Sections Of Manhattan Park Renamed To Honor James Baldwin, Langston Hughes
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Legends of the Harlem Renaissance were celebrated in Manhattan on Saturday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio and First Lady Chirlane McCray attended the renaming ceremony for James Baldwin Lawn and Langston Hughes Playground.
The two writers will now be forever memorialized in St. Nicholas Park on 135th Street.
RELATED STORY: MTA Renames 2 Brooklyn Subway Stations After Civil Rights Icon Medgar Evers
The mayor says their contributions to the Black community are still being felt in 2020.
"Their words and writings, they could have been written yesterday. They could have been written after the death of George Floyd, right? They're just as powerful and current, but they call us to action. They're not academic. They're real," de Blasio said.
The city says the renamings are part of an effort to invest in smaller neighborhood parks, not just the biggest and most famous.
MORE FROM CBS NEW YORK