Series:

Interviews not in a series, part two

Topic:

Politics and Government

Biographical Note:

President of the California Democratic Council; Assistant Chief Deputy to Los Angeles County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, 1969-1973 and 1978-1987; California State Senator, 30th District, 1974-1978; Los Angeles City Council member, 10th District, 1987-2003.

Interviewer:

Nicolaides, Becky

Interviewee:

Holden, Nathaniel N.

Persons Present:

Holden and Nicolaides

Place Conducted:

Nate Holden’s home in Los Angeles, California

Supporting Documents:

Record relating to the interview are located in the UCLA Library's Center for Oral History Research.

Interviewer Background and Preparation:

The interview was conducted by Becky Nicolaides, interviewer, UCLA Center for Oral History Research; Ph.D., U.S. History, Columbia University. Nicolaides has published a book and articles on the history of Los Angeles, has taught L.A. history courses at UC San Diego and UCLA, and has consulted on numerous cultural resources projects on Los Angeles history.

Processing of Interview:

The transcript is a verbatim transcription of the recording. It was transcribed by a professional transcribing agency using a list of proper names and specialized terminology supplied by the interviewer. The interviewee did not review the transcript, and therefore some proper names may remain unverified. the audio of sessions 4 and 5 is not available. Please refer to the Available Downloads tab for a transcript.

Length:

18 hrs.

Language:

English

Copyright:

Regents of the University of California, UCLA Library.

Audio:

Parents’ background, both from Georgia--Summer trips to Elizabeth, New Jersey, to visit maternal grandmother--Childhood in Macon, Georgia--Mother works at Singer sewing machine company--Family gets by during the Great Depression--Community life in Macon around church and baseball--Race relations in Macon--Challenges and accomplishments in elementary school--Dislikes working on paternal grandmother’s farm during the summers--Early awareness of race and politics in the South--As a youngster, supports Franklin D. Roosevelt/Henry A. Wallace ticket in 1940 presidential election--Segregation and racial incidents in Macon--Detests picking cotton at age 6--Parents support Franklin D. Roosevelt, though they are racially disenfranchised in Georgia--Moves to Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1939 with mother and siblings--Interracial community life in Elizabeth--Accomplishments and setbacks in junior high school--Drafting class becomes his passion--Gets jobs as a youth to earn money--Discovers boxing and goes pro by age 16--Enlists in Army at age 16 before graduating from high school--Basic training at Camp Plauche, New Orleans--Resents that German POWs are treated better than African American soldiers during World War II--Supports Henry A. Wallace in 1948 presidential election--Serves in Germany and Italy from 1945 to 1947 with a military police battalion--Oversees German prisoners in Italy--Receives repeated transfers after confrontations with allies and superiors--Receives praise from various generals.

Character and political leanings of father and character of mother--In Italy at end of World War II escorts German prisoner to trial--Wartime service represents a means of opportunity for an African American young man--Adjusts to civilian life back in Elizabeth, New Jersey--Works in warehouse and kosher slaughterhouse as a teenager--Finishes high school, along with other veterans, in an integrated night school--Works as door-to-door salesman--Attends American Design Institute in Newark, New Jersey, to learn design drafting--Lands first design job at Bell Labs in Murray Hill, New Jersey--Moves into other design jobs for better pay--Joins the left-leaning Young Progressives of America (YPA) in 1949--Engages in progressive activism with YPA during the Cold War era--Moves to Los Angeles in 1955 for job at Hycon Manufacturing Company, Pasadena--Connects with the African American community in Pasadena--Moves into other design jobs in aerospace companies in Los Angeles--Forms Holden Engineering to conduct drafting work for clients--Works on ion propulsion systems at Electro-Optical Systems, Pasadena, then gets laid off--Works on design system for lunar “soft landing” at Hughes Aircraft--Runs for U.S. Congress in 1968.