Hubert Julian parachutes into Harlem

A black pilot, Edison McVey, flew Hubert Julian from Hasbrouck Heights to Harlem, where the plane circled City College, at 139th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, dropping two powder noise bombs to attract residents' attention. Then Julian leaped from the plane in a vivid red suit; the wind carried him away from his target to the roof of a tenement at 301 West 140th Street. The crowd that followed him, large enough to damage several surrounding stores, carried Julian to Liberty Hall, the UNIA meeting place - but not before a police officer charged him with disorderly conduct. Addressing the crowd, he spoke about aviation, promoted a parachute he had designed, and urged them to support A. L. Hart, a black-owned department store under threat from white competition.