Archives Visit

Today my classmates and I, had the opportunity to visit the archive here at LaGuardia College. Tara and the archive’s staff at the school welcomed us; she was very kind to us and was able to explain to us what an archive is for which she said is a place where they collect and maintain primary sources.  We talked about Mayor Wagner, and she presented us a very important speech made by Mayor Wagner in 1964 in the aftermath of the Harlem riot.

             First of all, we were taught that before you try to examine a text, always try to see if the context of the text is reliable. We both went through to the speech and found the main point of the speech. In the speech we learned that Mayor Wagner had to cut his trip from Europe, for a world conference because of the chaos or violence that happened in Harlem on July 1964. When he got back, his acting mayor Paul Screvane briefed him about the violence. But since he knew that he couldn’t just judge the violence by words, he decided to take a tour in Harlem and inspect the violence by himself. However, when he started to tour Harlem he couldn’t find as much evidence as he thought he would get. But that did not stop him from arguing, “law and order was Negros best friend”, which I believe that comment should been told to the police department who was attacking black people in Harlem not to the people who were trying to express themselves.

             On the other hand he said the police are under legal mandate and obligation to protect, with all the force that is necessary and justify. The police where not justify here; they were killing innocent people and beating them up because of they race. Mayor Wagner’s comment meant that he gave the police more power to brutalize the people of Harlem, which was not the best idea for the community in Harlem.