NYC Statues that should be in the works

Thursday's New York Sun had an article regarding the proposal of a new statue honoring the literary and public figure George Plimpton.

I certainly believe that Mr. Plimpton deserves a statue in one of New York City's Parks. I also believe many other important New York figures deserve a statue recognizing their contribution to New York City.
According to the New York City Parks Department, there are approximately 1,200 monuments located in the five boroughs and 300 of those monuments are sculptures. The Parks Department touts on its website that it is “the greatest outdoor public art museum in the United States”.

Following is my list of additions. All these individuals were fundamental in shaping the City of New York. These urban and social critics are not currently honored in a monument form in the city.

Walt Whitman – (May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892)
Long Island native; New York City’s poet and humanist Walt Whitman captured the spirit and life of New Your City and its citizens in his poems and writings.

Lewis Mumford - (October 19, 1895 – January 26, 1990)
Influential urban philosopher and social critic in New York City.
Writer of the acclaimed book History of the City.
“New York is the perfect model of a city, not the model of a perfect city.”-Lewis Mumford

Allen Ginsburg - (June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997)
New York City Beat poet, social activist and the author of the poem Howl.

William H. Whyte - (1917- January 12, 1999)
Journalist and Urban sociologist observing city dynamics, ‘Holly’ Whyte is the creator of the book (and a film of the same name) The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces.

George McAneny - (1869-1953) and Edward Bassett (1863-1948)
The fathers of New York City Zoning

Jacob August Riis - (May 3, 1849 - May 26, 1914)
Photojournalist and social reformer. Through photographs, he revealed to society the slums of New York City in the essay "How the Other Half Lives: Studies Among the Tenements of New York (1890)".


Statue in the Works for a Literary Man of Action, by Gary Shapiro
http://www.nysun.com/article/51425

NYC Parks Department of Parks and Recreation – monument list
http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/monuments/monuments_search.php

Obituaries - I lived I loved and I was

Every week as I browse through the local papers - I always stop and read the obituaries section. Call it morbid, I find I the most interesting of the news fit to print.

The world is made up of so many interesting “ordinary” people. The obituary is a condensed peek into the life of one specific individual. It highlights those achievements that the person presumably wanted to be remembered for. Sheldon K. Friedlander, a smog scientist who discovered a system of analyzing the chemical make up of smog so that other scientists can trace pollutants in the air. Evelyn Smith Munro, an activist who fought for sharecroppers' rights in one of the first racially integrated labor unions and Aubrey “Tex” Bouck the French Horn player who played for the greats like Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.

Obviously, the unfortunate part is that these people are dead and many of their stories and achievements have died with them. The obituary is their last statement, which says "I lived, I loved, and I was" - I was part of the human experience and I was a tread in this rich tapestry called existence.

I sometimes walk home rather than take the train (+/- 65 blocks). I pass thousands of people each of those individuals have interesting lives, wonderful stories and fascinating experiences – A treasure trove of humanity only to be unlocked and shared with those close to them or acquaintances when required.

A couple of years ago, my wife spent a month back at home with her family. She took a minidisk recorder and interviewed her 73 year old grandmother. For four days the CD’s burned countless stories all while her grandmother cooked. The result is a priceless library of the history of ones life, intertwined with a narrative of all of the family recipes. These moments are now captured and can be shared with generations to come.

It is taking a moment to know the living – I would encourage anyone to do this.