United States, Georgia, Atlanta Metropolitan Area, 33.8498, 84.4383United States, Georgia, Fulton County, Atlanta, Buttermilk Bottoms, 33.748995, -84.387982United States, Georgia, Washington County, Sandersville, 32.98154, -82.81014United States, Missouri, Jasper County, Joplin, 37.08423, -94.51328Hudson, John Davis, 1927-2009Merritt, Carole2006-05-10In this interview John Davis (J.D.) Hudson primarily discusses his experiences as one the first black police officers in Atlanta, Georgia, and his subsequent appointment as head of the city’s Department of Prisons and Farms. He explains how initially black officers were restricted to only patrol black neighborhoods and they could not arrest white individuals for any crime. Hudson addresses the resistance he endured on part of the black and white community to his authority as a police officer and department head. He ends the interview by recalling the importance of the shift of mayoral administrations from Sam Massell to Maynard Jackson; discussing the devastating effects that integration had on the city of Atlanta and the black business community; and addressing his view of the power of success for the younger generation.John Davis Hudson was born in Sandersonville, Georgia, and grew up in the Buttermilk Bottoms area of Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Clark Atlanta University with a degree in social sciences and religion, and later earned a law degree from John Marshall Law School in Atlanta, Georgia.video/mp4VIS 180.017.001engKenan Research Center, Atlanta History Center, 130 West Paces Ferry RD, Atlanta, GA 30305http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/MSS 990, Voices Across the Color Line oral history transcriptions, Kenan Research Center, Atlanta History CenterAfrican Americans--HistoryAfrican Americans--Civil rightsRacismRace relations--Georgia--AtlantaRace relationsRace discriminationReligionPoliticians--Georgia--AtlantaPolitics & government--Georgia--AtlantaPolitics & government--GeorgiaPolice--Georgia--AtlantaPolice brutality--Georgia--AtlantaKu Klux Klan (19th cent.)Clark University (Atlanta, Ga.)Howard Elementary SchoolBooker T. Washington High School (Atlanta, Ga.)Butler Street YMCA (Atlanta, Ga.)Butler Street Baptist Church (Atlanta, Ga.)Atlanta University Center (Ga.)John Davis Hudson interviewMovingImage