Posted by caraher on May 2, 2007, at 23:46:59
In reply to Does anyone rerember the 1992 Riots, posted by rjlockhart on April 25, 2007, at 23:03:15
There's no good reason for the violence. But I wouldn't say it was "over one video tape," either. It was the result of many, many decades of racial violence, and a verdict that belied what that videotape captured. The message many of those who lashed out took from the verdict in the Rodney King case was that the legal system refused to protect the right of a member of a racial minority to humane treatment by the police. (Of course, there are always looters and thugs who are opportunists as well, less interested in the injustice than in exploiting the lawless behavior that followed what many saw as a betrayal of justice and a consequent loss of respect for the law. But the justified outrage over the verdict, and the anarchic direction it took provided cover for the violence that ensued...) Just as a truck driver has a right not to be dragged from the cab by a mob and beaten, no person being arrested should be subject to excessive force - and if they are, the officers involved must be held accountable.
It was inexcusable violence on the part of many people, and it didn't start the day someone turned up with a videotape of cops beating Rodney King. Nor, sadly, did it end that day.
poster:caraher
thread:753476
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20070312/msgs/755416.html