Eugene Burnett Sr., activist, police sergeant, entrepreneur, dies at 94

A civil rights champion who loved the Black community, Eugene Burnett Sr. challenged racial discrimination while inspiring and mentoring younger people. 

On Saturday, Burnett died after a short illness at St. Francis Hospital in Flower Hill, his youngest daughter, Donna Swain, 66, confirmed. He was 94.

Burnett, who had a commanding presence and raspy voice that could engage listeners, is remembered for his organizing prowess, entrepreneurship and boundary-breaking law enforcement career, according to family and others.

Swain, a pharmacist who lives in Chesterfield, Virginia, said her father's legacy was that "he fought for his people every step of the way" and "he loved his people."

Born in 1929, Burnett joined the Army in 1946 and married his wife, Bernice, in 1950. He was motivated toward activism after being denied housing in Levittown because he was Black. 

"That was a real shock to me because while we were in the service, we used to tease the southern soldiers about conditions in their states," Burnett was quoted as saying in a Newsday article, where he also noted: "I didn't expect they could tell me that, right out in the open in the State of New York, that they were going to discriminate against me."

After the denial, the couple lived in North Amityville with their three children: Eugene Jr., Karen Gittens and Swain, Newsday reported.

The Burnetts eventually moved to Wheatley Heights, becoming then the hamlet's first Black family, Newsday reported. Today, Eugene Jr., 69, is an engineer living in Atlanta. Karen, 67, is a physician in Rockland County.

Eugene Burnett Sr. was also an entrepreneur, owning three Carvel franchises, a catering business, an apartment building and a restaurant. 

He was the first Black police sergeant in the Town of Babylon and also served with the county police, Newsday archives show.

Activism was important for the family. The couple worked to grow the Central Long Island branch of the NAACP, which hosted functions that included luminaries such as singer, pianist and activist Nina Simone and Thurgood Marshall, the first Black Supreme Court justice. Meanwhile, Burnett also pushed for greater racial diversity in politics and against the ills of discrimination.

Hazel N. Dukes, a civil rights activist and president of the NAACP New York State Conference, said Burnett was a force to be reckoned with but had the respect of his community. Burnett, she said, helped her find the strength and encouragement to speak out.

"His legacy should be remembered as somebody who had a vision to continue to make America and this state … live up to the Constitution and reality," she said.

J. Stewart Moore, a lawyer who met Burnett decades ago, said Burnett was good at organizing, recalling that he would go around town in a truck with a speaker system. One mission that stuck close with Moore was Burnett's work to diversify elected positions on Long Island.

"Burnett believed in family," Moore said. "He believed in activism. He believed that you should put your money where your mouth is. He believed that if you wanted … change, you have to take it."

Burnett is survived by his three children, five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. His wife, Bernice Burnett, died in 2020 at the age of 90. A wake will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday at Hollywood Baptist Church followed by a funeral service.

By Tiffany Cusaac-Smith

tiffany.cusaac-smith@newsday.com@T_Cusaac

Education: Howard University 

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith came to Newsday in 2023 after being a race and history reporter at USA TODAY, where she wrote enterprise and spot articles examining how the past shapes the present. Previously, she worked as the race and justice reporter at the USA TODAY Network of New York, covering issues such as criminal justice reform, housing, environmental justice, health care and politics. At The Journal News/lohud.com in Westchester County, she covered Yonkers, the state's third-largest city. She also worked at The Associated Press in Atlanta.

Honors and Awards: Criminal justice reporting fellowship with the National Press Foundation;  New York News Publishers Association award for distinguished investigative reporting;  Contributed reporting for Best of Gannett honor; Member of Table Stakes, a program funded by the Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund and managed by the American Press Institute to transform local news.