UNREST IN LOS ANGELES
ZOOT SUIT RIOTS, 1943
In early June, young men who had enlisted to fight in World War II clashed with young locals in Los Angeles, kicking off what became known as the zoot suit riots. The riots didn’t die down until June 8, when military personnel were ordered to stay in their barracks. The
week of conflict resulted in no deaths.
WATTS RIOTS, 1965
On the night of Aug. 11, near Watts, riots spread after a conflict between police and a crowd of onlookers at a traffic stop. They lasted two days, and on Aug. 13, a stretch of buildings on 103rd Street in Watts burned to the ground, an area later known to locals as Charcoal Alley. Looting spread from South Central to other areas, with Pasadena, Pacoima, Monrovia, Long Beach and Wilmington seeing conflict. State leaders called for 14,000 California National Guard troops to go to South Los Angeles to work with police.
In the end, 34 people died, about 2,000 were injured and more than 600 buildings were damaged.
RIOTS AFTER DEATH OF GEORGE FLOYD, 2020 Protests began in Minneapolis on May 26, a day after
videos surfaced showing the death of an unarmed black man, George Floyd, under the knee of a white Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin. Within a day, demonstrations were held in dozens of cities across the country. By May 30, Los Angeles and at least 12 other major cities declared curfews. Governors in 24 states and Washington, D.C., had called in the National Guard, with over 17,000 troops activated. At least 25 people died and an estimated 11,000 have were arrested across the U.S.