File this News 12 the Bronx story under the category of ‘the Bronx recognizing its own’. Benjy Melendez, an insiprational figure from the former Ghetto Brothers gang who worked in the 60’s and 70’s to unify rather than destroy, was memorialized earlier this week in a mural created by Tats Cru and assisted by Noah Sheroff, founder of 501(c) Street Art, and Jeff Fox of Foxy management.
Located on a wall near St. Mary’s Playground, the mural pays homage to a man who provided leadership in establishing Puerto Rican identity and a much more agreeable alternative to how modern-day Bronxites view gangs.
Melendez died in May, 2017 at the age of 65. You can read about his Bronx legacy of “peace and hope” in The New York Times.
