and David Greaves of Our Time Press.

Founded in 1988, the AACEO is committed to serving, strengthening, and empowering the Brooklyn community. Executive Members in attendance included AACEO President Rev Dr Robert Waterman, Judge Robin Shears, and Rev Eddie Karim.

“Honoring the 2025 Modern Historians was a renewal and uplift for our people. It was Black excellence and inspirational,” said Dr Dee Bailey Chief of Operations for AACEO and organizer of the event.

“It has been a very long time since I felt a vibe of family and unconditional love for our community members expressed by so many leaders at the same time. The insistence for us to “Stand Up” and show ourselves as true leaders, not afraid to take on the struggles that we are facing. All I can is “Excellence”.