Black Is Beautiful 2023- Dr. Muriel Petioni

Dr Muriel Petioni was known as the "mother of medicine" in Harlem. Born in 1914 in Trinidad she migrated to the US with her family. Her father worked hard to bring his family to the US, attended school, and became a doctor. She followed in his footsteps becoming a practicing physician for over 40 years with a degree from Howard University. She worked at various hospitals throughout the south before returning to NYC to start her own private practice which involved caring for poor and working class families in Harlem. She saw patients and made house calls, often addressing the entire person's health, not just one ailment. She started the Friends of Harlem Hospital and helped to get 2 million dollars for it. She was on the board of the greater Harlem nursing home. She helped mentor others through the Dr Susan Smith McKenney Steward Medical Association. She was awarded by the Harlem Hospital Center, the NYC Coalition of 100 Black Women, CUNY, The Schomburg, and by her alma mater Howard. Dr Petioni passed away in 2011 at the age of 97. 

Sources: NAACP, Harlem Cultural Archives, NY Amsterdam News

Dig this? Check out this one about Dr Dorothy L. Brown or Alice Augusta Ball

Black is Beautiful (2017) 4- Dapper Dan

The first couple times I saw Dapper Dan's work I didn't even know it was his. In fact it wasn't until I saw the film "Fresh Dressed" By Sacha Jenkins that I realized I had been seeing it all along in hip hop culture. The first folks I saw rocking his work were Salt N' Pepa because my dad had the record (Push it 12") and Boogie Down Productions LP By Any Means Necessary. Dan is a fashion innovator and pioneer from Harlem New York, who in the early 80s began to custom tailor, cut, and sew his own pieces. We're talking about pants, bags, hats, jackets, cars even, and what he was doing was not unlike hip hop; he took fabric from established brands like Gucci or Louie Vuitton and cut them to his own style. He began to make clothing for hip hop cats of course, but the underground economists or hustlers out of NY, and once word got around people from all over began to come to his store, which was open 24 hours a day. I would love to see more documentary work done about his achievements, because back then these high class brands did not respect Black youth culture. So, he remixed it and created a self sustaining business. Salute the brother, he is still designing today. 

Sources: Fresh Dressed (documentary), Aol, DapperDanOfHarlem.com

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