Uncrowned Community Builders

Gregory K. Brown, a community leader and activist, was born on December 2, 1948. He was the son of Cecil and Sylvia Consuela Brown. He was a well-known peace activist and environmentalist. A native of Buffalo, Mr. Brown graduated from Lafayette High School in 1966 and attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Mr. Brown's last employment prior to his illness was as housing director for 78 Restoration Corporation's Neighborhood Preservation Program. He had also been employed for over 10 years by the Langston Hughes Center as the Director of the Family Crisis Intervention Program. He was a child advocate who mediated with various school districts on behalf of minority children. Mr. Brown was known throughout Western New York for his uncompromising response to the needs of Buffalo's minority community.

He pioneered numerous programs that addressed human suffering and environmental contamination. Mr. Brown initiated the first community sponsored training program for asbestos removal and lead abatement. He served as Vice-president of the Toxic Waste Lupus Coalition. He was a member of the Stop the Violence Coalition; was a member of the Western New York Peace Center where he developed the African in the Americas Program which looked at issues related to African Americans and the Peace Movement. Mr. Brown was often a speaker at numerous community, social and political conferences and was a frequent contributor to the Challenger and Criterion community newspapers. He was known for written commentaries on social issues and was a renowned poet.