April 29 1992, four Los Angeles policemen were acquitted of the savage beating of Rodney King an African-American man. Caught on camera by a bystander, graphic video of the attack was broadcast into homes across the nation. Anger in response to the acquittal, stoked by years of racial and economic inequality in the city, spilled over into the streets of Los Angeles. The result was five days of rioting. The riots sparked a national conversation about racial and economic disparity and ignited police use of force that still continues.
A year earlier, in March 1991, Rodney King led police on a high-speed chase through Los Angeles. When police finally stopped him, King was ordered out of the car. Los Angeles Police Department officers then kicked
…show more content…
A year later, a jury consisting of 12 residents from the distant suburbs of Ventura County, nine white, one Latino, one biracial, one Asian, found the four officers not guilty. The acquittals were announced around 3 p.m.; less than three hours later, the unrest began.
The reaction to the acquittal in South Los Angeles was destructive. At the time, more than half of the population in the area was black. Tension had already been mounting during the years leading up to the riots: the unemployment rate was staggering, a drug epidemic was ravaging the neighborhood, and gang activity and violent crime was rampant. Understandably, the community's anger was deepening against Los Angeles police. African-Americans said they did not feel protected, but instead reported being harassed without cause.
When 911 calls about the violence and riots started coming in, law enforcement were not deployed immediately. Though LAPD Chief Darryl Gates announced early in the afternoon of that his officers had the situation under control, it would later be reported that the city was not adequately prepared for the riots. In fact, there was no anticipation of, or official plan at the department for, major social unrest on this scale. So the violence and rioting grew excessive and