and thanking a true civil rights pioneer and a legendary public servant and a great new yorker, percy sutton applause ] >> well, sutton, a civil rights activist, a lawyer and once the highest ranking black elected official in new york city died the day after christmas. he was 89 years old. his memorial service is wednesday at riverside church in manhattan. the president also releasing a statement about percy sutton, mourning his death as well. >>> new year's eve may have been the last hoorah for an iconic new york city restaurant. everyone heard of tavern on the green. it has gone dark. i was saddened by the news. well wishers are gathering to toast the eatery. i stopped by if i could get one last meal there. what a party on new year's eve at the world famous tavern on the green. and just hours later, it is friday, 12:30, just after noon, tavern on the green. let's see if we can have some lunch here. not happening. the american icon off new york's central park is no more. not open. the end of an era. americans have been in love with tavern since it opened in the 1930s. >> the last time i fou

and thanking a true civil rights pioneer, and a legendary public servant and a great new yorker percy sutton >> sutton, a civil rights activist, a lawyer, and once the highest ranking black elected official in new york city, died the day after christmas. he was 89. his memorial service is wednesday at riverside church in manhattan and he will certainly be missed. >>> a schoolyard pact still holds water two decades after the fact. back in 1990, a class of washington state third graders maim a promise to their teachers and yesterday they held up their end of the deal. a reunion promise was fulfilled. >> you know i really didn't know exactly what to expect. >> reporter: the pledge was simple, meet at the armen jar elementary flagpole at noon. 20 third graders and one forward thinking teacher who has been waiting 20 years for this day. >> oh, my gosh. >> reporter: nine minutes until noon and the students start flooding in. and so do the memories. >> hi, sweetie. >> this one is actually just a bigger version of what she was. >> reporter: retired third grade teacher richard lewis remembers just ab

borough president and entrepreneur, media mogul civil-rights lawyer, and world war two fighter pilot percy sutton he was a friend and mentor to me, but one who was held in high esteem all around this state and country. but nearly half a century ago, when no one else was talking about, he was a lone voice advocating for the power of economic opportunity as the key to advancement. new york state's economic development program has to make sure that it covers -- that covers all corners of our boundaries. and it is known historically that women and minority-owned businesses have not had the opportunities or resources from the state to flourish. but i was wondering if you knew how bad it actually was? when i was a candidate for office in 2006, i read a department of economic development report that noted that at that time, women and minority businesses in the areas of state procurement or receiving only 5% in total of the contracts. to be specific, women who are 51.8% of the population and 29.2% of the firms approved in advance got to 0.64% of the contracts. -- 2.64% of the accontracts. hispanic americ

president and entrepreneur, media mogul civil- rights lawyer, and world war two fighter pilot percy sutton. he was a friend and mentor to me, but one who was held in high esteem all around this state and country. but nearly half a century ago, when no one else was talking about, he was a lone voice advocating for the power of economic opportunity as the key to advancement. new york state's economic development program has to make sure that it covers -- that covers all corners of our boundaries. and it is known historically that women and minority-owned businesses have not had the opportunities or resources from the state to flourish. but i was wondering if you knew how bad it actually was? when i was a candidate for office in 2006, i read a department of economic development report that noted that at that time, women and minority businesses in the areas of state procurement or receiving only 5% in total of the contracts. to be specific, women who are 51.8% of the population and 29.2% of the firms approved in advance got to 0.64% of the contracts. -- got to 0.64% of the contracts. hispanic

borough president entrepreneur, media mogul, civil rights lawyer and world war ii fighter pilot percy sutton he was a friend and mentor to me but one who was held in high esteem all around this state and this country. but nearly a half century ago, when no one else was talking about it, he was a lone voice that advocated for the power of economic opportunity as the key to advancement. new york state's economic development program has to make sure that it covers all corners of our boundaries. and it is known historically that women and minority-owned businesses have not had the opportunities or the resources from the state to flourish. but i was wondering if you knew how bad it actually was. when i was a candidate for state-wide office in 2006, i read a department of economic development report that noted that at that time, women and minority businesses in the areas of state procurement were receiving only 5% in total of the contracts. to be specific, women who are 51.8% of the population and were 29.2% of the firms that were approved in advance got 2.64% of the contracts. but it gets worse.