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[Last name, First name], Oral history interview conducted by [Interviewer’s First name Last name], [Month DD, YYYY], [Title of Collection], [Call #]; Brooklyn Historical Society.

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William Thompson

Oral history interview conducted by Sady Sullivan

May 05, 2008

Call number: 2008.030.46

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0:17 - His intro, bio; connection to the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation (BSRC)

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0:46 - Recounting the founders & original meeting that founded BSRC; its non-partisan mission

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2:35 - Jobs training, youth employment & neighborhood revitalization, home renovation programs

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4:41 - Reasons for BSRC's longevity, high quality & success

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5:47 - His personal interest in the founding of BSRC

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6:50 - Increases in property values; rent hikes; gentrification, racial mixing, displacement

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9:43 - His current association with Bed-Stuy and Brooklyn; conclusion

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Interview Description

Oral History Interview with William C. Thompson, Sr.

Honorable William C. Thompson, Sr., born 1924 in New York City, was among the founding members of Restoration. He was the first African American New York State Senator, and served as a Justice of the New York State Supreme Court.

In this interview, Honorable William C. Thompson, Sr., discusses the founding and earliest days of Restoration. He recalls his colleagues Franklin Thomas and Robert F. Kennedy. Justice Thompson evaluates the difference between Restoration and other community organizations (namely, that Restoration did not operate under the aegis of the Office of Economic Opportunity). He recounts Restoration's efforts in job creation and describes changes occurring in Brooklyn and the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, circa 2008. At the interview's end, Thompson reminisces about his early life and the Brooklyn neighborhoods he has called home, including Brooklyn Heights. Interview conducted by Sady Sullivan.

Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) and Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation (Restoration) partnered on the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral history project in 2007-2008 to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of Restoration's founding as the first community development corporation (CDC) in the United States. Nearly sixty interviews were conducted with founding Board members, supporters, activists, artists, tenants, and other community members. Audio clips from these oral history interviews were included in the exhibit "Reflections on Community Development: Stories from Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation" (BHS 2008, Restoration 2009).

Citation

Thompson, William, Oral history interview conducted by Sady Sullivan, May 05, 2008, Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral histories, 2008.030.46; Brooklyn Historical Society.

People

  • Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation
  • Bedford-Stuyvesant Youth in Action
  • Javits, Jacob K. (Jacob Koppel), 1904-1986
  • Kennedy, Robert F., 1925-1968
  • Thomas, Franklin A.
  • Thompson, William C., Sr., Hon.

Topics

  • Community development corporations
  • Economic development
  • Gentrification

Places

  • Bedford-Stuyvesant (New York, N.Y.)
  • Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.)
  • Manhattan (New York, N.Y.)

Finding Aid

Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral histories