African Americans -- New York (State) -- New York; Riots -- New York (State) -- New York
I reside at No. 309 West 37th Street. On August 15th, 1900, I was
working for a man named Mr. O'Connor, who keeps a saloon at Coney
Island. I quit work at one o'clock A. M. the next day (August
16th), and started for home with a man named Wilson. We boarded an 8th
Avenue car at Warren Street and Broadway, which was going north; just
before we reached the street whereon I reside the conductor of the car
upon which we were riding told us that there had been a riot, that it
was because of the death of the police officer, and that they were
attacking every colored man that they caught. I then said that we had
better get off; the conductor then said that it was "pretty quiet" when
he came down. We got off the car at 8th Avenue and 37th Street, and at
3:30 A. M. had almost reached the front door of my home when
several police officers from among a group of about a dozen called to
me asking me where I was going. I told them, "Home here." I was then
in front of my door, and immediately after making my reply an officer
hit me with his club, knocking me down. I struggled to my feet and
endeavored to run towards 8th Avenue, but was pursued by the officers
and knocked down again at the corner of 8th Avenue and 36th Street. It
was raining very hard at the time, and they threw me into the gutter,
which was full of rain water; they kept my head in the water until I
strangled, when they let up, jumped on me, and pushed me back again
into the gutter. After a while they called a patrol wagon, into which
they threw me, and beat me all the way to the station house in 37th
Street. Upon my arrival there my head had been cut open; I was covered
with blood and bruises from the beating and clubbing I had received.
While in the station house I told Captain Cooney that I had been
clubbed by policemen. I remained in the station house for about half
an hour, and while there I heard a man who was dressed in citizen's
clothes say to the officers present, "Club every d----d nigger you see;
kill them; shoot them; be brave, the same as I was." The man answered,
"All right; will you stick to us?" He answered, "Yes, I'll stand by
you." I heard this man called Thompson by some of the officers. He
went among the colored men who were present and who were in almost as
bad condition as I was, asking their names, where they had lived, and
what they had been doing. After receiving their answers he said to each
of them, "Get ter h--l home out of here; they'd ought ter have killed
yer!" When he came to me he said, "What's your name?" I told him; then
he said, "What were you doing?" I said, "I just come from work at Coney
Island." He exclaimed, "Coney Island, eh! That's a d----d nice place to
be working. Where do you live?" I told him, when he said, "Another nice
place right in my district, the worst block in the whole district." He
did not tell me to get out, but I was shortly after taken to Roosevelt
Hospital and from there to Bellevue Hospital, where I remained a week,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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