Jacob Morris

Jacob Morris (born 1947) is a New York City activist and local historian responsible for many street renamings. He is the head of the Harlem Historical Society and the New York Freedom Trail, an organization which seeks to establish an official government tour of sites connected to the fight against slavery. Historical activism Since 2006, Morris has worked diligently to rename and co-name streets after accomplished Black New Yorkers, including Paul Robeson, Ella Baker, Thurgood Marshall, Ida B. Wells, W.E.B. DuBois, Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Frederick Douglass, Susan Smith McKinney, Zora Neale Hurston, A'Lelia Walker, and James Brown. He told the New York Daily News, "Basically, you know, blacks have been living on streets named after famous white persons for 400 years, maybe a little more. So, you know, why not have white people live on streets named after famous black people who did so much to contribute to American history?" The New York Times wrote that he showed "nonstop zeal" to advance these projects through the local system of community boards. Many of naming efforts have been related to Black women. He also claimed to have a sense of urgency given gentrification in black neighborhoods such as Harlem.