David Granese

Abstract

Dave Granese is a retired police officer who served for 39 years in the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department. Born in 1962, Dave and his family moved from East Boston to another Italian American community in Revere, where he would spend his childhood and teen years. His family instilled in him the values of respect, which he would exhibit in his life and role as a police officer. He is a 1981 graduate of Revere High School and Northeast Regional Technical High School, where he specialized in electronics. Always a hands-on learner and good communicator, Dave gravitated toward law enforcement. As an openly gay police officer, he would attend Fran’s Place, Dominic’s, and Josephs. Fran’s Place was his “home base,” where he became a regular DJ. His interview discusses the dangerous environment for gay men in the 1980s, gay bashing, harassment from fellow officers, and the joy of wearing his uniform in the Gay Pride Parade as part of the Gay Officers Action League. Interview carried out by Andrew Darien.