The Detroit Riots

The Detroit race riot of 1967 was one the most destructive and violent riots of the 159 race riots that occurred during the “Long Hot Summer.” For five straight days civilians fought the police, resulting in 43 deaths, 1,189 injuries, 7,200 arrests, and over 2,500 lootings. Fifty years later there are still visible results of the riot, and the event remains a source of reflection for Detroit citizens. Asides from the building damage and violence, the riots affected various aspects of Detroit's culture, including the Motown enterprise, which was producing chart-topping music that influenced listeners across the globe. As a genre of music that was known as “The Sound of Young America” in the 1960s, studying the Motown sound before and after the riots can provide insight into Detroit citizens’ mindset.

The Chicago Race Riots of 1919 helped to further show how African Americans are looked as inferior, not just within the citizens of the United States, but the Congress and criminal justice system. White and black beaches were separated by an invisible line; the black beach on 25th street and whites on 29th street. The story of Eugene Williams swimming on the beach worsened after a white police officer, Dan Callahan, refused to intervene or arrest the group of white men responsible for his death, in turn starting the deadliest racial violence in Chicago history. The riot lasted a week with protestors full of rage mostly on the South side with white gangs attacking isolated blacks and blacks attacking isolated whites.

Social and economic disparities are plaguing the city of Baltimore. There are numerous issues that the city of Baltimore is facing, many of which did not come to light until the case of Freddie Gray. On April 2015, a 25-year-old black man by the name of Freddie Gray fell victim to police brutality. After the discovery of his death and the unreasonable way he was treated, Baltimoreans began to protest. The anger and frustration began to escalate due to other social and economic problems the city faces regularly.

The day prior to Gray’s death, April 18th, is when the true protests began outside the Western District Police Department. Department of Justice’s were asked by congressional delegates to open a criminal and civil rights investigation on April 20th. Gene Ryan, the president of the Baltimore police union compared the protests of Gray’s death to “lynch mobs” and in doing so enraged the protesters and the citizens (Timeline: Freddie Gray’s…). After five straight days of protesting, the governor of Maryland made the decision to send state troopers to Baltimore as the protests elevated. Police city leaders on April 23rd made the executive decision to cancel leave for all officers to increase coverage of the city. A pivotal day in the protests was April 25th, the day protests turned into riots as police vehicles became targets of rage. April 27th was the day that Gray was laid to rest and the day following his funeral proved to be the most dangerous for officers. Several officers were sent for medical treatment as they clashed with rioters who plundered and tore open businesses. The National Guard was called in for reinforcement and as many as 5,000 reinforcement officers were called upon. Baltimore mayor, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, placed a curfew on the city the night of April 27th to hopefully null remaining riots and violence. President Obama was quoted as saying,”the rioters throwing rocks at police and setting cars on fire as "criminals" and "thugs" (Timeline: Freddie Gray’s…). These rioters were detracting from legitimate concerns in the community. The curfew in place met resistance during the night of April 28th as a defiant group of rioters faced off with helmeted police officers. Baltimore Orioles changed their schedule on April 28th as they had to relocate to Florida for their upcoming games. After 200 people were arrested during the riots, over

There has been many incidents of discrimination and cruelty in my community. Ultimately because of equality a lot of citizens don't believe in equal rights. I have had experience with this through my local news channels of broadcasting the Baltimore riots or learning in school on the history of Jews being kept captive in camps and treated poorly by nazi's. Equality is something we need to work on. It is ensuring that everyone is able to have equal opportunities and frowned upon just because their race, gender, disability or beliefs.

Early morning on April 12th, 2015, Freddie Gray an African American, was arrested at 25, due to the possession of a knife in his pants pocket. Gray fled from the police, at first sight, was briefly chased on foot by the policemen and was later consequently arrested. As seen on phone cameras, Gray cried out for help before being transported to the police van, which is where Gray became fatally injured. On the way to the Western District Police Station, after several stops, Gray was found unresponsive once arriving at their destination. I will be analyzing the three sources, NPR, The Washington Post and CNN, in order to determine how each source

I received the opportunity to interview one of my father's close friends and business partners, Mr. Joseph E. Hutchison Sr., for the purposes of exploring how he perceived the Detroit riots of 1697. Mr. Hutchison is an African American man, which has lived in multiple neighborhoods throughout Detroit all his life, and has raised a family in the city as well. Furthermore, Mr. Hutchison has a funeral home on Detroit's East Side, which has been thriving for more than forty-years. Moreover, he has a love for the city, no matter what condition the city is in. Pursuing this idea further, Hutchison has experienced about three race riots throughout his life, in which he

You are a single mom with one kid who is out drinking at a bar for the night. You get a call on the phone. Your son is in the hospital with gruesome wounds and broken bones….from the police.. USA police alone have killed over 5,000 citizens since the 9/11 incident with most of them being black males. Most recently, Freddie Gray was terribly injured by the Baltimore police who arrested him for weapon violations. Freddie gray later died in police custody from a severed spinal cord that he received from the police’s horrible treatment toward him. Riots broke out in Baltimore against Freddie’s terrible treatment. The riots cost the city of Baltimore $9,000,000 in repairs for all of the damage. Research also says that the knife that Freddie Gray

On April 28, 1992, several riots erupted throughout Los Angeles, California due to the unjust trial when several officers were caught on video brutally beating Mr. Rodney King on the street. Thousands of African-Americans were unhappy with the decision of the court allowing the four officers to get off with no charges. During the LA Riots, over 55 people were killed, 2,000 were injured, and 7,000 were put into police custody. It was nearly $1 billion in damages done to property and 4,000 buildings in the city were burned. The three days of the LA Riots will be remembered in history because of the police brutality, national reaction to the violence, and the people's

White Americans have discriminated against African Americans ever since the first white men—bringing with them their slaves—set foot in what would become the continental United States. America’s roots lie in imperialistic expansionism during which white men took advantage of those with a darker skin color whom they deemed unequal. The photograph of the devastating aftermath of the Detroit Race Riot of 1967 vividly captures the white Americans sense of dominance towards the disenfranchised African Americans. Though the photo lacks an easily identifiable original source, it has circulated around the internet and now serves as an epitome of the voiceless black American community’s stance in the wake of destruction against the rest of America; it signifies what is still known as “The Great Rebellion” in Detroit, as the black Americans expressed their rage against the failure of American institutions (Flock). The picture’s illustration of the rubble among the street, pillaged stores, and thick black clouds of smoke billowing into the sky conveys the ruins that not only Detroit suffered, but also African Americans across America. The graphic image depicts the inequality and oppression black Americans endured in the face of the unscrupulous, corrupt white American empire. Ultimately, the photo represents United States as an imperial country founded on racial hierarchy.

Throughout history, homosexuals have been persecuted for being themselves. From the suicide of the ancient writer Sappho to Leonardo Da Vinci's arrest for “sodomy”, we can see that people have loved others of the same sex since the beginning. Only now, in modern times, have we allowed the LGBT+ (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, and plus.) to be seen as equals in the eyes of the law. Yet, these strides towards equality have not been without its sacrifices. It is believed by many that the modern day LGBT+ movement was sparked by the Stonewall Riots. As a result, the Stonewall riots proved to homosexuals that they were persecuted and maltreated. It pushed those who were still reluctant, and someone whom I was quite close to, to finally start believing that it was time to speak up for their rights.

In “Civil Rights in America in the 20th Century,” during 1941 when the United States entered the Second World War, African Americans that lived in the Southern States were facing segregation and unequal treatment because of their race and skin tone. Blacks had high hopes that World War II would mean an end to segregation and if they also helped fight for their country, they would be awarded with equal citizenship. However, the outcome was not what they hoped, racial segregation continued and the worst part was that Roosevelt didn’t do enough to help the disenfranchisement of African American voters in the South. In “1992 Los Angeles Riots,” the Los Angeles Riots occurred after four white police offers beat up black motorist, Rodney King. The video that showed King’s awful beating caused anger and commotion in the city. The LAPD did not even consider black people human and often called them “gorillas” or “monkeys,” making the police officers more willing to abuse black people for their own amusement. After a while both the South Central changed making the city more filled with Hispanics rather than African Americans and this event changed LAPD’s ways of handing situations. In the “LA Riots: 25 Years Later,” after what happened to Rodney King, it started debates on police brutality and racial injustice and many riots began in South Central hours following the occurrence. The list of events listed displayed actions people took because of how angry they were with what happened

Police officers have been getting away with murders of unarmed minority people. About a year ago in Baltimore, riots occurred because of the death of Freddie Gray. Who died in police custody. Freddie Gray was arrested and suffered a severe spinal cord injury while being transported in the van. His hands and feet were shackled but the

African Americans in Los Angeles and throughout the United States have experienced racial oppression for centuries. Rodney King was an African American motorist who inspired positive police reforms after he had a brutal conflict and was beaten by four members LAPD. Rodney King’s encounter resulted in a social and legal compromise because the incident made people aware of the police brutality, gave African Americans a voice against police abuse, and resulted in reforms to the way that the LAPD responded to the communities of color.

During the “Long, Hot Summer of 1967,” Detroit erupted in civil protest complete with looting, arson, and sniper-fire that signalled the inevitable downfall of the so-called “Model City.” The Detroit Riot was not the first of its kind, these riots had been happening around the country throughout the 1960’s and Detroit had become another city on the long list of urban rebellions. Detroit was in such chaos that Jerome Cavanagh, the mayor of Detroit, was forced to call in the National Guard. The riot had lasted only five days, from July 23rd to the 27th, yet by the end there were 43 reported deaths, 7,000 arrests, and $50 million of damage (“Detroit Riot of 1967”). Each riot had ties with the Civil Rights Movement and the strive for racial equality that was so prevalent in the 1960’s. The Detroit Riot was referred to by some as a rebellion, in which the participants seek reform through mass protest (Blumberg 139). These rebellions were oftentimes spontaneous yet there were undeniable patterns that appeared too often to be coincidental. The Detroit rebellion stemmed from racial inequality and discrimination of African Americans in the city. The most common factors of the rebellion were the issues of police bias and brutality against African Americans and housing and employment inequality. Consequences of the rebellion’s spontaneity, however, were disorder and lawlessness. Although it resulted in chaos, the 1967 Detroit Riot was a race rebellion in response to institutional