Rodney King - Riots - Los Angeles - May 1992

The LA riots were triggered by the acquittal of police officers for the brutal beating of Rodney King. This clip shows Rodney King asking "Why can't we all just get along?"

LA riots and the aftermath

The news of acquittal triggered the Los Angeles riots of 1992. By the time the police, the US Army, the Marines and the National Guard restored order, the casualty included 55 deaths, 2,383 injuries, more than 7,000 fires, damages to 3,100 businesses, and nearly $1 billion in financial losses. Smaller riots occurred in other cities such as Las Vegas and Atlanta. On May 1, 1992, the third day of the L.A riots, King appeared in public before television news cameras to appeal for calm, asking:

"People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it, making it horrible for the older people and the kids? ... It's just not right. It's not right. It's not, it's not going to change anything. We'll, we'll get our justice ... Please, we can get along here. We all can get along. I mean, we're all stuck here for a while. Let's try to work it out. Let's try to beat it. Let's try to beat it. Let's try to work it out.

Federal trial of officers

After the riots, the Department of Justice reinstated investigation and obtained an indictment of violations of federal civil rights against the four officers. The federal trial focused more on the evidence as to the training of officers instead of just relying on the videotape of the incident. The jury found Officer Laurence Powell and Sergeant Stacey Koon guilty, who were subsequently sentenced to 30 months of prison, while Timothy Wind and Theodore Briseno were acquitted of all charges.

Cultural impact of the event

The video of the beating is an example of inverse surveillance of citizens watching police. Several copwatch organizations were subsequently organized nationally to safeguard against police abuse, and an umbrella group, October 22nd Coalition to Stop Police Brutality, was created. The videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas modeled the 1992 Los Angeles Riots in the game after a corrupt police officer was found not guilty.

King was awarded $3.8 million in a civil case and used some of the proceeds to start a hip hop music label, Straight Alta-Pazz Recording Company.

LINK: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_King