Repression

1975 · Best.-Nr. 47641 — New York: Workers' Committee Against Police Repression / El Obrero 1975. Very Good . New York: Workers' Committee Against Police Repression / El Obrero 1975. First Edition. Photo-illustrated poster printed offset on single sheet of newsprint 56x43cm. Text in English and Spanish. Possibly a newspaper insert. Toning throughout; faint dampstaining at margins. Creased due to previous folding. Very Good. Poster summoning protesters to a march and rally following the acquittal of the white police officer Frank Bosco who fatally shot Claude Reese in September 1974. On September 15th 1974 a fourteen-year-old Black boy was shot and killed by a white police officer in Brownsville Brooklyn. According to New York Times reporting the policeman was responding to a suspected burglary when he came upon Claude Reese and a few friends clearing a basement room for an upcoming birthday party. Bosco shot the boy in the head after mistaking the handsaw in Reese's hand for a gun. The shooting sparked instant outrage especially in the predominantly Black neighborhood where it took place. One week after the incident Bosco was stripped of his firearm and reassigned to a temporary clerical role but not suspended from the force. Four months later on December 17th a grand jury cleared Rosco of criminal negligence in Reese's death and restored the officer's normal duties. This result devastated the community organizers and advocates that assembled in the wake of Reese's death and presumably provoked the demonstration announced on this poster. The rally location a high school in Manhattan points to youth involvement and a city-wide awareness of the issue. Along with calling for justice for Claude Reese this poster also notes the unjust imprisonment of Rubin "Hurricane" Carter. At the time Carter was serving a wrongful prison sentence for a triple homicide that occurred in Paterson NJ in 1966. Carter entered prison in 1967 and spent eighteen years incarcerated before a habeas corpus petition successfully overturned his case. Carter's memoir written from prison was published on January 1st 1974 which called renewed attention to his case. As of April 2026 we locate no separately cataloged copies of this poster in OCLC. "Officer Who Killed Youth 14 Is Relieved of His Police Duties" New York Times accessed April 2026 "Officer Cleared in Youth's Death" New York Times accessed April 2026. Workers' Committee Against Police Repression / El Obrero unknown