In honor of Black History Month, Southwestern Michigan College’s Diversity Committee and the Dowagiac Area History Museum are planning a panel discussion for February 24 with local police leaders. SMC says “Looking Back and Forward: Historic and Modern Issues Facing African Americans in Law Enforcement” will take place at 3 p.m. on the Dowagiac campus in the theatre of the Dale A. Lyons Building. Panelists include Dennis Grady, the son of George Grady, Michigan’s first Black police chief, and his 1975 Dowagiac Union High School classmate Randy Pompey. Both completed careers with the Michigan State Police, for which Pompey was the first Black pilot. They’ll be joined by Eric Payne, a 1982 Dowagiac graduate who recently retired as Grand Rapids’ first Black police chief. The panel discussion will be free to attend.
