January 30, 2012 | Categories: Crowd Control

Kevin H. White, the former mayor of Boston from 1968 to 1984, died at the end of last month. Large crowds turned out for his funeral, which was held Wednesday, February 1, to honor the iconic mayor. A procession began at White's home on Beacon Hill and ended at the St. Cecilia Church in the Back Bay region of the city, where the funeral ceremony was held. Portable barricades and other crowd control devices were used in order for officers to properly regulate the heavy traffic.

In a time when racial segregation was still permeating the cultural consciousness, White opened the doors to City Hall to let all kinds of people from varied ethnic backgrounds and sexual orientations in. He will be remembered for his progressive work in these sectors.

"City Hall was pretty much a Whites-only - almost an Irish-only - place. He opened it up, hired people of all races and genders," Barney Frank, the retiring U.S. representative, told Fox News.

White died Friday, January 28, after a fighting a grueling battle with Alzheimer's Disease for the past decade. Current Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and acting Mayor Thomas M. Menino attended the event.