Interview, Roy Wheatley King

Roy Wheatley King graduated from Syracuse Law School in 1964, practiced law in Rochester, New York, and served on the Board of Trustees of the Monroe County Bar Association. He helped found the black community-centered radio station WDKX, and has been involved with local groups like the Boy Scouts of America, FIGHT (Freedom, Integration, God, Honor, Today), Action for a Better Community, and the Urban League. King has also taught courses at SUNY Brockport.

In this interview, King discusses the lack of black lawyers in Rochester, noting that there were only four African Americans practicing law in the city when he passed his bar exam. He notes how conditions for blacks improved after the 1964 riots, but that at the time of his interview, blacks had made few inroads in local politics. King laments that political participation among Rochester’s African American community is too low.