BP MARKOWITZ TO HONOR BROOKLYN’S FIRST ELECTED HISPANIC JUDGE AT HISPANIC HERITAGE CELEBRATION

Portrait of State Supreme Court Justice Gilbert Ramirez to be unveiled and added to Borough Hall permanent collection.

6:00 P.M.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5
BROOKLYN BOROUGH HALL COURTROOM
209 JORALEMON STREET
BETWEEN COURT & ADAMS STREETS
DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN

On Thursday, October 5, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz will host Borough Hall’s annual Hispanic Heritage Month celebration and unveil a portrait of the Honorable Gilbert Ramirez, Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York County of Kings.

While holding a full time job, Justice Ramirez, a native of Puerto Rico, overcame racial prejudice and blindness to earn his law degree from Brooklyn Law School, and in 1965 he became Brooklyn’s first Puerto Rican representative to the State Assembly. Ten years later Justice Ramirez became the first Puerto Rican elected as Justice of the Supreme Court, Kings County, where he served with distinction until retiring in 1997. In addition to his stellar legal career, Justice Ramirez was also a vocal and active member of the Williamsburg and Bushwick communities serving on the Board of Directors of the Bedford-Stuyvesant Beautification Association and the Brooklyn Council of Boy Scouts. Justice Ramirez passed away in December of 2000 at the age of 76.

The portrait of Justice Ramirez was commissioned by the Brooklyn Bar Association and painted by artist and Brooklyn resident Cathy Diamond. It will be the first portrait of a Hispanic person to be installed in Borough Hall’s permanent collection, joining Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, Justice Beatrice M. Judge, and Justice Oliver Williams all of whom were added during Borough President Markowitz’s term.

In addition to the tribute to the life of Justice Ramirez, the evening will be a celebration of the many faces of Brooklyn’s Hispanic community, featuring art, music, and food representative of many nations. One out of every five Brooklynites can trace their roots to a Spanish-speaking country, and Borough President Markowitz is proud to celebrate the contributions of this vibrant community.