The Los Angeles Riots Argumentative Essay
African Americans in Los Angeles and throughout the United States have experienced racial oppression for centuries. (Background about racial oppression by the LAPD). Rodney King was an African American motorist who inspired positive police reforms after he had a brutal conflict and was beaten by four members of the LAPD. Rodney King’s encounter resulted in a social and legal compromise because the incident made people aware of police brutality, gave African Americans a voice against police abuse, and resulted in reforms to the way that the LAPD responds to communities of color.
The Los Angeles Riots were the second riots to happen after the Watts Riots. The L.A Riots took place on April 9, 1992. The riots broke out in less than a day and lasted five days and killed more than 50 people and left more than 2,000 injured. On April 30, 1992, writers Richard A. Serrano and Tracy Wilkinson wrote an article in the Los Angeles Times newspaper saying "hours after the verdicts were announced, angry demonstrators torched buildings, looted stores and assaulted passersby as civic leaders pleaded for calm." The riots started after the verdict was given, people were filled with anger after they police officers were acquitted of all charges against them. Tensions also arose with Korean store owners.
The riots helped bring a change to the community for the African Americans because before the riots they didn't have a voice, any protest or march they did didn't receive attention. When the riots happened, they got the attention that they were searching for. The communities were said to be too "poor" to care about them. In the article Sandy banks publish it said "The devastation was heartbreaking, but I understood the rage behind it. Los Angeles had been building to this moment, with years of protests, meetings, and marches that got little attention outside a black community seemed too wretched and too poor to care about." Los Angeles was going to have a breakout sooner or later due to the little attention put for the communities that were in need. The communities felt that with Rodney King, they finally had a voice. For the community Rodney King was their voice because of him the people
Though sparked by the Rodney King verdict, there were many other causes of the riots that erupted on the streets of Los Angeles on April 29, 1992. The Los Angeles riots in 1992 were devastating. The obvious issue portrayed through the media was black versus white. If you did not live in Los Angeles or California chances are you did not hear full coverage of the story, you heard a simple cut and dry portrayal of the events in South Central. If you heard one thing about the riots, it was that there was a man named Rodney King and he was a black male beaten with excessive force by four white Los Angeles police officers on Los Angeles concrete. The media portrayed the riots as black rage on the streets due to the
The Watts riots began in the summer of 1965, in a city in Los Angeles called Watts. It all began with the arrest of a young African American by a white California Highway Patrol officer. Now, it was not because he was arrested for already doing something illegal, it was for the way the police officer treated the individual. According to Lacine Holland, an eyewitness to the arrest, the officer “took him and threw him in the car like a bag of laundry and kicked his feet in and slammed the door.” (Flournoy) This caused lots of unrest among the fellow residents of Watts. This was just the beginning of years of pent up oppression for the minorities, which participated in the event. Similarly, in 1992, the Rodney King riots also arose due to the acquittal of four Los Angeles Police Department officers for their brutal beating
The L.A. Riots is one of the massive riots in american history. The riots were caused by the injustice beating of Rodney King by four officers. To put it in perspective, the riots happened because of racism by jury and officers. I watched a sundance film trailer about the L.A. Riots and how koreans were affected by the riots. After watching the trailer, I decided to do research and I learned about the deep details of how the riots happened. The L.A. Riots changed my morals on how people can be proved guilty or innocent so easily, plus my perspectives on racism against minorities of the United States. My perspective is that police have been harassing more people of color more during the
Early 1990’s was a difficult time, especially for the south central. During 1991 and 19992 was the worst record for crime; the murder rate was the highest in LA in history. There were about 1077 murders many of which came from gang violence in south central. The match that set off the 1992 LA Riots. Was the videotape of Rodney King being brutally beaten by five police officers, as well as the murder of Latasha Harlins in 1991. The officers were found not guilty by a mostly white jury, so the African American grew angry and disappointed. The Korean woman who killed Latasha didn’t serve jail time, which caused a deep strain on the relationship between Korean and Africans. White people were the main targets, but Koreans also experienced gun battles
The 1991 Rodney King beating was one of the most significant events of the late twentieth century when considering the tension between African Americans and white police officers in the last two centuries. It seemed that the beating and the effect that it had on the world as a whole embodied society's feelings concerning the idea of discrimination. The fact that Rodney King was African American and that white police officers used unnecessary force when trying to apprehend him made it possible for people to understand that even though the social order had experienced important progress in recent years, the race matter continued to be divisive.
The Los Angeles Riots developed as a way to show frustration at the injustice that occurred at the expense of Rodney King, with the acquittal of the four white police officers. The escalation that occurred as a result, could have been prevented, had police chief Darryl Gates mobilized troops into the affected areas immediately, instead of prolonging the deployment. As a member of law enforcement, with over 42 years of experience, there is no way that he could not have anticipated the backlash that ensued. The complete brutalization and dehumanization of black people in the United States is appalling and it has led to inhumane, atrocious fall out that has had impacts that have carried forward to the present.
A Great deal of things happen in the La riot in the year 1992.on the other had what stood out the most was how the world was focused on all the wrong things that accrued from the riot.most if not all of the stories were exposed to the public were just about all the criminals that generate the violence. What about the people who were badly injured from the accidents they were sadly involved in. seem that no one cared until a man named Steve Lopez, who came up with an great idea to have Fidel Lopez story heard. But i’m most certain that there were so many more stories that could have been told,it seem that no one cared about them but cared more about the people who made the stories, and that just isn't fair to anybody. It took just about 20 years
On April 28, 1992, several riots erupted throughout Los Angeles, California due to the unjust trial when several officers were caught on video brutally beating Mr. Rodney King on the street. Thousands of African-Americans were unhappy with the decision of the court allowing the four officers to get off with no charges. During the LA Riots, over 55 people were killed, 2,000 were injured, and 7,000 were put into police custody. It was nearly $1 billion in damages done to property and 4,000 buildings in the city were burned. The three days of the LA Riots will be remembered in history because of the police brutality, national reaction to the violence, and the people's
Rodney King, one of America’s most powerful civil rights activists for people abused by police, has taught the world a lesson in his plea: “People, I just want to say, can’t we all get along?” On March 3, 1991, after a high-speed chase, King was pulled out of his car, thrown on to the ground, and beaten up by the Los Angeles police, which George Holliday videotaped. The four L.A.P.D. officers involved were charged with assault with a deadly weapon and one officer was charged with using of excessive force. However, after a three-month trial, which was held in Simi Valley, a suburb of Los Angeles, a predominantly white jury acquitted the officers. This inflamed the citizens, which resulted in the violent 1992 Los Angeles riots.
This neglect would lead to the events in 1991 and 1992. On March 3, 1991, LAPD officers were caught on camera beating a black taxi driver, Rodney Glen King, after he lead them on pursuit. The video shows “four officers Tazing, kicking, and hitting King with their batons upwards of 53 times” (Adams CBSnews). The video was sent to the news and was “broadcast around the world, galvanizing international attention on police brutality in Los Angeles” (Garcia) Four of the LAPD officers involved were charged with felony assault and other related charges.
Mahatma Gahndi once said, “An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind.” Hatred blinds people from acknowledgment and acceptance, and instead steers people towards ignorance. Quarreling amongst citizens of the United States is not an uncommon occurrence, especially when the topic focuses on racial backgrounds and biases. The LA Riot of 1992 is no exception to this category of discourse. A black person beaten up by a group of policemen was a usual event that happened frequently. Rodney King’s arrest was a special case. In a drunken state, King led the police on a “high-speed chase through the streets of Los Angeles (“Riots Erupt in Los Angeles”).George Holliday, an ordinary passerby, recorded Rodney King’s assault by the police on March 3, 1991. This infamous event urges the nation to examine the
Later, on April 29, 1992, riots began to break out in the city of Los Angeles and other areas around the country. During the Rodney King riots, citizens began to experience deindividuation and feelings of anonymity, making them do things that would normally go against a
Rodney King is a African American who was a symbol of racial tension in the United State of America. In 1991 After his beating in LA by the LA Police officers was taped and shown around the world. The officers Laurence Powell, Theodore Briseno, Timothy Wind and Stacey were the four police officers, they were charged with assault and use of deadly weapon. The trial was planned in be held in LA but because it was such a Public case they decided it was best to move it to a different location, Simi valley was the new location. The jury consisted of twelve people, 10 white, one Spanish and one asian person. Many people weren’t happy that they didn’t have African american people on the jury.
Martin Luther King Jr was an influential figure during this time. He led thousands of African American citizens in nonviolent protests to fight for their rights. In Tennessee 1968 he was assassinated, the non violent riots died with him. In over 100 cities riots broke out some of the some of most notable were in Washington D.C, Chicago, and Baltimore. The age of peaceful protests was over. The DC riots destroyed the city and economy, businesses closed, jobs were lost and people were fleeing the city. The crime rates rose, driving even more people to leave the city and (LECTURE Feb 22). The West side of Chicago erupted in riots when word that MLK was assassinated got out. The same thing happened in Baltimore. Thousands were injured and killed, and businesses were robbed and or burned, some of which did not ever reopen (LECTURE Feb 22). Post World War II the things people were fighting for were equality in the work place as well as in the streets. There was still a divide between lower class black and white people who have the same income because of skin color. People were concerned with maintain the “value of white” and we are always reminded of that when there is a racial violence and tension (Lecture Feb 22). The 1960s were a huge turning point for riots, they became violent and fueled economic and political differences.
Many people believe the cause of the 1992 Los Angeles riots/civil disturbance was due to the acquittal of four LAPD officers who had been charged with the use of excessive force in the videotaped arrest and beating of Rodney King, following a high-speed police chase. Many believed the verdict was unjust, that in fact excessive force was used in the arrest. As a result, many feel this injustice caused the riots. When people take the time to do a more in-depth review/research of the subject, they will find that although this verdict may have triggered the rioting, there were actually multiple issues that contributed to the rioting.