Hold Your Fire

In the tense year of 1973, a dramatic standoff unfolded in Brooklyn when four young African-American men, seeking firearms for self-protection, found themselves trapped by the NYPD. This confrontation turned deadly when a gun battle claimed the life of a police officer, setting off the longest hostage crisis in the department’s history. At the time, the NYPD adhered to a rigid century-old policy: deliver an ultimatum and then resort to lethal measures. Enter Harvey Schlossberg, a forward-thinking police psychologist, who faced the challenge of persuading his superiors to consider an unprecedented approach – negotiating with deemed “criminals” to avert what could become a massacre, thus potentially sparking a significant shift in U.S. law enforcement practices. Through unseen footage and riveting survivor interviews, Hold Your Fire (2021) sheds light on this pivotal incident. Watch online. Stream it for free on Soap2day or 123Movies, where this groundbreaking documentary awaits you.