Black History

NY Names Subway Station To Honor Malcolm X Legacy

New York has renamed the 110th Street–Central Park North subway station in honor of Malcolm X, marking his Harlem legacy with a mosaic sign, a plaza dedication, and future plans for a permanent statue and cultural programming.
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NJG Newswire
NEW YORK, NY
On Aug. 10, the 110 St.-Central Park North subway station was officially renamed to honor Malcolm X, who lived in Harlem for more than a decade, first in 1943, and then from 1954 until his assassination at age 39 in the Audubon Ballroom.

Civic leaders, advocates, elected officials, and Gov. Kathy Hochul attended the bill signing and commemoration event on Sunday, Aug. 10. A newly erected mosaic sign is perched underneath the city subway sign and contains a trademark quote by Malcolm X, who changed his name to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, following his 1964 pilgrimage to Mecca.

“I believe in a society in which people can live like human beings on the basis of equality,” Malcolm X famously said.

The recent renaming commemoration came on the heels of the renaming of Malcolm Shabazz Plaza on West 110th Street, which is located adjacent to the newly renamed subway stop.

“I can’t tell y’all how many times I’ve cried today,” State Senator Cordell Cleare said at the recent commemoration ceremony, according to a New York Amsterdam News report.

“This is a multi-level project, and it means a lot of things to this community,” said Cleare who introduced Bill S.1204/A.5339, which renames the subway station.

“Not only is this the sign of an accessible, modernized, beautiful subway station, which is badly needed,” Cleare told the audience. It is also “a tribute to one of our greatest legends and heroes, it’s also a center of enlightenment, and of upliftment of programming, of education, of information, services, and resources.”

The daughter of Malcolm X, Dr. Ilyasah Shabazz, who attended the commemoration with her two sister, Malaak Shabazz, and Gamilah Lumumba Shabazz, said, “Harlem is an idea, a cultural epicenter, the birthplace on Black art, Black thought, Black spirituality, Black resistance, Black brilliance…And this subway station now carries his name and our shared legacy.”

Cleare’s office said future plans for the plaza and station include installing a permanent statue of Malcolm X, a fully renovated and accessible subway station at 110th Street, and more upgrades at the plaza.