Award-winning author/playwright Calvin Alexander Ramsey will serve as host and guest lecturer at the First Annual Appreciation Day honoring "The Negro Motorist Green Book" creators Victor and Alma Green on Sunday, November 18, 2018 at 3pm at the Morris Jumel Mansion (65 Jumel Terrace) in Washington Heights, New York City. The free, community event will include appearances by members of Victor and Alma's families and presentations from local elected officials. Refreshments will be provided by Trader Joe's and the National Writers Union. For more info, go to: www.morrisjumel.org or call: 678-760-9850.
Published between 1936-1967, the Green Book was a travel guide which provided information to black families on where it was safe for them to stop, buy gas, eat, and spend the night across the U.S. during Jim Crow. The book was sold by mail order and through black-owned businesses with an estimated 15,000 copies published per year. Victor Hugo Green was a New York postal worker who lived in Harlem. Along with his wife Alma, the couple provided an invaluable service to the black community, as during Jim Crow black travelers in America could not belong to AAA or any other lodging club, making "The Negro Motorist Green Book" a life saver in more ways than one.
Maryland-born, NY-based Ramsey is a recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major for Justice Award, the author of the acclaimed 2010 children's book "Ruth and the Green Book," and is currently working on a Green Book Chronicles documentary film. Copies of Ramsey's books will be available for purchase at the event. For more information on his upcoming projects, go to: http://calvinalexanderramseysr.com/ or email: playwright18@gmail.com
Built in 1765, Morris-Jumel Mansion is the oldest remaining residence in Manhattan and is located between Sylvan Terrace and West 162ND Street. Subway: "C" train to 163RD Street and Amsterdam Ave. For more information, call (212) 923-8008.
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