John Merchant was more than a man of great competence; he was also a man of great character. That second quality is something for which he’ll long be remembered.
It’s that quality of character that so often distinguishes people like Geraldine Johnson, Sam Hawley and Len Mainiero. In Bridgeport, their successors are few and far between.
I’m sorry to hear about the passing of John. Lennie, great interview with some important history of Bridgeport. Most readers of OIB know very little of what you wrote Lennie and it really wasn’t that long ago. When you read about the fight to push open doors for blacks back in the late 1960’s forward John and a small number of other black men it’s sad to see that Bridgeport hasn’t moved that much further for blacks having power and getting hired, Bridgeport is a “City Up South,” like somewhere in Mississippi in the 1960’s. Race still matter and I paste a number of things that are above in Lennie’s interview that are truly important, thanks John:
It was the summer of 1965. Hot summer days scorching America’s cities got even hotter as the civil rights movement tested the racial assimilation of the country. Hawley, People’s chief executive officer, wanted to do his part to avoid “burn baby burn” in Bridgeport, a city that had not experienced mass rioting.
Fearing rumors of an impending riot in the city, Hawley placed a phone call to a young lawyer John Merchant, a man he had met through their involvement with Bridgeport’s anti-poverty agency, Action for Bridgeport Community Development which had strong ties with inner-city neighborhoods. Hawley asked Merchant to investigate the validity of the rumors and call him back.
Merchant explained: “I waited 15 minutes and called him back. I said it’s only a rumor.” But while he had the bank president on the phone, Merchant had a couple of things to add. “One is we really did not make a habit of announcing our riots in the past,” he told Hawley. “And secondly, I really don’t think that it’s a good idea for you to call me about these issues unless you are going to talk to me the other ten months of the year.”
Hawley responded quickly, “You’re right. What shall we do about it?”
What they did helped the bank to open relationships that reflected the ethnic and racial value of the city. For the first time, Bridgeport area corporate leaders sat around a table with black community leaders totally unknown to them. They discussed racial tensions, minority hiring, labor issues, housing loans and developing bonds that worked for both sides. Merchant, a retired Naval officer, coined the group the 1800 Club, named for the group’s meeting time, 6 p.m.
Q: So, did you say to yourself that we have to start getting blacks assimilated into government and politics in the city?
A: It was something that I thought about. I remember and I still believe that there are only two kinds of power in this country. There are only two kinds of power period. One is the power of control. The other is the power of influence. Very few people ever achieve the power of control except in very narrow ways. And if you don’t have some power of influence you really are not in the loop and what struck me was that the minority community in Bridgeport really did not appear to have serious power to influence in either the political system or the business system. And those are the two major communities, politics and business, after all is said and done. Everything else is small. That’s where the decisions are made and I remember being struck by the fact that we did not have that power to influence in Bridgeport in any meaningful way.
I’m proud to have known him. Bombay away!
When I was a bagman for the Fairfield DTC back in the 80s, John would always help us out!.
RIP John.
John
He was a great person. He mentioned many young men and women. I remember he signed his book he published he will be truly missed
Lord knows there should be more people in Bridgeport with the mindset of John Merchant.
The city would be in a much better place.
May he rest in peace, he earned it.
John Merchant was more than a man of great competence; he was also a man of great character. That second quality is something for which he’ll long be remembered.
It’s that quality of character that so often distinguishes people like Geraldine Johnson, Sam Hawley and Len Mainiero. In Bridgeport, their successors are few and far between.
I’m sorry to hear about the passing of John. Lennie, great interview with some important history of Bridgeport. Most readers of OIB know very little of what you wrote Lennie and it really wasn’t that long ago. When you read about the fight to push open doors for blacks back in the late 1960’s forward John and a small number of other black men it’s sad to see that Bridgeport hasn’t moved that much further for blacks having power and getting hired, Bridgeport is a “City Up South,” like somewhere in Mississippi in the 1960’s. Race still matter and I paste a number of things that are above in Lennie’s interview that are truly important, thanks John:
It was the summer of 1965. Hot summer days scorching America’s cities got even hotter as the civil rights movement tested the racial assimilation of the country. Hawley, People’s chief executive officer, wanted to do his part to avoid “burn baby burn” in Bridgeport, a city that had not experienced mass rioting.
Fearing rumors of an impending riot in the city, Hawley placed a phone call to a young lawyer John Merchant, a man he had met through their involvement with Bridgeport’s anti-poverty agency, Action for Bridgeport Community Development which had strong ties with inner-city neighborhoods. Hawley asked Merchant to investigate the validity of the rumors and call him back.
Merchant explained: “I waited 15 minutes and called him back. I said it’s only a rumor.” But while he had the bank president on the phone, Merchant had a couple of things to add. “One is we really did not make a habit of announcing our riots in the past,” he told Hawley. “And secondly, I really don’t think that it’s a good idea for you to call me about these issues unless you are going to talk to me the other ten months of the year.”
Hawley responded quickly, “You’re right. What shall we do about it?”
What they did helped the bank to open relationships that reflected the ethnic and racial value of the city. For the first time, Bridgeport area corporate leaders sat around a table with black community leaders totally unknown to them. They discussed racial tensions, minority hiring, labor issues, housing loans and developing bonds that worked for both sides. Merchant, a retired Naval officer, coined the group the 1800 Club, named for the group’s meeting time, 6 p.m.
Q: So, did you say to yourself that we have to start getting blacks assimilated into government and politics in the city?
A: It was something that I thought about. I remember and I still believe that there are only two kinds of power in this country. There are only two kinds of power period. One is the power of control. The other is the power of influence. Very few people ever achieve the power of control except in very narrow ways. And if you don’t have some power of influence you really are not in the loop and what struck me was that the minority community in Bridgeport really did not appear to have serious power to influence in either the political system or the business system. And those are the two major communities, politics and business, after all is said and done. Everything else is small. That’s where the decisions are made and I remember being struck by the fact that we did not have that power to influence in Bridgeport in any meaningful way.
Can anyone name the current president of People’s?