Today's Rodney King

Watching Rodney King’s beating for the first time in Professor Hong’s class really shook me. Just hearing about what happened and watching as police brutality has not improved scared me alone, but to put a visual to it added an entirely new perspective. Reading Chronology of Rage in class gave me an even deeper understanding of what happened on that night and the events that followed afterward. It’s been twenty-seven years since Rodney King’s beating, and as they say, history repeats itself.

My first exposure to the realities of police brutality was the murder of Trayvon Martin, was twelve. It might seem ironic as I am a young person of color who grew up in Compton, you would have thought I would have already known. I did not really understand at the time that it was a hate crime and that Trayvon was only seventeen. His only crime-- his black skin he wore under a hoodie on his way home. My mom later explained why it happened, and I was still too young to really understand the extent of the situation. As years went on, more names were added to the list one after the other, usually black men, and then black women started to make the list too. Michael Brown shot dead at eighteen after the robbery of a convenience store (NY Times), Eric Garner after selling cigarettes (CNN), Sandra Bland after a traffic stop and taken to a local jail (Chron Texas), and most recently Stephon Clark, shot in his own backyard while on his cell phone (LA Times). All of these people were unarmed victims of police brutality. These are only a few names of hundreds of lives lost to police brutality. Gun crazy cops reach for their holster before their taser or baton even though they have been trained. All of these things sparked protests and organizations like “Black Lives Matter.”

The police sergeant involved in the death of Eric Garner was stripped of her badge after the incident, no jail time served (USA Today). The officer involved in the case of Sandra Bland had his charges dropped and was fired, (CNN) no jail time served, Sandra’s death was ruled to be a suicide (NY Times). Trayvon Martin was killed by George Zimmeman, and still found not guilty, serving no jail time. By these examples, the beating of Rodney King continues to repeat itself when out of control cops use their power to do harm. The officers involved in Rodney King’s beating also did not serve jail time, even with video evidence that we can see today. “Sergeant Stacey C Koon, Officer Laurence M. Powell, Officer Theodore Briseno, and Officer Timothy Wind are found not guilty…” (Chronology of Rage) There was also video evidence in the case of Eric Garner and Stephon Clark, 911 recordings of Trayvon Martin, and surveillance footage of both Trayvon and Michael Brown. Even with solid evidence of what is being done, there is no punishment or consequences served to the men and women who are supposed to protect. You would think even with video evidence presented in court in 1991 when not everyone had camera phones in their back pocket would make a difference in the way the case was treated, but it was not when “an all-white jury” (Chronology of Rage) is to decide the outcome of your trial. Not much has changed between then and now, besides protesting instead of rioting to make our voices heard, but police brutality against black men and women continues.

Cultural Interpretations

"Perhaps the whole root of our trouble, the human trouble, is that we will sacrifice all the beauty of our lives, will imprison ourselves in totems, taboos, crosses, blood sacrifices, steeples, mosques, races, armies, flags, nations, in order to deny the fact of death, which is the only fact we have."

- James Baldwin, "The Fire Next Time."

This passage stuck out to me out of the many great passages in this book due to its relevance throughout human history as the root of negative human actions. This passage states that human trouble starts when humans become lazy and do not want to take responsibility for the uncomfortable sensation of figuring out their own lives, resting instead on narrow minded ideologies that act both as a sort of cushion in the face of the chaos of life and as a machete that clears away anything in life that is unsettling. The passage implies that human troubles and evils result from laziness, fear of the unsettling and unknown, and a sort of denial of forces that reign supreme over humanity, and that a meaningful human life is to be had by taking initiative of ones own life, accepting the responsibility of self actualized freedom, and getting out of ones comfort zone.

The context James Baldwin was writing this was a postwar capitalist America, convinced of its invincibility and everlastingness. This was and still is an America that sacrificed humanity and meaning in life for comfort and stability. This is the America of distraction and illusion. In the book from which this excerpt was taken, Baldwin discusses white America as succumbing to self imprisonment in restrictive ideologies that distract from the harshness of reality, and brings up an interesting point: that blacks in America symbolize that which white America does not want to face, which is the reality of life as hardship and struggle.

Berenger Tan

Cops for Hire

"In a statement, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck remarked "[Rodney King's] legacy should not be the struggles and troubles of his personal life but the immensely positive change his existence brought on this city and it's police department." Changes in police hires and a focus on the police department’s community relationships became a key result of the Rodney King beating, and the riots."

In an article where CNN describes the manner in which the Rodney King beating and LA riots changed America, they claim that the methods for police hire was one of the major changes. However, over the past few years, it seems to me that there is another "incident" of police brutality, discrimination, or excessive use of force against minorities. While i do believe that cities must have changed their hiring processes / made it tougher to become an officer, I do not think they have done a very good job. 

On discoverpolicing.org, it is made public what is required of cadets or people that might be interested in doing police work.

• Ability to use good judgment and to problem solve
• Capacity for empathy and compassion
• Ability to demonstrate courage and to take responsibility
• Demonstrating assertiveness

Among these skills/ abilities required, it seems to me that what i see most often is their use of "assertiveness". I recently saw a video online showing an off-duty officer pulling out a gun on a latino male while he was paying for mentos. The officer assumed he was stealing and announced himself as he aimed the gun at the man's back. Even if the man was stealing two dollars worth of merchandise (which the clerk claims he paid for), it is no reason for an officer to draw a weapon.

While there are definitely police officers who work efficiently and fairly, the amount of officers who "fear for their lives" while around minorities pose a serious threat to our society. It was this same racism that caused the beating of Rodney King and the ignition of the LA and other race riots. 

Perhaps a step towards solving an issue like this would be to create a requirement where officers either need to live in the area they police or have lived in the area for several years and understand the dynamics of the community they are expected to protect.

Bonus Link: https://mappingpoliceviolence.org/

-Edgar Montenegro

Alex Gulsoy

Race in Literature

Culture Interpretations

"Falling Down" by Joel Shumacher

In the movie "Falling Down," D-fenz always tries to mend his way out of any encounter by talking to them by their race of origin. The first step he takes when dealing with any situation is talking to them in a rather civilized manner, but understandably losing his temper after having been tempted by them to do so. D-fenz's character was very intriguing from the start of the film because he would always find a way to stay culturally within his boundaries. The movie as a whole focuses on how in order to attain what you want you sometimes have to step outside of your comfort zone, just as D-fenz did throughout his journey to get back home. D-fenz did not start his journey with any expectations as to how other communities would treat him, he simply minded his own business unless someone bothered him first.

Many different subsets of cultures appeared in the movie which made it a very diverse in both its context and its story line. There are many instances in which culture gets reflected upon in this movie, and that is when the D-fenz takes us for a tour of all these very different places. All these different areas are supposed to be representations of the conditions in which these people live in. Many of these places are a bit over-exaggerated and do not truly reflect the reality of these neighborhoods and life within them. The characters within these areas were also a bit exaggerated in the way that when they would talk or act at certain moments, they were definitely overdoing it with the racial stereotypes. For example the Hispanics telling D-fenz to get off the stone, were over =doing it with the motion in which they walked around the stone, and the way they were repeating their words off one another was definitely unnecessary. Or the way the Korean vender couldn't pronounce certain words with an american accent was only to add more of an incentive to allow D-fenz to do what he did next. These small but very apparent instances throughout the movie were aligned in such a way that D-fenz would never cross the same community twice. The golf club owner, he was an elderly white man which is a stereotype to say that white people are more privileged and can afford nicer things. The fact that the Hispanics were wearing worn down clothing, explains that they were being portrayed as lower-class, not having as much money as the dominant race.

-Alex Gulsoy

James Mincey 1982

In 1992 riots erupted in L.A. due to civil unrest and tension between the public and the LAPD which was sparked by the beating of Rodney king which was caught on video. Prior to this there had been many more moments which had caused tensions to rise and the public to scrutinize the LAPD. One such incident is the death of James Mincey in 1982; ten years prior to the LA riots.

Mincey's death occurred on April 5th 1982 when Mincey, a black motorist, was maced and choked to death in his mother's drive way after failing to comply at a traffic stop. The LAPD claimed Mincey was on PCP, however a toxicology test denied this claim causing public outrage. Tensions were pushed even further when Daryl Gates, the police chief at the time and who was also the chief at the time of Rodney King's beating, made a statement saying "We may be finding that in some blacks when it is applied (chokehold), the veins or arteries do not open as fast as they do on normal people." Gate's statement suggesting that black people were possibly more likely to die from a chokehold than "normal people" enraged the public. 

Mincey's death as well as many other events that led to the scrutiny of the LAPD and public outrage paved the path to the L.A. riots. In the aftermath of Mincey's death as well as others from carotid  chokehold, the practice and use of the chokehold was banned by the LAPD in 1993. Many cities around the country,however do not have this ban and deaths are still occurring today and continues to be a problem especially for African Americans whom consists of the majority in chokehold deaths. 

Links and sources

http://articles.latimes.com/1993-09-29/local/me-40159_1_police-officer

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-unrest-that-led-to-the-l-a-riots-twenty-five-years-on

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/12/04/why-the-police-chokehold-is-so-racially-charged/?utm_term=.774cddca0d26

-Kennebon Boonsong

Cultural Interpretations: Parable of the Sower

Teresita Gaitan

Race in Literature 

Culture Interpretations:

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler 

Verse at the start of chapter 17 pg. 196:

"Embrace diversity.

Unite--

Or be divided, 

robbed,

ruled,

killed

By those who see you as prey.

Embrace diversity 

Or be destroyed." 

We know that Lauren is writing her own verses and beliefs in a journal in where she is writing about her religion Earthseed. Her verses are composed from her experiences living in the future in California between the times of 2024 to 2027. Throughout the book each chapter starts off with a bolded verse and the reason for that could be because Lauren wants us to understand her beliefs. The verse starts off with the line "Embrace diversity" and that diversity comes in all aspects. The following two lines are what could happen when with diversity, it could bring people united or divided. But the following lines are the consequences that will happen if people divide because of diversity.

Lauren lives within a wall that was built to protect her community, Robledo, from those living on the outside of the wall. To the outsiders they see this community to be living a better life than the one they are living. At the start of the book we have a sense that those living surrounded by the wall are "united" in a way. They stick together and try to protect each other from those living on the outside. However, since they aren't united with those on the outside we see division, robberies, and people are being killed. The wall became a symbol of separation and it was destroyed and broken down by the face-painted pyro addicts. 

Lauren tells us that the community living inside the wall are united but to a certain point. Robledo isn't “used” to interracial marriages but due to the circumstances it is avoided. They stay united to protect each other and mainly their own home. Diversity comes in more aspects besides race but also economic status, income, benefits, health, and a large variety of other elements and qualities. There is a division within the society and just as the verse says people are robbed, killed, and ruled to the point where they are all destroyed. Everyone saw each other as a prey because they all divided each other rather than uniting to change the problems of society.

Ignorance of the Impoverished and Protection of the White Neighborhoods

In 1989, Karen Toshima, a UCLA student, was killed in gang crossfire on a Westwood street, which is usually a safe and bustling area in Los Angeles. After the shock that gang violence could exist in such a nice area, the police planned to execute a major cleanup of the area in a massive show of force against gang violence. However, the people of South Central were disappointed that the police showed such a sympathetic response to Karen Toshima’s death when gang shootings like this happened every day where they lived and they never get attention. A couple of days before the shooting of Karen Toshima, four people were shot in South Central, but the people of South Central didn’t see the police respond like this for them.

In response to Karen Toshima’s death, the LAPD hired 150 more police officers and enacted Operation Hammer, a plan to heavily saturate gang occupied areas for two or three day with thousands of officers and make as many arrests as they could for anything they could book them on. Police would plant drugs on gang members and set them up. Police used snitches and took money off of people they arrested. Operation Hammer was a free ticket to do overly aggressive police work with the insurance that they were being backed by the city as they were attempting to make the streets a safer place for everyone.

The LAPD believed that the unjust mass incarceration of gang members was the most effective way to get streets of white, well respected neighborhoods to be safer instead of realizing why gang members and gang wars were even a thing. Just running gang members off the streets would not protect people. Gang members would still be around because the areas because the areas that they live in would still be routinely ignored and silenced if they were there or not. The city of LA didn’t offer to provide services or programs to the impoverished and ignored areas of South Central to help with gang problems. The city viewed these gang members as hoodlums that couldn’t be tamed so they must be detained instead which blatantly showed the disregard the city of LA had for actual change.

Similarly, in the case of Rodney King, the police used excessive force when arresting King and disregarded people’s anger for the sake that they didn’t want to handle people from poor, impoverished areas that have been routinely abandoned by the police. Rodney King was attacked by overly aggressive police as fellow LAPD officers and California Highway Patrol Officers looked on. When those police officers were tried and found not guilty, the routinely ignored, impoverished people rioted, showing their anger over how often they were ignored. The government responded by bringing in even more excessive force by more police officers, riot officers, and the National Guard.

Similarly to how the LAPD made an initiative to keep white streets of Westwood preserved for the privileged that frequently went there after the death of Karen Toshima, the LAPD focused more on the protection of the white, rich homes of Beverley hills and Pacific Palisades instead of focusing on the area where people were rioting during the 1992 riots in order. The LAPD once again ignored the safety of the routinely ignored people of South Central and focused more on the protection of rich, white areas. The blatant display of favoritism and prejudice was something present in both the response of the LAPD to the death of Karen Toshima and the response to the riots of ’92 in LA.

- Kimberly Carl

The 1984 Olympics and Its Connection to The 1992 L.A. Riots

With the beating of Rodney King being the last straw, the L.A. Riots occured in 1992. However, there were many other events that created the tension leading up to the 1992 L.A. Riots.  One of those is the 1984 Olympics, which was hosted in L.A. The 1984 Olympics created a gateway to increased police brutality. As it was a massive event, police and security heavily increased in the area. They were led by Police Chief Daryl Gates who later created the infamous Operation Hammer in which the police tried to crack down on gang violence in Los Angeles. As the 1984 Olympics was a tool for America to show how wonderful it was, Gates began to sweep the city of its "criminal elements" and "undesirables". The LAPD arrested hundreds of alleged gang members with no evidence. Even after the Olympic games, this pattern ensued as the police force maintained the same mentality as they did during the riots. From 1984-1989, there was a 33% increase in reports of police brutality compared to the previous years.

Other than an increase in police brutality, the 1984 Olympics economically affected communities of L.A. as well. The Olympics created 70,000 jobs for Americans, but they were ununionized and temporary. After the Olympic games, many people were jobless yet again and there was almost no effort to make the education system better. This led to many people turning to gangs as a way to feed their families; with the amount of racial profiling and police brutality at the time, increased gang activity did not help. The 1984 Olympics had a great lasting impact on the city of Los Angeles as it led to an increase in police brutality and created massive amounts of unemployment. 

~Kevin Jiang

    

My Culture is Not Your Trend

Following the riots in LA, I feel that there was a strong emphasis about individual's identities and their culture. After being suppressed for so long, many minority groups felt that their identities should be recognized and respected within mainstream society, not something that would be used to identify them as "black", "Mexican", or "muslim." These groups, who have been disenfranchised by the American public, have embraced and publicly shared their culture to be respected and experienced.

However, this did not end up being the case. Pop artists, social media, and celebrities began to use various characteristics as a stylistic trend instead of respecting the cultural background and identity of many minority groups. African American women who found themselves being discriminating against because of their hair style, found that white celebrities were wearing the same hairstyle as a stylistic trend and was getting praised for it in the media. Individuals at music festival were seen wearing Native American headdresses, because it was "hip" and "cool". Cultural appropriation is a large issue within society today that should be addressed more and not just simply taken as a fashionable trend. While some people may find it as innocent, it is hurting and disenfranchising communities who find these characteristics as defining various aspects of their culture. The lack of respect and consideration that people have in regards to culture is a reflection of American society and its lack of respect for cultures that do not fit into the ideology of "White America." With this in mind, it makes sense then that the identities of African Americans, Latinos, and Koreans during the LA riots is a considerably important topic as the media played on the stereotypes of these communities while overlooking the central issues that each of these groups experienced, similar to how cultural appropriation in present day fails to recognize and show an understanding and respect for cultural backgrounds.

-Mai Lani

James Baldwin: "No One Hold Power Forever" -Hanna Hasan

Hanna Hasan
May 8, 2018

CULTURAL INTERPRETATIONS:

"No One Holds Power Forever"

      In James Baldwin's "The Price of the Ticket" (1985) story, the idea of infinity becomes evident through history's repetition. Baldwin questions the concept freedom by claiming "And, after all, one can give freedom only by setting someone free" (371) stating that even white people themselves are still not free, despite acting like they do so. In fact, no one is really free until they relinquish their greed and selfish ego according to Baldwin. 

         Ironically, Baldwin implies that "the negro" is more free than the white man has ever been in spite of the white man's fear of the "negro man": "But white Americans do not believe in death, and this is why the darkness of my skin intimidates them" (373). One of the wisest words from Baldwin explain that humans must celebrate and rejoice the concept of death and not fear it and deny the fact using religion, spirits, churches, prayers, etc. to conceal it's inevitable reality. 


        One aspect of Baldwin's writing that admires and amazes me so much includes his wokeness on realizing and highlighting the endless, infinite cycle of power: "The only thing white people have that black people need; or should want, is power-- and no one holds onto power forever" (375). Even the strongest kingdoms and empires centuries ago did not last forever, because in the end, time defeats us all, and Baldwin is aware of this. Instead of criticizing the materialistic and petty actions of white people, he instead calls out their foolishness and stupidity on their mentality of "white superiority" and "endless power." 

        Baldwin also states that "The American Negro has the great advantage of having never believed that collection of myths to which white Americans cling; that their ancestors were all freedom-loving heroes.." (377) because although society overall has obviously become advanced in thinking, the bloody and disgusting past of white brutality will never be forgotten, no matter how hard some white people try to deny it or claim that it was "so long ago." 


       My favorite quote from Baldwin's passage was "Color is not a human or a personal reality; it is a political reality" (379) since I find it so absurd how people have fought over the COLOR of a skin since almost the dawn of colonialism when really it means nothing and should mean nothing, because in the end, we are all just HUMANS. 

Institutionalized Racism: "The War on Drugs"

The Los Angeles Riots of 1992 must not be thought of as an isolated incident. Although a major event in history, it was not the only time - or even one of the few times - that African Americans have been unfairly targeted and criminalized for little to no reason. Throughout American history, racism has been prominent. With the United States being built on the back of slavery, racism has always been a major issue. Even after the thirteenth amendment, segregation was enforced and the Jim Crow era began. In fact, racism has actually been engrained in our country's system, perpetuated constantly to this day.

One of the main events that comes to mind when I think about institutionalized racism is the "War on Drugs". In 1971, President Nixon declared it, stating that drug abuse was "public enemy number one". However, there is a far deeper meaning behind this "war". It unfairly targeted minorities, particularly African Americans. Although African Americans are not more likely to use or sell drugs, they are far more likely to be incarcerated for them. In fact, 62% of drug offenders sent to state prisons are Black, while only 12% of the population is. This creates an issue, is the "war on drugs" truly that, or is it rather a slightly discreet way of the government unfairly causing a "war on minorities"? This "war on drugs" continues to be a major political issue, but it is also only perpetuating the racism ideals engrained in the US's system.

With the mass population of African Americans in prison, this allows for not only institutionalized racism, but also institutionalized slavery. If a citizen is convicted of a federal crime, as drugs are, they are forced into free labor in prisons and also stripped of their rights. Once out of prison, they no longer hold the right to vote, which circles back to the Civil Rights movement and undercuts its progress. This is a system in which our country has allowed the unfair target of African Americans that needs to be rethought.

While not a direct motivator to the 1992 riots, the anger caused by this unfair and unequal criminalization had to contribute to the anger that fueled the LA Riots. This unfair treatment that has been perpetuated in so many of the United State's systems has caused anger to emerge from people being treated as second-class citizens. African Americans and other minorities have been treated as lesser for too long and our country's system must be reformed to put an end to this.

-Gillian McFerren

The Significance of the Watts riots

The Watts riots of 1965 provided the foundation for the Rodney King riots of 1992. The Watts riots is now recognized as one of the worst civil unrests in the history of Los Angeles, until the 1992 riots. The riots started as a result of a confrontation between a black motorist (Marquette Frye) and white police officers in an L.A. neighborhood called Watts. At the start of the Watts riots, a community meeting was held, that turned into an explosion of complaints about the L.A.P.D and government treatment of people of color in the past. To most of the black residents in the neighborhood, the message of the riots was clear—the violence was a result of specific grievances like police injustice and poverty. They also felt that the unrest could have stemmed from bottled-up frustrations: black people were, and are still, dissatisfied with the living conditions and limited opportunities they are given.

During the Watts riots, in the newspaper headlines from the L.A. Times, attached below, the police were shown as victims, while the rioters were depicted as the violent enemy. One headline reads, “Police and Motorists attacked”. The motorists in the title does not include Marquette Frye, but instead refers to white motorists who were attacked during the riots. Another headline reads, “Negro Riots Rage On”. Articles like these forces the blame of civil unrest on a certain group of people, instead of focusing on and addressing the many injustices people of color face.

The Watts riots were an important turning point in L.A.'s Civil Rights Movement. After the riots, several suggestions were made that would improve the community, such as emergency literacy programs, improved police-community ties, increased low-income housing, and upgraded healthcare services. However, most of these suggestions were never carried out. In addition, more than half a century later, police brutality remains a huge issue in the U.S. There have been several cases in recent years of black people dying from police brutality. These tragic incidents remind us of tensions around policing, race, and violence that have been prevalent for decades, and act as a bleak reminder that many racial issues remain unresolved.

Newspapers:

http://documents.latimes.com/aug-12-1965-1000-riot-l/

http://documents.latimes.com/aug-15-1965-negro-riots-rage-death-toll-25/

Source (Article):

https://daily.jstor.org/did-the-1965-watts-riots-change-anything/

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-0811-kelley-watts-civil-society-20150811-story.html

-Anjali Dileep

Black MINORS face Police Discrimination as well

In 1992, an unarmed black man, Rodney King, was harshly beaten by four Los Angeles
police officers in an inhumane manner. It was this crazy incident that sparked the intense 1992 LA
riots. Have these massive riots put an end to such police brutality towards black people? Well, the
answer is clearly a no. Statistics have found that, in 2016, 6.66 per 1 million black American people
were killed by the police, when compared to only 2.9 per 1 million for white Americans. Even today,
we hear so many cases of police being unfair towards people of color, especially blacks. Although
we mostly hear that black adults face these situations, black minors are also victims of police
discrimination.

Recently, an unarmed fifteen year old black boy was shot and killed by a police officer in
Texas. Some investigation found that the kid was just trying to leave a house party because he
thought it was getting very dangerous. Police officer Haber reasoned that there was an altercation
with the vehicle towards the police, but later openly accepted that he ‘misspoke’, and that the car
was actually not driving towards the police, but away from them. He also said, “I don’t feel the
shooting met our core values”. This is simply just one of the several unjust incidents black minors
face. In many areas, when black juveniles are arrested, they are put in adult courts. One such state
is Florida, where two-thirds of the juveniles tried as adults are black people. As an example, in 2011,
16 year old Warren Germain, who was arrested on a burglary charge, was tried as an adult. He was
the only juvenile in an adult boot camp that lasted a year. He said how being with adults who
committed crimes was very difficult, because some of them were actually very bad. I personally
feel that, whether black or white, or whatever race, kids should not be tried as adults. Kids,
irrespective of race, are not that mature, and are still in the process of learning the ‘right’ vs. ‘wrong’.
I hate the general belief that black kids are less “innocent” than white kids. I just find it very
shocking that even black “kids” face police discrimination. I’m very confused about whether the
LA riots have actually made much of a difference in the police discrimination towards black people.
There have been so many protests and arguments, but just when is this unfair cruelty towards blacks
going to end?

Links to sources used:
https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/5/1/15499996/jordan-edwards-police-shooting-texas-balch-
springs

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/crime/article157646054.html

-Sruthi Jaganathan

Police Violence and Black Women

1992 was a period of fierce racial anxiety. Police brutality against minorities had been a real thing for a long time, but it was finally exposed on a larger scale. The filming of Rodney King's brutal beating would effectively, as Martin Luther King would say, "dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored". But the violence didn't stop during the riots, it was magnified by the thick racial, social, political, economic, and classist tensions.

But the same issues still exist. There's still a great sense of distrust toward the police department within the black community. We've heard the news: Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Eric Gardner. And similar to the LA riots, people react. They take to the streets in protest: we have the NAACP,  Black Lives Matter, and the support of thousands of americans across the country in voicing their outrage. Police brutality against minorities is still as alive today as it was in 1992 LA. There's a bit of a twist though, an unspoken story behind the highly publicized aggressions against young black males. Black women suffer from police brutality too, but people aren't as aware of this fact. In an Alabama Waffle House, two white police officers forcefully wrestled a black woman to the floor after she tried to release herself from his unnecessary grip. At a pool party in McKinley Texas, a police officer forced a fifteen year old black girl (in a swimsuit nonetheless) to the ground and drew his gun toward a group of black youth. People don't know about these occurrences against black women in the same way. We are also stopped by police, we too are incarcerated at higher rates. And just like black men, it doesn't stop at police violence. In the third Washington Post article, Andrea Ritchie mentions black women giving birth being 10 times more likely to "have their blood drawn, their umbilical cord blood drawn, and tested for drugs", sometimes without their prior consent (3). The article also discusses black and brown women being profiled as prostitutes (3). We're looking at our current situation with the wrong lenses, just like we did in 1992, when the response to rioting was removal of welfare and increased privatization. But once again we as a population overlook some important aspects of the narrative, just like bush and reagan did in confronting disgruntled american citizens. Not every side of this racial problem is being exposed. We continue to oversimplify racism against minorities as a black, white, and male problem.

-Farida Salifou

1. Waffle House: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/business/wp/2018/04/23/police-wrestled-a-black-woman-to-the-ground-exposing-her-breasts-in-restaurant-video-shows/?utm_term=.9307ac03934c&noredirect=on
2. LA Riot Journalist: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/04/28/burn-baby-burn-what-i-saw-as-a-black-journalist-covering-the-l-a-riots-25-years-ago/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.892f1f7b85f4
3. Violence Against Women of color: https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2018/03/27/police-violence-affects-women-of-color-just-as-much-as-men-why-dont-we-hear-about-it/?utm_term=.b0bccd4ea2b4

Immigration and Racist Attitudes

         Immigration to the United States is difficult for some. Some experience storms, attacks, sickness, etc. In 1965, the United States government decided to remove immigration quotas altogether and also allow immigrants who were naturalized to sponsor a family member for lawful immigration, or chain migration. With an open immigration policy and being a respected country across the world at the time, many took advantage of this policy and settled in here.

         As immigration increased from Asia and the other Americas, sentiments toward them shifted. Those of Latin American origin had been stereotyped as gang members, thieves, sometimes speaking with Spanish words mixed into English, etc. Those of Asian origin where seen as smart but could only speak in broken English at best. Work ethic in regard to attaining the American Dream seemed to be stronger in the Asian stereotypes as they usually ran businesses while the stereotypes of Latin Americans were of farm labor or unemployed leeches. These sentiments still run fairly high in media or news portrayals of these ethnicities, further dividing people along racial lines. With this, Asian Americans share the feelings that some whites do; that Latin Americans and Blacks are thugs who don't work as hard to attain their dream/citizenship and rather demand things.

        The unfettered immigration that is praised by most on the left, tends to lead into racist attitudes. These attitudes can develop into small communities of one race, like Koreatown; any conflict or riot can easily separate and create hostility like how the 1992 riots went from seemingly random destruction and anger to deliberate targeting of Koreatown. Racism of any form will build up, and lead to destruction but there is also no way to destroy it entirely. The '92 riots was just the apex of what racism could lead to.

- Richard Trejo