Abraham Bolden
 Abraham Bolden     (policeman, whistleblower) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | January 19, 1935 |
| Alma mater | Lincoln University |
Secret Service agent convicted on bogus charges when he blew the whistle to the Warren Commission. | |
Abraham W. Bolden is an American former United States Secret Service agent - the first African-American Secret Service agent assigned to the Presidential Protective Division, appointed by John F. Kennedy in 1961. After contacting the Warren Commission with information that was being kept from it, Bolden was convicted on bogus charges in 1964 of accepting a bribe. Ultimately he was sentenced to six years in prison.
Early life
Bolden was born January 19, 1935 in East St. Louis, Illinois.[1] He attended Lincoln High School in East St. Louis, Illinois.[1] Bolden graduated cum laude from Lincoln University with a B.A. in music composition.[1] Afterwards, he became the first African-American detective with the Pinkerton National Detective Agency prior to becoming a highway patrolman with the Illinois State Police.[1]
Secret Service career
In October 1960, Bolden became a member of the United States Secret Service.[1] In June 1961, he was transferred from Chicago and given a temporary assignment on the White House detail guarding President John F. Kennedy.[2] With the assignment, part of the Secret Service practice of rotating newer agents onto the detail, Bolden became the first African American to guard the President.[2] He was also reported to have "won two commendations for cracking counterfeiting rings".[3] According to Jet magazine: "In 1962 he ranked second in the nation in solving" counterfeit and check forging cases.[4]
According to Bolden, he was assigned to the Secret Service's Presidential Protective Division after he met Kennedy on April 28, 1961, while working an event at the McCormick Place in Chicago,[5] and that Kennedy there personally invited him to join the White House detail as the first African-American assigned to protect the President.[5] Bolden said that at one time Kennedy introduced him to others as "the Jackie Robinson of the Secret Service", a comment Bolden found so touching he almost broke into tears.[5]
Event Witnessed
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| Truth And Reconciliation Committee on the Assassinations Of The 1960s | A call for a Truth And Reconciliation Committee |
References
- ↑ a b c d e https://web.archive.org/web/20140714185352/http://www.slpl.lib.mo.us/cco/ords/data/resolutions/res100306.htm
- ↑ a b https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0WcUAAAAIBAJ&pg=7348%2C1057127 |newspaper=Toledo Blade
- ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=iRMfAAAAIBAJ&pg=7359%2C27434
- ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=DcEDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA6
- ↑ a b c http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x1694332433/First-African-American-Secret-Service-agent-to-speak-in-Franklin
