chain, et cetera. it was really one of the first youth cultures. some might see the zoo suit zoot suit as flashy and perhaps it was. but these were the most marginalized people in society. and even though they may have been treated as second-class citizens, when they put on these zoot suits, they suddenly had an identity. they suddenly could see themselves in a different light. the 40s were a period when there was tremendous panic, paranoia about youth cultures and particularly when they were minority youth cultures. so there were a lot of racist reactions against zoot suitors. most notoriously in the so-called zoot suit riots in los angeles in 1943. crowds of white men and servicemen were beating up latino and black men for wearing zoot suits.