To commemorate the 17th anniversary of when Brooklyn warrior Sonny Abubadika Carson joined the ancestral realm, some of his comrades reflect on his life. After a prolonged stay at the Manhattan VA Medical Center (423 E. 23rd St.), he transitioned on Dec. 20, 2002 at 73 years-young.
“Nothing has really changed for Black folks in general because we’re still not in control of our destiny, rather than getting up and doing for self,” notes Ali Lamont Jr., CEO of Carson’s Committee To Honor Black Heroes. He added how much more different he thinks Black inner-city societies would be if the current generation had learned something from Carson’s fearless efforts and acted on it.
Backing down overly aggressive cops, closing down drug dens and exploiting greedy community leaders and politicians; are only a handful of his progressive acts many Brooklynites benefited from. Some activists contend that the street education of Sonny Carson serves as a blueprint for Black Power for many residents in the People’s Republic of Brooklyn, as well as other urban environments.
“Abubadika, like Marcus Garvey and Malcolm X, was another one of Africa’s soldier saviors,” contends Carson’s comrade, Brother Tarik Haskins. “He fought to save the African race, via teaching us to re-humanize and re-Africanize ourselves. He taught us that we were Africans, and not negroes. That we were intelligent and courageous, and that we were human beings––the most valuable entities in the world.”
The former Tomahawk gang member continued his studies since the days of his youth and eventually took on the name “Mwlina Imari Abubadika” to reflect his African consciousness. The man who pushed the Bed Stuy-based School of Hard Knocks, noted Malcolm X among his many influences, having witnessed him speak live in-person on numerous occasions during the early 1960s.
Atiim Ferguson, vice-chair of the Committee To Honor Black Heroes, mentioned how Sonny “looked out for [Malcolm’s widow] Betty [Shabazz] after Malcolm was assassinated.” Then added: “A.B. is surely missed. He loved his community, he gave his life for it and that’s the biggest tribute you can give to him, because the struggle continues, and he continued to struggle as long as he lived on this planet. One thing that was very important to him were the youths and his family. There’s only one A.B. We still got a lot of work to do with our youths.”