BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY Alton C. Parker was a member of the Windsor Police Department for 28 years. He distinguished himself throughout his career. He became Canada's first African-Canadian detective in 1953. He received numerous awards in his lifetime, including the Order of Canada, the Ontario Bravery Medal for Good Citizenship and the Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal. Each year for 19 years Al and his wife Evelyn held a party for the neighbourhood children in this park that bears his name. They paid for the parties themselves. He did this because he loved children and believed he was blessed by God. This statue is dedicated to the memory of Alton C. Parker, a gallant, Christian, gentle man. By the Alton C. Parker Foundation."A lot of people talk about doing something for these kids. I don't just talk. I want to do it."Alton C. Parker He dedicated his life to protecting a city where he wasn’t allowed to rent an apartment.
Today marks the 70th anniversary of Alton C. Parker breaking the colour barrier to become Windsor’s first black police officer.
But seven decades after Parker overcame the odds in a city where black people weren’t allowed on golf courses or in many bars and restaurants, Windsor’s acting police chief said his force still has a long way to go. Al Frederick said the Windsor Police Service is stepping efforts to recruit minorities and become more diverse. The service has been reaching out to community leaders and will hold community recruitment meetings.
“Diversity is one of the keys to success, because diversity brings different perspectives,” said Frederick. “It’s not just about skin colour or race or religion. It’s about diversity of education, diversity of experiences. So all of those things, we want to attract people to our service so that we’re stronger, we’re more responsive and we’re a better police service.”
Photo Gallery: A collection of shots from the ceremony.
To mark the occasion, more than 100 officers and civilians gathered Friday at the park on Broadhead Street named in Parker’s honour. Many police, politicians and prominent black community members poke to the crowd, and Parker’s daughter, Freida Parker-Steele, received a key to the city. Frederick also gave her an original 1940′s police badge like the one her dad would have worn.
Parker, who died in 1989 at age 81, was remembered during the often emotional ceremony as a man of God and a man of justice.
Const. Mike Akpata said Parker was so dedicated to fairness and righteousness he once visited the home of a man he’d arrested, to make sure the suspect was getting a good lawyer.
He was born, lived, raised a family and died all in a half-mile radius. But he left a mark across Canada.
“It speaks to the people who live in this area that he didn’t move away,” said Akpata, who spent six weeks organizing the ceremony. “He was grounded to his community. He knew his roots. He knew he owed something to the community. He was a man who understood that citizenship doesn’t give you rights, it gives you responsibilities. And he fulfilled his responsibility to a tee.”
Parker served 28 years on the police force. In 1951, a promotion also made him the first black police detective in Canada.
It was a tumultuous time filled with racial strife. It was rare to see a black person in a position of authority. In 1942, six people were lynched in Alabama. Detroit saw a deadly race riot in 1943. In Windsor, said former MP Howard McCurdy, black people weren’t allowed in most restaurants and couldn’t rent apartments.
“Wouldn’t have been allowed in bars, wouldn’t have been allowed on the golf courses, wouldn’t have been allowed on Boblo Island,” said McCurdy. “Wouldn’t have been allowed on beaches in the area.”
McCurdy said it’s important to honour Parker for the enduring contributions he made in helping shatter those barriers.
“It’s important for any community to honour those who have made the kind contributions that Alton Parker did,” said McCurdy. “It draws a picture of the history of this community and the progress that it’s made, and the struggles through which it had to go to make that progress.”
Akpata said it’s important to remember Parker not just because he was Windsor’s first black officer, but because he was a shining example that all police should aspire to.
“I take the flash that I wear very seriously,” said Akpata. “There’s a love of integrity that goes along with being a police officer. Everyone else that has worn that flash, I owe something to. When I find one that is good, beyond good, it is my responsibility to sing his song so that people know this is what their police department is about.”
But to his family, Parker was more than a trailblazing police officer.
“So many here remember him as a police officer, and he had a passion for policing,” said granddaughter Cherie Steele-Sexton. “He felt that it was an honour to serve. But he was our grandfather. Our parents divorced when we were young kids and he just stepped in … We never had to ask him. He just always knew what to do for us.”
City's first black cop honoured
Alton C. Parker joined force 70 years ago
Trevor Wilhelm, The Windsor Star
Published: Saturday, September 01, 2012
He dedicated his life to protecting a city where he wasn't allowed to rent an apartment.
Today marks the 70th anniversary of Alton C. Parker breaking the colour barrier to become Windsor's first black police officer.
But seven decades after Parker overcame the odds in a city where black people weren't allowed on golf courses or in many bars and restaurants, Windsor's acting police chief said his force still has a long way to go. Al Frederick said the Windsor Police Service is stepping up efforts to recruits minorities and become more diverse. The service has been reaching out to community leaders and will hold community recruitment meetings.
View Larger ImageMayor Eddie Francis, left, and Coun. Ron Jones present Freida Parker-Steele with a street sign during a service to commemorate the hiring of her father, Alton Parker, at Alton C. Parker Park in Windsor on Friday. Parker was the first black police officer in Windsor and was hired 70 years ago.
"Diversity is one of the keys to success, because diversity brings different perspectives," said Frederick. "It's not just about skin colour or race or religion. It's about diversity of education, diversity of experiences. So all of those things, we want to attract people to our service so that we're stronger, we're more responsive and we're a better police service."
To mark the occasion, more than 100 officers and civilians gathered Friday at the park on Broadhead Street named in Parker's honour. Many police, politicians and prominent black community members spoke. Parker's daughter, Freida Parker-Steele, received a key to the city. Frederick also gave her an original 1940s police badge like the one her dad would have worn.
Parker, who died in 1989 at age 81, was remembered during the often emotional ceremony as a man of God and a man of justice.
Const. Mike Akpata said Parker was so dedicated to fairness and righteousness he once visited the home of a man he'd arrested, to make sure the suspect was getting a good lawyer.
Parker was born, lived, raised a family and died all in a half-mile radius. But he left a mark across Canada.
"He was grounded to his community, said Akpata, who spent six weeks organizing the ceremony. "He knew his roots. He was a man who understood that citizenship doesn't give you rights, it gives you responsibilities. And he fulfilled his responsibility to a tee."
Parker served 28 years on the police force. In 1951, a promotion made him the first black police detective in Canada.
It was an era filled with racial strife. It was rare to see a black person in a position of authority. In 1942, six people were lynched in Alabama. Detroit saw a deadly race riot in 1943. In Windsor, said former MP Howard McCurdy, black people weren't allowed in most restaurants and couldn't rent apartments.
"Wouldn't have been allowed in bars, wouldn't have been allowed on the golf courses, wouldn't have been allowed on Boblo Island," said McCurdy. "Wouldn't have been allowed on beaches in the area."
McCurdy said it's important to honour Parker for the enduring contributions he made in helping shatter those barriers.
"It's important for any community to honour those who have made the kind of contributions that Alton Parker did," said McCurdy. "It draws a picture of the history of this community and the progress that it made, and the struggles through which it had to go."
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