NEW YORK - Congressman Charles B. Rangel joined several prominent New York officials on September 20, 2010, to honor the memory of civil rights pioneer Percy E. Sutton with the dedication of a Harlem school complex which bears his name.

A complex with three existing schools will now be known as The Percy Sutton Educational Campus, located at Six Edgecombe Avenue in Harlem.

"What more fitting way to honor and remember the great legacy of Percy Sutton than renaming a place of higher learning in his honor," Congressman Rangel said.

In addition to working tirelessly as a civil rights activist, Sutton was a prominent lawyer who represented Malcolm X; and he was a successful entrepreneur who founded Inner City Broadcasting Corporation and Synematics, Inc., a high technology internet and interactive software company. In World War II, he served as a Tuskegee airman. He was also a well-known politician, serving as a member of the New York City Assembly and later as Borough President of Manhattan for more than a decade, the longest serving tenure in that position.

Sutton was born in San Antonio, TX, in 1920 and died December 26, 2009 in New York. An advocate of community empowerment and social justice, Sutton fought for equal education for all. He felt it was the only way to excel and attain goals.

"He spent all of his life fighting to expand opportunities for the next generation and the making sure that our children had the resources to meet the challenges of the present and beyond," Rangel added.

To view the video of Congressman Rangel speaking at Percy Sutton's memorial service, click here.