New York Police Department Guardians Oral History Collection, 2015-2016

Biographical Note

The New York Police Department Guardians Association was founded in 1943 and recognized by the NYPD as a fraternal organization in 1949. Over the years, it has served African American officers and civilian employees of the NYPD by developing community; providing education and mentorship; advocating within the department; and taking legal action to combat discrimination in hiring and promotion. In 1966, the Guardians endorsed the formation of the city's Civilian Complaint Review Board, a decision opposed by the police union, the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association of New York. The Guardians were also involved in litigation in the early 1980s regarding disparate outcomes by race for the NYPD's entrance and promotion examinations. The latter resulted in a 1985 settlement to establish quotas for promotions. The NYPD Guardians Association continues to provide advocacy and community for members.

Scope and Contents

The fourteen interviews of the NYPD Guardians oral history collection document the history of the fraternal organization and the experiences of members as police officers in New York City. The New York Police Department Guardians Association was founded in 1943 and recognized by the NYPD as a fraternal organization in 1949. Over the years it has served African American officers and civilian employees of the NYPD by developing community; providing education and mentorship; advocating within the department; and taking legal action to combat discrimination in hiring and promotion. The narrators discuss the impact of the Guardians on officers' careers, the group's advocacy against discrimination in the NYPD, and developments in police work from the 1960s-2010s. The fourteen interviews of the NYPD Guardians oral history collection document the history of the fraternal organization and the experiences of members as police officers in New York City. Topics include: the impact of the Guardians on officers' careers; the group's advocacy against discrimination in the NYPD; litigation in the 1980s regarding promotion exams; and activities of the Civilian Complaint Review Board, which at times saw the Guardians at odds with the NYPD Patrolmen's Benevolent Association. Narrators also discuss their daily work as officers and developments in policing from the 1960s-2010s. They reflect on police and community relations in New York during their youths and conversations about race and policing at the time of the project. Other organizations discussed are 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care and the Policewomen's Endowment Association. Narrators are Eric Adams, Reuben Bankhead, Charles Coleman, Caudieu Cook, Deatra Fuller, Lester H. Grissom, Leroy Hendricks, Edgar Jones, Patricia Martin, Gary Miller, Robert Nero, Alicia Parker, Joseph Richardson, Annette Spellen, and Graham Weatherspoon. Interviews are fixed as digital sound recordings (in WAV format), PDF transcripts, and print transcripts. Certain interviews were redacted. Redactions in the audio are marked by silence in the recording, lasting as long as the redacted portion. Redactions are also noted in the transcript. The archives did not receive unredacted versions of the interviews in question.

Subjects

• African American police--New York (State)--New York
• Black lives matter movement
• Community policing--New York (State)--New York
• Discrimination in law enforcement--New York (State)--New York
• Interviews
• NYPD Guardians Association
• New York (N.Y.). Police Department -- History
• Oral histories (literary works)
• Police-community relations--New York (State)--New York
• Police administration--New York (State)--New York
• Police misconduct--New York (State)--New York
• Policewomen--New York (State)--New York

Access Conditions

Copyright by the Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, 2015-2016.