George Martinez (activist)

George Martinez, (born March 11, 1974), also known as "George Rithm Martinez" and "Hon. George Martinez", is an American educator, community entrepreneur, and artist. He is a former adjunct professor of political science at Pace University and a cultural ambassador for the U.S. Department of State for the Western Hemisphere.[1] He was elected in 2002 as the district leader in the 51st Assembly District in Sunset Park, Brooklyn and a former Assistant Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Office of the New York State Attorney General. He is the first hip-hop artist elected to political office in New York.[2]

George Martinez
Born (1974-03-11) March 11, 1974
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
NationalityAmerican of Puerto Rican Descent
Alma materBrooklyn College, Borough of Manhattan Community College
Occupation(s)Nonprofit director, educator, advocate, artist, author, cultural ambassador, political scientist
Employer(s)Pace University, Global Block, Independent Consultant
AwardsUnion Square Award
Websitewww.organicglobalizer.com, globalblock.org

Martinez is the founder and director of the nonprofit organization, The Global Block Foundation. He is the co-author and editor of The Organic Globalizer: Hip Hop, Political Development and Movement Culture.[3]

Education

George graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1992. He is the first person in his immediate family to go to college receiving his A.A. in Liberal Arts from Borough of Manhattan Community in 1996 and his B.A. in Political Science (Magna Cum Laude) in 1998. He was the recipient of the competitive Robert L. Lindsay Memorial /MAGNET Doctoral Fellowship at the CUNY Graduate Center in the Political Science program.[4]

George began his teaching career as an adjunct lecturer at Hunter College of the City University of New York.[4] George is a former adjunct professor of political science at Pace University in New York, where he taught American Politics and a self-developed course, "The Politics of Hip Hop".[5]

Community engagement

Martinez is a long time social entrepreneur and grassroots organizer. In 1997, Martinez co-founded Blackout Arts Collective, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering communities of color through arts activism and education. In 2002, Blackout received the Union Square Award for Grass Roots Activism.[6]

Martinez served as the Chairman of the board of directors for the Hip Hop Association (H2A).[7] The Hip Hop Association received the Union Square Award for the Arts in 2007.[8]

In 2008, he was branded as an "Urban Hero" for his work with homeless children at Covenant House in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.[9]

In 2012, in the wake of super storm Sandy, George was identified as one of 3 "Hip Hop Luminaries" that donated their time and energy to the post-storm relief and Occupy Sandy fundraising efforts, along with Immortal Technique and Jasiri X.[5]

In 2013, Martinez was selected as a 40 Under 40 Rising Latino Stars of New York State by the Hispanic Coalition of NY, Inc.[2]

Hip Hop history

In 1995, Martinez discovered a young rapper named, What? What? who later became known as Jean Grae and recruited her for his experimental Hip Hop group, Ground Zero. In March 1996, Martinez (Rithm) appeared as the Unsigned Hype in The Source along with rapper, Jean Grae.[10][11]

In 2013, Martinez's song, "Occupation Freedom" (2011), was identified by the "Stream Community" on the Al Jazeera America network as one of the top 15 political/ social hip-hop songs ever. The list also included, "U.N.I.T.Y" by Queen Latifah, "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, and "Changes" by 2pac.[12]

References
  1. Massey, Daniel (November 13, 2011). "Occupy Wall Street Takes New Direction". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
  2. Miranda, Monica Arias. "For Love of the Community: 40 Rising Latino Leaderswork=Hispanic Coalition of New York, Inc".
  3. Organic Globalizer: Hip Hop, Political Development and Movement Culture
  4. Staff (Summer 2002). "From "Ground Zero" Rapper to City Council Candidate". CUNY Matters. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  5. Ashton, Jerry (November 12, 2012). "Hip Hoppers & Occupy – Are We the Music We Have Been Waiting For?". HuffingtonPost.com. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
  6. Pratters, Lou. "Hastings College to recognize Black History Month, Hon. George Martinez to speak". Hastings. Hastings College. Archived from the original on July 17, 2013. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  7. "Is Hip Hop History? Conference at CCNY, Feb. 19–20, 2010". Birthplace Magazine. Birthplace Magazine. February 17, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  8. Square, Union. "Award Winner 2007 – Hip Hop Association". Union Square Awards. Fund of the City of New York. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  9. Ochoa, Issis (January 13, 2009). "Artista estadounidense crea mural de esperanzas en Casa Alianza". Hondudiario.com. Archived from the original on July 20, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  10. Warren, Jamin. "INTERVIEWS: Jean Grae". pitchfork.com. pitchfork.com. Retrieved September 6, 2013.
  11. "DownWithTyranny!: Meet Brooklyn Democrat George Martinez and His Open-Source, Crowd-Sourced DIY Campaign".
  12. Team, Stream. "The Stream community's top 15 political/social hip-hop songs ever". Al Jazeera America – The Stream. Al Jazeera America. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
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