Louis Gigante
Encyclopedia
Luis Gigante is a retired Catholic priest, former Bronx city council member, the founder of the influential South East Bronx Community Organization (SEBCO), a Bronx community activist, and brother and alleged criminal associate of two legendary figures in the Genovese crime family
, family boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante and top capo/acting boss Mario Gigante
.
reform in the late 1960s. In the fall of 1968, he founded the South East Bronx Community Organization (SEBCO) with funds from the federal Section 8 housing
program, through which tenants pay 30 percent of their income in rent and the federal government pays the difference, which was generally considered to be one of the organizations most responsible for the economic and civic rehabilitation of the depressed South Bronx area. By 1981, Father Gigante had orchestrated the construction and rehabilitation of 1,100 federally subsidized apartments in the Hunts Point section of the South Bronx. Father Gigante himself has claimed credit the rejuvenation of the Bronx, saying "I brought the neighborhood up from ashes to help the people in the South Bronx. There isn't one other organization that can take credit."
Genovese crime family
The Genovese crime family , is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The Genovese crime family has been nicknamed the "Ivy League" and "Rolls Royce" of organized crime...
, family boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante and top capo/acting boss Mario Gigante
Mario Gigante
Mario Gigante is a New York City mobster who served as caporegime for the Genovese crime family...
.
Career as a Bronx Community Activist
As a Catholic priest at St. Athanasius Church in the South Bronx, Father Louis Gigante was one of the leading proponents of tenant rightsTenant rights
Tenant rights can either refer to the rights tenants enjoy by law, or to the movement to acquire such rights. Tenant rights generally seek to protect renters from landlord neglect and unfair eviction, as well as secure fair, affordable housing....
reform in the late 1960s. In the fall of 1968, he founded the South East Bronx Community Organization (SEBCO) with funds from the federal Section 8 housing
Section 8 (housing)
Section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 , as repeatedly amended, authorizes the payment of rental housing assistance to private landlords on behalf of approximately 3.1 million low-income households...
program, through which tenants pay 30 percent of their income in rent and the federal government pays the difference, which was generally considered to be one of the organizations most responsible for the economic and civic rehabilitation of the depressed South Bronx area. By 1981, Father Gigante had orchestrated the construction and rehabilitation of 1,100 federally subsidized apartments in the Hunts Point section of the South Bronx. Father Gigante himself has claimed credit the rejuvenation of the Bronx, saying "I brought the neighborhood up from ashes to help the people in the South Bronx. There isn't one other organization that can take credit."
Further reading
Jonnes, Jill. South Bronx Rising: The Rise, Fall, and Resurrection of an American City. New York: Fordham University Press, 2002. ISBN 978-0823221998.External links
- "Murphy's Flaw" City Limits Magazine, February 1997.