Albert Vann (November 19, 1934 – July 14, 2022) was an American politician and a member of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

from

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, representing the 36th district, which includes parts of Bedford-Stuyvesant and

Crown Heights Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue to the north, Ralph Avenue to the east, and Empire Boulevard to the so ...

. He was a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Early life and education

Vann was born to Nina (McGlone) Vann and Benjamin Palme on November 19, 1934, in

, New York City; his parents had moved there from

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

during the Great Migration. He attended Franklin K. Lane High School and was in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

from 1952 to 1955. After that, he earned a BBA from Toledo University in 1959, and later earned master's degrees from both

Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a Private university, private Modern Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City.

(in education), and

Long Island University Long Island University (LIU) is a private university in Brooklyn and Brookville, New York, United States. The university enrolls over 16,000 students and offers over 500 academic programs at its main campuses, LIU Brooklyn and LIU Post on Long I ...

(in guidance counseling). He has served in different capacities as a teacher and administrator in New York public schools over the course of his professional career. He was a member of

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate List of African-American fraternities, historically African American Fraternities and sororities, fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the ...

fraternity. He was one of the founders of

Medgar Evers College Medgar Evers College is a public college in New York City, United States. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY), offering baccalaureate and associate degrees. It was established in 1970 in central Brooklyn. It is name ...

of the

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

, and was also one of the founders of the African American Teachers Association. Vann was a past instructor at

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

's Urban Center for Black Studies.

Political career

Vann was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

(56th D.) from 1975 to 2001, sitting in the 181st, 182nd, 183rd, 184th, 185th, 186th, 187th, 188th, 189th, 190th,

191st 191st may refer to: *191st (Southern Alberta) Battalion, CEF, a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War *191st Air Refueling Squadron, a unit of the Utah Air National Guard *191st Airlift Group, an airlift unit located a ...

, 192nd, 193rd, and

194th New York State Legislature The 194th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3, 2001, to December 31, 2002, during the seventh and eighth years of George Pataki's governorship, in Albany. St ...

s. Vann exchanged seats with Annette Robinson after the New York City Council enacted a term limit. Vann was elected to the

in November 2001, and ex-City Councilwoman Robinson was elected to the State Assembly in 2002 to fill the vacancy. Both represented the 36th City Council District, and Vann remained in the City Council until 2013. In the November 3, 2009 election Vann was challenged by

Mark Winston Griffith Mark Winston Griffith (born February 6, 1963) is a New York City journalist, community organizer, and social entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of the Central Brooklyn Federal Credit Union, founder of the Brooklyn Movement Center, and the co-cre ...

(

Drum Major Institute The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy (DMI) is a non-profit American progressive think tank and community action group. The group was founded in 1961 in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement. It later became defunct until it was relaunch ...

's executive director), who ran on the

Working Families Party The Working Families Party (WFP) is a progressive minor political party in the United States, founded in New York in 1998. There are active chapters in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois ...

ballot line. Vann defeated Griffith and went on to serve until 2013, when term limits prevented him from seeking re-election. He was succeeded by fellow Democrat

Robert Cornegy Robert E. Cornegy Jr. (born September 24, 1965) is an American politician. He is a former New York City Council Member for the 36th district, representing Bedford-Stuyvesant and northern Crown Heights in Brooklyn. A Democrat, he was an unsucc ...

on January 1, 2014. In response to the police shooting of

Sean Bell Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Hiberno-English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angli ...

in 2006, Vann alleged that the incident arose from "institutional racism." He then proceeded to mock the suggestion that African-American New Yorkers living in high-crime neighborhoods should adopt certain behaviors to avoid confrontations with police officers. On October 23, 2009 Vann voted to extend term limits for the

New York City Mayor The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, ...

and the City Council.

Personal life and death

Vann married Mildred Cooke in 1967, and they had four children. He was a resident of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, where he died on July 14, 2022, aged 87. An array of political figures memorialized him, including

Letitia James Letitia Ann "Tish" James (born October 18, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving since 2019 as the 67th Attorney General of New York, attorney general of New York (NYAG), having won the 2018 New York Attorney General election, 2018 ...

Eric Adams Eric Leroy Adams (born September 1, 1960) is an American politician and former police officer who has served as the 110th mayor of New York City since 2022. Adams was an officer in the New York City Transit Police and then the New York City P ...

Adrienne Adams Adrienne Adams may refer to: * Adrienne Adams (illustrator) (1906–2002), American illustrator * Adrienne Adams (politician) Adrienne Eadie Adams (born December 9, 1960) is an American politician serving as Speaker of the New York City Coun ...

, and

Hakeem Jeffries Hakeem Sekou Jeffries ( ; born August 4, 1970) is an American politician and attorney who has served as Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, House minority leader and House Democratic Caucus#Leaders of the House Democrati ...

References

External links

Official NYC Council Website about Albert Vann2005 NYC Voter Guide: Candidate Profile: Albert VannDistrict boundaries for 36th Council districtA Toy Gun, A Real CrimePlaying Race Card In Brooklyn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vann, Albert 1934 births 2022 deaths 20th-century African-American educators 20th-century American educators 21st-century African-American educators 21st-century American educators African-American state legislators in New York (state) Educators from New York City Long Island University alumni Medgar Evers College people Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Military personnel from New York City New York City Council members People from Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Politicians from Brooklyn United States Marines University of Toledo alumni Yeshiva University alumni 21st-century members of the New York State Legislature 20th-century members of the New York State Legislature 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians