John F. Kennedy Jr., a guest speaker at the 1992 New York State Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA) Annual Delegates Meeting, shaking hands with CSEA Brooklyn Developmental Center Local Delegate James Gripper.
Longtime Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA) activist Jimmy Gripper in a 1998 photo. CSEA will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2010. Throughout 2009 The Work Force is devoting the Leading Edge page to a look back at some of the key individuals who have helped shape our extraordinary history. This month we feature a interview with Jimmy Gripper. Gripper began his career in state service at what was then known as the Brooklyn Developmental Center in 1972. An activist in CSEA for 30 years, Gripper was the union's first African-American region president when he was elected to lead the Metropolitan Region in 1980. He is now retired and living in Virginia.