TheGang of Four, also known as theHarlem Clubhouse, was anAfrican-American political coalition fromHarlem whose members later ascended to top political posts. It is named after theGang of Four of China.J. Raymond Jones was influential in helping these men obtain power.[1][2]
David Dinkins (1927–2020), state Assemblyman, City Board of Elections President, City Clerk, Manhattan Borough President (1986–1989) andMayor of New York City (1990–1993)
The son of Basil Paterson,David Paterson, served asLieutenant Governor of New York from 2007 to 2008 and assumed the positionGovernor of New York in March 2008 following the resignation ofEliot Spitzer. He was the first African American governor of New York State. He also served as Minority Leader of the State Senate from 2003 to 2006, and in State Senate from 1985 to 2006, running at the advice ofPercy Sutton.[3]
Keisha Sutton James, the granddaughter ofPercy Sutton, was the campaign manager forAlvin Bragg in his successful nomination forNew York County District Attorney.[4] In early 2022, Borough PresidentMark Levine appointed James as Deputy Borough President for Manhattan.[5] In 1964, Percy Sutton defeated Lloyd Dickens for district leader. In 2023, Keisha Sutton James supported the eventual winner,Yusef Salaam, againstInez Dickens in the Democratic Primary for City Council.[6]
Percy Sutton, "Harlemites are limited in the areas where they can seek power. The result is that, since we don't have mobility, those of us who think we have talent have to hustle within circumscribed areas. But Harlem runs on a basic political organization line not much different from any place else. The percentage of registered voters is low, but the average voter is very sophisticated. You can't get by here with what Bill Dawson pulls in Chicago on the South Side. And boss rule in Harlem today is impossible because days when politicians could control government services to grant or withhold favors is gone. We're like social service workers administering things like poverty programs or Haryou. All you can do is promise good government, give personal attention and project your personality."[7]
David N. Dinkins,A Mayor's Life: Governing New York's Gorgeous Mosaic, PublicAffairs Books, 2013
Rangel, Charles B.; Wynter, Leon (2007).And I Haven't Had a Bad Day Since: From the Streets of Harlem to the Halls of Congress. New York: St. Martin's Press.
Baker Motley, ConstanceEqual Justice Under The Law: An Autobiography, New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1998.
Jack, HulanFifty Years a Democrat:The Autobiography of Hulan Jack New Benjamin Franklin House New York, NY 1983
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