Flashpoint of 1992 LA riots becomes a place of celebration
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STEFANIE DAZIO, Associated Press
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1of11Joyce Robertson, right, clenches her fist at the intersection of Florence and Normandie Avenues in Los Angeles, Tuesday, April 20, 2021, after a guilty verdict was announced at the trial of former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin for the 2020 death of George Floyd.Jae C. Hong/APShow MoreShow Less
2of11People hold Black Lives Matter flags at the intersection of Florence and Normandie Avenues, Tuesday, April 20, 2021, in Los Angeles, after a guilty verdict was announced at the trial of former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin for the 2020 death of George Floyd.Jae C. Hong/APShow MoreShow Less
The place where Florence and Normandie avenues meet is indelible in the history of the city of Los Angeles. Next week will mark 29 years since the intersection became a flashpoint for violence after the King verdict came down.
The cross-streets are where, in the aftermath of the jury s decision, Black men dragged white truck driver Reginald Denny from his big rig and beat him nearly to death. Denny survived the attack, which was captured on live TV.
The uprising spread as the city burned. Hundreds of businesses were looted and destroyed. Entire blocks of homes and stores went up in flames. More than 60 people died by shootings or other violence.
LOS ANGELES Two Black men. Two big cities. Two horrifying videos. Two different verdicts. In 1991, four Los Angeles police officers brutally beat motorist Rodney King and their acquittal on state charges a year later prompted one of the worst race riots in American history. In 2020, a Minneapolis police officer knelt on George Floyd s neck for 9 1/2 minutes as he gasped repeatedly, I can t breathe. The excruciating bystander video touched off protests against police brutality and racial injustice worldwide. On Tuesday, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder and manslaughter. The verdict was met with both joy and sorrow nationwide especially at an infamous intersection in South Los Angeles.
Flashpoint of 1992 LA riots becomes a place of celebration | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan s News Source infotel.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from infotel.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
GUILTY! Across the US, cheers fill city streets after Derek Chauvin is convicted in the death of George Floyd Christal Hayes, USA TODAY
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The largely peaceful demonstrations came as cities across the country prepared for possible violence that cropped up sporadically in last year s protests after Floyd s death, a landmark incident that sparked a reckoning in the U.S. over racial inequities and police brutality.
Some cities had already activated the National Guard as the Chauvin verdict loomed; others declared states of emergency.
Chauvin, who is white, was found guilty by a jury on all three charges in the death of Floyd, who is Black. He was convicted of second- and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He could face decades in prison at his sentencing in eight weeks; at a minimum as a first offender, he likely faces 12.5 years. His lawyers are likely to appeal the verdict.