During some of the most troubling times in Detroit history, there was a shiny, guiding light of hope, faith, and optimism who never believed that Detroit was a dead city, nor a city on life support. Rather he believed that by working together, believing in each other, and supporting each other, Detroit, taking small, incremental, yet consistent steps forward would rise again.
That light may have died out with the passing of former Detroit City Council President and champion for Detroit, Gil Hill passed away on February 29 at the age of 84, but not the resurrecting spirit he exhibited as one of Detroit’s most prolific civic leaders.
To know Gil, or to speak to him, one would never know he was not a native Detroiter, for it seemed he’d always been here. The truth is Gil was born in Birmingham, Alabama November 5, 1931, moved to Washington D.C. with his mother, and actually didn’t arrive in Detroit until 1953.
His lifelong commitment to public service began when he joined the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department in 1953. However Gil became disenchanted with the lack of activity within the sheriff’s department which actually directly benefitted the citizens and joined the Detroit Police Department in 1959. His stellar career in law enforcement culminated with him retiring with the rank of Commander in 1989.
Gil’s instinctive intuitiveness got him noticed, and he was promoted to detective within the homicide division, and ultimately headed the division as Inspector beginning in 1982. During his tenure within the homicide unit, Detroit had among the highest rates of home de arrests and convictions of any police department in the nation.
So skilled and prolific was Gil, that the Atlanta Police Department recruited him to join a national team to solve the “Atlanta Child Murders of the late 1970’s Gil’s tenacity and leadership with the team resulted in the arrest and conviction of Wayne Williams for the murders. Gil returned to Detroit to resume his exemplary leadership in Detroit’s homicide division, solving murders, and keeping up the morale of officers as Detroit’s homicide rate remained among the highest in the nation, as did it’s homicide closure rate, largely due to Gil’s leadership.
In the early days of his career, Gil never let some of the racist policies and practices within the police department impede him doing his job; never allowing himself to get consumed by the racism, nor defined by the racist. The courage of his convictions, his strength of character, as well as his determination to succeed not only allowed him to move through the ranks, it also served as an inspiration to other black officers to stay engaged, do their job, and force the hierarchy to notice their talent and ultimately get rewarded for their tenacity.
As he rose to various leadership positions, his stern, yet caring leadership style commanded respect, accountability, and performance from officers in his command, many of whom got promotions, commendations, and opportunities because of the example set by Gil Hill.
Gil’s legacy was further expanded when, in 1987, Paramount Studios decided to film portions of the movie “Beverly Hills Cop”, starring Eddie Murphy on location in Detroit. Gil was asked to show some of the producers and executives around the city for shooting and storyline spots. They were so impressed with Gil’s knowledge and command that he was offered the part of the boss for Murphy’s character, Axel Foley, a role he reprised in “Cop” 1-3.
While Gil was now recognized in Detroit as a “movie star”, by no means was he about to get defined as such; so when his police career ended in 1989, he made the best of his newly found notoriety and successfully ran for a seat on the Detroit City Council. Gil received the second highest number of votes, thus becoming President Pro-Tem. He would later serve two terms as Council President by virtue of getting the most votes in 1993 and 1997.
While on the Council, Gil furthered his passion for helping people, with a particular emphasis on programs which benefitted senior citizens and young people. He made himself uniquely accessible, always willing to meet with church, community, social, and religious groups to get the “word from the street” about what Council needed to address to improve the quality of life for Detroit citizens.
The community access to Gil was magnified during the 1990’s when he co-hosted “Back to Back”, a talk show on WQBH 1400 AM, where he invited leaders and just plain folks from within the community to bring forth their ideas, concerns, and fears to the forefront for open dialogue. Gil never used his talk show as a “bully pulpit, but rather as a vehicle to extend himself as a public servant for the people and the city he loved. His staff would sometimes get frustrated because if a caller complained that their cat kept getting out and climbing a tree, Gil would invariably say “just call my office and we’ll see what we can do.”
Perhaps Gil’s greatest gift was his ability as a consensus builder, an invaluable role as the leader on the Council. There were times when Gil and some of his colleagues may have been diametrically opposed to each other on issues; but rather than allowing the differences to keep them divided, Gil would focus on the aspects upon which they agreed, and find a way to make it work for the good of the city and its people. This earned him the respect and admiration of not only those on the Council, but those within the mayor’s executive team as well.
When you look at how the perception of Detroit is changing today, you won’t see the name of Gil Hill on any monument, building, park, or street. However you will definitely see how his leadership and influence allowed us to have Ford Field and Comerica Park, the new Red Wing arena, Campus Martius, the three casinos, the investments which continue to pour into downtown and Midtown, the renovated Cobo Center, the Riverwalk, the General Motors headquarters in the Renaissance Center, an improving Belle Isle, the renovated Book Cadillac Hotel, as well as businesses large and small that now see Detroit as a prime destination for investment opportunities.
Gil Hill did not make all of these signs of Detroit’s true Renaissance possible directly, but his spirit of never giving up on the city that never gave up on him was an indisputable catalyst which spurred believe and faith in the people of a once great city determined to be great again.
Thank you our faithful servant; police officer, civic leader, movie star, and beautiful human being, Gilbert Roland Hill.
Keith R. Johnson
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