Arthur Eve
Eve was an observer and negotiator during the 1971 Attica Prison riot and the first official to enter the facility to hear the demands of the inmates.
An advocate for liberal causes such as economic development, education, job training and development, social services, crime prevention and parole reform, day care and housing, Eve was also a leader in the movement to legislate Harriet Tubman Day as a New York State holiday.
[7] After studies at West Virginia State College he arrived in Buffalo in February 1953 as a product of the segregated south, with less than $10 ($110 today) in his pocket.
[9] By 1958, he was blossoming as an independent activist within the party, pursuing minority rights, and was the only ward leader who was not part of the political establishment.
[9] Eve and Constance Bowles (born July 14, 1932), also an alumnus of West Virginia State College,[4] were married in June 1956.
[10][11] Eric, who was a White House aide under Bill Clinton,[12] ran Al Gore's New York State 2000 Democratic presidential primary campaign.
[16] Eve was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1966 following several years of service as an independent ward leader in Buffalo.
[18] During the Buffalo riot of 1967, Eve attempted to organize formal meetings in order to avert physical confrontations.
[4] The protests by supporters of Eve's effort caused Rockefeller to call for an eleven-month construction moratorium starting in March 1969.
Eve brokered discussions between Rockefeller and State Senator Basil Paterson, who represented the disgruntled Harlem community.
[22] During Eve's first term as an assemblyman, he led the effort to obtain an initial $500,000 ($4.6 million as of 2025) of funding to establish the State University of New York system's SEEK/Educational Opportunity Program.
[26] For example, in the months following the eight-hour November 4, 1970, seizure of the Auburn Correctional Facility, Eve was the only legislator named as a recipient of prisoner complaints.
Incoming Governor Hugh Carey was also interested in a geographic division of key positions in order to promote party unity.
[45] Griffin subsequently became the Conservative Party's nominee; third-placed primary finisher Foschio also threatened to enter the general election.
Griffin went on to win the general election by a ten percent margin over Eve, beating him and Republican candidate John J. Phelan out.
[4] Because of the lack of minority representation in either chamber of the New York State Legislature, as Deputy Speaker, Eve was the highest-ranking black legislator while in office.
[63] Even after Cuomo was succeeded by Pataki, Eve continued to voice opposition to any attempts to balance the state's budget by cutting taxes.
[64] In 1985, Eve sponsored legislation to provide scholarships for the underprivileged and to fund precollege enrichment programs that was described by President of the Associated Medical Schools of New York Dr. Robert Friedlander as landmark.
[65] In 1986, Eve was a contender to replace Stanley Fink as Speaker of the New York State Assembly, but the Black and Puerto Rican Caucus was not unified in its efforts to endorse a candidate.
[66] Most minority assembly members voted for Brooklyn's Mel Miller due to the influence of downstate party organizers.
[67] Eve was outspoken in his opposition to the status quo; in 1988, he opposed all three incumbents for the New York State Board of Regents.
[68] In June 1988, Eve spearheaded a group of 12 black state ticket committee members who protested the absence of a black candidate on the state ticket of Cuomo, Stan Lundine and Herman Badillo, by voting for another candidate, but he was not joined in protest by Manhattan leaders David Dinkins and Herman Farrell.
As a result, she campaigned on behalf of Eve's opponent Dorsey Glover;[70] Jenkins prevailed in her primary election.
[71] During the 1988 Democratic Party presidential primaries, Eve endorsed Jackson over Al Gore and Michael Dukakis.
[76] In 2000, Eve was challenged by Crystal Peoples-Stokes, a member of Grassroots and the majority leader of the Erie County Legislature.
[13] During the race, which was Eve's 18th and final New York State Assembly election campaign, Peoples depicted him as part of the antiquated old guard.
[77] In 2000, Eve proposed that Pataki declare March 10 as Harriet Tubman day, in honor of the African-American abolitionist who helped bring about the emancipation of many slaves.
[90][91] Eve noted that the vast majority of lottery tickets were bought by those in the lower income bracket,[92] and advocated for greater representation in the New York State jury pools by the economically disadvantaged.
[95] New York State Senator George D. Maziarz has described Eve's retirement as a significant loss and an example of why he opposes term limits.
[96] A few months after retiring from political office Eve established a foundation whose first mission was to fight for the money allocated for the tutoring of students from underperforming schools, which was being redirected to other purposes.
