The Development of the 1965 Los Angeles Riots
By Shawn Brown English 103
May 1998

Thesis: The events that paved the way for the fury of the riots were poor economic conditions, inadequate education and police brutality. Introduction I. History of African-Americans II. Employment III. Education IV. Los Angeles Police Department and African-Americans Conclusion Introduction To understand the Los Angeles Riots in 1965, we need to look back at two historical times. The first is Africa, before the Europeans landed on the western shores of Africa, because we will see that the Africans were civilized human beings. Second, we must look at the historical relationship between European-Americans and African-Americans in the United States, because there have been negligence in the enforcement of the laws against discrimination towards African-Americans. The events that paved the way for the fury of the riots were poor economic conditions, inadequate education, and police brutality. We must also keep in mind that the first generation of Africans in America did not migrate to America on their own power and authority. The Africans were savagely forced against their will to come to America. The Africans so desperately wanted to stay in their own homeland that some fought to the death before being boarded on ships, others jumped over board in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, and those who remained ship on the 17 day voyage, organized revolts when allowed to stretch. Though slavery was practiced throughout ancient history, it was not as treacherous as modern slavery. Modern slavery, meaning the 17th to the middle of the 19th centuries, was different from ancient slavery. "Ancient slavery, which had little or nothing to do with race was justified primarily by the rules of war"(Bennett 31). Bennett went on to explain that Christians and Moslems, began enslaving one another for religious reasons, and for their economic interest. The African-American had nowhere to seek refuge when conditions worsened in the 1960s. His ancestors were forced to come to the United States, and he was born in the United States. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution preaches equality for every man, but the African- American man had been excluded. What was the African-American to do when his God given rights were with held? Brief History of African-Americans In the 1860s, President Abraham Lincoln threatened to free the slaves in the Confederate States if they failed to corporate with the Union. The Confederacy refused to corporate and Lincoln released the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation granted the enslaved people their freedom. African-Americans should not look at Lincoln as a heroic President, because his intention on freeing slaves was not an act of humanitarianism. Lincoln looked down on the African-Americans, ".there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality" (Cox). That quote was taken from the Lincoln- Douglas debate. African-Americans were not aware of Lincoln's plan. President Lincoln saw African- Americans as burden barriers to America. At his second annual address President Lincoln shared his futuristic views for African-Americans, "Reduce the supply of black labor by colonizing the black labor out of the country, and by precisely so much you increase the demand for, and wages of, white labor" (Cox). Lincoln freeing the slaves was no nobler than Christopher Columbus's accidental rediscovery. In 1865, Congress passed the Thirteenth Amendment, abolishing slavery. After the fall of the Roman Empire, Europe suffered approximately four hundred years of uncivil behavior. During the early 400's, Europe slowly began climbing out of their darkness. In the continent of Africa, the Ghana Empire rule the northern part of Africa from the sixth century to the eleventh century. During this time historian Gary Nash states the Ghanaian Empire developed large towns, skillfully designed buildings, elaborate sculpture and metalwork depicting humans and animals, long distance commerce and a complex political structure. The Ghanaian also traded goods with the Arabs. In the beginning of the eleventh century, the kingdom of Mali overran the Ghana Empire. The Mali Empire ruled for the next four centuries. After their rule ended several other small kingdoms rose into power. Within these, different Empires lived skillful African people. They were skilled in metalworking, weaving, ceramics, architecture, and aesthetic expression. Codes of law, regional trade and an effective political organization all developed before the fifteenth century (Nash 15). This makes one wonder where the European obtained the idea that the African was a savage and he was civilized. The Africans had slaves, but their slaves were not treated less than a human being. Nash states that the slaves were war captives, criminals or sometimes people who sold themselves into slavery to pay off debts. Although the slave's rights were limited, they were still protected under the law, which allowed education, marriage, parenthood and other privileges. The children were not born into slavery nor was their enslavement permanent (Nash 17). Africans did participate in the slave trade, but the question is, were they aware of the brutality that the slaves would endure? During the trip across the Atlantic to America, the condition of the slave was horrible. Slaves were chained in a horizontal position that prevented them from defecating in suitable place. They lay in their own waste. Some of the slaves died, and the survivors endured the stench of the decaying bodies. Any human being suffering from these conditions would be psychologically disturbed and trembling with fear. Africans were branded by their owners like cattle. The act of slavery took on a different meaning with Europeans. European enslavement stripped Africans of human dignity, rights, education, marriage, parenthood, native language, religion, culture, and bondage was permanent. The African was no longer considered a human being to the Europeans, but a piece of property. The Europeans who fled to America will always look down on the darker skinned man as inferior and uncivil. Slavery became a big business and provided free labor in America. The Southern tobacco and cotton plantations profited greatly from slavery. Dr. Na'im Akbar stated that the 300 years of inhumane slavery has stamped a severe psychological and social shock on the minds of African-Americans, so devastating that even though we are 5 to 6 generations from the actual experience, we carry the scars in both our social and mental lives today (7). To keep the slaves subdued, the slave master prohibited any type of family bondage. Family bondage would have given the African leadership roles over their children, and the children would have been more reluctant to remain in slavery. The child would gain a sense of identity and pride within himself. The slave masters stripped the slave women of their children either by selling the children or the parents. The slaves were bred like animals. The slave males were ignorant of fatherhood as well as other things. The slave masters also divided their slaves; a few worked in the house while the rest worked the fields. This division separated the slaves and prevented them from working together to escape. The master also used the house slaves as spies. If any revolt or escape attempt was planned, the house slave would report to his master. Slave masters also used run away slaves who were caught as examples if someone else attempted to escape. The slaves were not allowed to practice religion until the 1720's (Nash 80). Nash also reminds us that the slave masters were not eager to let his slave's practice Christianity, because the slave will find the truth and fight for justice. Worshipping God became the slaves refuge from his master's perfidious world. Slave masters viewed slaves that revolted as barbarians and savages, but to intimidate slaves from revolting, slaves were dismembered, hung, tortured and even burned at a stake (Nash 79). The slavery condition in America was so horrifying that no type of intimidation stopped slaves from revolting. One of the most famous slave revolts was led by Nat Turner. In 1831 in Southampton County Virginia on a hot August night, Nat Turner led a revolt that left 57 white people dead and a nation in terror (Bennett 136). Americans underestimated the African spirit and their own Christian beliefs. The slaves were a group of people with their backs to the wall and nothing to lose. The European-American was above the slave's physical world. To the European-American, the slave was mentally inferior. European-American psychologists went as far to say that the African-American was genetically mentally inferior, and that the African-American's brain was smaller, indicating that brain size determines intelligence levels. With this delusional thinking, the European-American could never picture an African-American as an equal citizen or leader. The European-American's mentality entrapped African-Americans with unequal rights. When a European-American committed a malicious crime against an African-American, he was praised, or if he stood before a jury, a not guilty verdict was likely. An African-American person filing a complaint against a European-American was more likely to be arrested than the European-American. Although slavery has been physically abolished, the mentality continues to linger around with both the African-Americans and European-Americans. The unequal treatment between African-Americans and European-Americans has reached many boiling points. In the city of Los Angeles, two civil disturbances erupted. The first was in the August heat of 1965, during the civil rights movement, and the second was in the spring air of April 1992. Employment After slavery was abolished, some African-Americans stayed on the plantations and others did not want to see another plantation for as long as they were alive. The African-Americans who stayed on the plantations were not crazy or ignorant. The majority of the African-Americans only had the skills of a sharecropper. The very few former slaves who possessed such skills as carpentry and metallurgy could hire themselves out to people who needed their services. The former slaves who left the plantations returned to work for survival because they had no other means of survival. The transition from slavery to freeman in a capitalistic society that is racist created terrible times for African-Americans. The African- Americans who left the plantations were faced with savage European-Americans hunting them down like wild game. The capitalist economical system in racist America plagued the people of color like the plague in the Middle Ages. During the Second World War, many blacks flocked to Los Angeles for work. In her book, The Watts Riots, Liza Burby stated that between 1940 and 1960 approximately 1700 blacks immigrated to Los Angeles per month (29). There was no way that the city of Los Angeles would be able to provide jobs for that massive group of people. The majority of immigrates from the rural South were unskilled and uneducated. Burby estimated that 29,500 Negroes were unemployed, and 56 percent of the residents were living in poverty with an income of less than $4,000 a year per family. It is not because Negroes refused to work, or was too lazy to find work, but the roadblock of discrimination, and an adequate education stood in the Negro's path to employment. The big and small corporations are part of the blame; they are the ones with the most control over the economy in capitalism. Though the capitalist's only goal is to maximize profits, he must not neglect the citizens. While the corporations only want qualified personnel, they should have coordinated training programs with the Los Angeles City Council. Implementing such programs, the potential employee could obtain the necessary skills he needs to carry out the job. Corporate involvement in the communities provides a healthier relationship with the people. Training programs were just a start for Los Angeles, because while African-Americans were fighting overt racism in Selma, Alabama, African-Americans in Los Angeles were fighting undercover racism. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) stated unfair hiring, training and promotional practices existed and asked for total integration and merit employment. From the corporations' point of view, the NAACP was asking for special favors, but of course such a thought is ludicrous, because how are African-Americans supposed to function in a capitalistic society where they are treated like unwanted outsiders? By the enslavement of the African-Americans' parents, grandparents and great-grandparents, the United States economy has become one of the strongest in the world. Since involuntary servitude is no longer allowed in the United States there is no need for African-Americans. Even with California's FEPC law that forbids job discrimination in business and industry, the law was severely ignored by the employers. How was the African-American going to file a complaint that discrimination was the reason he is unemployed? The NAACP wanted to amend the state law to allow the FEPC to initiate complaints against offending employers. The Los Angeles Times newspaper was against the amending of the law because they claimed that it would require a new bureaucracy, and it could lead to harassment of employers who were honestly seeking to improve conditions. Perhaps the Los Angeles Times was guilty of discrimination against African-Americans, and/or was paid a hefty amount of money to print such preposterous statement. If the employers were honestly striving to improve employment among the disadvantaged African-American, there would not be a problem proving discrimination. The employer would have a host of African-American employees to prove discrimination did not exist. What do African-Americans see in their future? If the African-American can not find adequate employment or employment at all his future becomes a bleak. Dr. Edward J. Stainbrook, the head of psychiatry at USC School of Medicine in 1965 stated, "Put an anonymous person in a sprawling city where he scans the future and sees little more than hopelessness and you're going to have trouble." This observation is not anything new to Los Angeles. Throughout American history and world history riots occurred over similar situations. Some riots led to revolutionary wars. In 1789 the French rioted and revolted over a ten year span, which ended the French monarchy and the redistribution of land among the common people. The book, Watts: The Aftermath, edited by Paul Bullock claimed that everyone agreed that more and better jobs were needed in Watts, but most policy makers refused to rectify the problem (105). This problem surfaced well before 1965. The policy makers were European-American and the people in need of help were African-American. The policy makers could care less for the African-American population, because for one African-Americans were required to take a literacy test to vote until the summer of 1965 and second the racist attitudes European-Americans had towards African-Americans. European-Americans claimed that African-Americans were uneducated, unskilled and lazy. This is amazing, because European-Americans controlled the type of education that African-Americans received and what skills they would be taught. Since the schools in the inner cities were not adequately prepared, how could African-Americans compete against European-Americans for jobs or get accepted into institutions for higher learning? This prevents African-Americans from obtaining leadership roles within their cities. Bullock also stated that many of the traditional jobs had begun to vanish because of automation, factory relocation out of the city, and recessions in building construction. As these jobs faded away, no new jobs were created, and programs to improve skills were unavailable. How were African-Americans supposed to prosper in a capitalist racist society? The European-American could care less for African-Americans as long as they stayed in their filthy ghettos. The government programs were so inadequate it was a waste of government funds and the people's time. "Many of the governmental programs are limited to young people, offer little or no promotional opportunity, and establish low earnings that some local residents are disinclined to abandon alternative, and sometimes illegal, sources of income." (Bullock 106). The government provided just enough resources not to be criticized, or enough to claim that action had been taken to alleviate the economical problems that plagued the ghettos. What were African-Americans supposed to do when the racist European- Americans secured all the necessary resources to prosper in a capitalistic society? The idea of reward stimulates a person to work hard, without an itchy-handed overseer with a whip in hand. Education, innovation, resources and an opportunity are essential tools for success in Los Angeles. Obtaining an adequate education is time-consuming, difficult and sometimes frustrating. For a process this strenuous, a person in capitalistic Los Angeles knew employment was waiting for him. Once a job is in hand, for efficient work performed, an increase in salary is surely to come. The more money a person accumulates, the more control he has over his life. The wealthy not only have power over their lives, but others' as well. The vast majority of African-Americans did not see the stimulating rewards. The rewards were always out of reach. African-Americans came close, but could never enjoy the sweet reward of success in Los Angeles. The percentage of African-Americans that escaped the evil grasp of racism can be considered negligible compared to the large percent that were victimized. The ears were deceived, but the eyes bore the truth. If an education did not guarantee a job, what else would stimulate inner city blacks to attend school? Negative attitudes towards school and the so-called American dream had developed. African-Americans became more concerned on sure ways to survive in a capitalistic society. Welfare checks and food stamps from the government provided a minimum income for women with children. In a city with a large population like Los Angeles, some African- American men turned to activities that violated American laws, such as these: drugs, stealing and manipulating women to sell their bodies for them. Education Employment was not the only heart-breaking challenge that African-Americans faced. African- Americans were overwhelmingly undereducated in Los Angeles. "According to the 1960 census, about two-thirds of adults in the disadvantage areas had failed to graduate from high school.. a high percent(almost 14%) of the adults..were classified as functional illiterates (defined as completing less than five years of school)."(Fogelson 65). The disadvantaged areas Fogelson is referring to were Watts and Avalon which were predominately African-American and within the riot area. Those statistics are horrific, and the city of Los Angeles should have felt shame, but because they were African-Americans, it was as if they did not play a part in city of Los Angeles. The African-Americans were just taking up space and causing trouble. The uneducated adult African-American population is shocking. A school is a school as long it has the necessary materials. The condition of the material should play a minor role in school performance. Although the educational materials were not as up-to-date as the suburban schools or in excellent condition, this is not a valid reason to drop out of school. In a city as complex as Los Angeles, an education is part of the basic survival tools. Fogelson thinks education is the keystone to democracy. That very well may be, but in this capitalist republic society those with an education will be considered for a job. An uneducated African-American filing a complaint about job discrimination will never win. The civil rights movement and the black power movement provided a new light for young African- Americans in Los Angeles. The motivated African-American youth were faced with harsh challenges: racist teachers, inadequate school supplies, violent attacks while attempting to integrate European- American schools, and African-American administrators who did not relate to them. David Star Jordan High School, Edwin Markham Junior High and Samuel Gompers Junior High school and nine elementary schools accommodated the youth of Watts. Predominately African-American schools outside of Watts were Fremont High, Jefferson High, Washington High and Manual Arts High School. For various reasons, students were circulated within these high schools. The closest predominately European-American high school to Watts was South Gate High. In the book, Watts: The Aftermath, by the people of Watts, Edited by Paul Bullock, students from Jordan High School spoke of the atmosphere in their school. Jerry complained about the teaching of history did not include Negroes. He learned about all the great contributions that white people have given mankind. Jerry explains, "I want to learn something about all people, not just one. As they tell me in the history book about way back in the 16th century about the Jews, the Caucasians, but they never mention anything about the Indians, or the black man's history. This is what I wanted to learn; I wanted to learn about everyone's history, not just one race." The way the academic system is set up is an indirect way of telling young African-American students that European-Americans are the greatest thinkers on the earth, and everyone else is inferior to them. The African-American student has no one to relate to in history books that glorify only European-Americans and Europeans. Fred, another student from Jordan, describes how some of the teachers carry out ineffective lesson plans. "I remember a class I had; it was a science class, my teacher.had us to read a whole chapter within three days. Every Thursday we would have a discussion on this chapter, and the only time that we would have a discussion was when we read the chapter; and a lot of times that we read the chapter, answer the questions, and then when we were supposed to have a discussion, and there is something going on: either we see a movie, or we have five or ten minutes' discussion. We'd never have a whole period of class to have a discussion on one particular subject." Fred also complained that the only subject discussed for an entire period was narcotics. Students need to have class discussion to learn effectively. How are the students going have their questions on the material answered? Sam, another student at Jordan, shares the same complaint as Fred. Agreeing with Steve, how teachers hand out assignments without explaining the work, and when students ask questions about the assignments the teacher tell the student to just read and do it, Sam speaks, "That's mainly why, one of the reasons I never did check with school myself, because teachers never did try to explain anything to me. They'd write some upon the blackboard, you come into class, they got it on the board.Here you are, trying to do some work, and you don't even know what it is; you just know it is on the board and they come back, talk to you about nothing." Teachers with this type of teaching style are only out for a paycheck, and the students can sense teachers who care about them obtaining an adequate education and teachers who do not care. Students react off their teacher's actions. A teacher's enthusiasm can be contagious: if not all the students, at least the majority of the students would get excited about learning. Wally describes the leadership in the counseling department at Jordan High School, "At Jordan, they just counseled me on my grades. At times I was falling down, they called me in and told me that, "You understand you are having a little difficulty with your grades."I said, "No," and my counselor would give me a date to pick that grade up, and if it is not, I should be dropped down to a lower level. So I maintained the same grade level until I graduated." The leadership in the counseling department was worse than the teacher's leadership skills. Wally's counselor failed to point him in any direction. The counselor failed to question Wally on why his grades were low. Nor did the counselor ask Wally what could he do to improve his grades, and apparently the thought of discussing college was not on the counselor's mind. It was as if African-Americans were not supposed to go to college; they were to learn a trade after high school and stay in that trade until retirement. The counselor did not encourage the African-American students to go to college so they could become professionals in law, medicine, science, business and politics. The people with education in those fields are the ones who run America and make all the decisions. Shirley, a student integrating the predominately European-American South Gate High School, explains how white counselors try to steer African-American students to inferior educational plans. ".I don't trust my white counselors at South Gate High School. He tried to give me a homemaking major, he said, 'Well, I think you ought to take homemaking; therefore, you take clothing and foods,' and all that junk that I get at home. I told him I didn't want it, I want an English major, and that's what I got." Fortunately Shirley was a strong individual and refuted the counselor's sabotage on her educational goals. The only problem is that Shirley is probably one out of many who are focused on their goals and burning with determination. Fortunately, not all the students at Jordan High fell victim to discouraging counselors or racist teachers. Two notable graduates from Jordan in 1965 were Jacqueline Thomas and Robert Stoneham. Jacqueline won numerous academic awards in math, science, student government and many more. Jacqueline continued her education at UCLA. Robert won academic awards in English, student government and scholarships. He was accepted at Harvard University, Carleton University, Pomona College and several other schools. Robert elected to continue his education at Pomona College. These two students, along with other students, represented a very small percent of success compared to the extremely high dropout rate and the students who were just passed through without learning. Jordan, with other predominately African-American high schools, still needed better supplies and competent teachers. Some of the parents were aware of the condition of the schools and planned to resolve the problem. The parents of the predominately African-American high schools knew as individuals they were no threat to the Board of Education, but as an organized team they could demand effective changes. The parents and community leaders united and planned a march on the Board of Education on June 25, 1963. The Los Angeles Times reported, "Negro leaders appealed to their community and to sympathizers Sunday for a massive march on the Board of Education.." An unidentified participant states part of the reason for the march, ".to show Los Angeles and the world we mean what we say." The African-Americans not only felt but also knew that their voices had not been heard. Without any political influence or financial power, the Board of Education simply ignored the changes African- Americans deemed necessary for their children's success in school. African-Americans are forced to protest or commit acts of violence to be heard, which is always the last choice to resolve a problem. The march on the Board of Education was to be a peaceful march. People who thought they might turn violent were asked to stay at home. One of the organizers was quoted in the Los Angeles Times, "In case of violence from others, you must, above all, remain calm and non-violent." The African- Americans of Los Angeles were in search of an equal education for their children. Fogelson stated that African-American communities lacked facilities for children in their pre-school years, where the foundations of learning are built. Fogelson also believes that language development is taught in pre-school and it is vital, because it prepares children to learn once they entered the regular school curriculum (65). He also claims that without pre-schools the children's learning ability, comprehension, vocabulary, verbal skills, understanding of adults, and other essential developments will have a negative effect on schooling of the child, which he refers to as a serious educational handicap (65). This is very true, because if the child starts school in kindergarten he would waste the year adapting to the school system. Pre-school teaches children the how to work with others, follow directions, conduct themselves in a classroom and learn fundamentals like the alphabet. Without pre- school the child will not be able to read by the time they are in the first grade. Along with all the academic complaints, the students felt the restrictions on their personal appearances were too strict. The major complaint was the being told how long a student could wear his hair. The administration went as far as keeping a pair of clippers handy in case they felt someone's hair was too long. Dick's views on the comparison of rules at Jordan and European-American schools, "Jordan is a wee bit worse [than other schools]. It is more rigid in our school. Other students at other [i.e., Caucasian] schools, they have more leeway because, you know, at so many schools, the principal and the student's parents may be close friends, something of this nature, somebody may be friendly with somebody at the Board of Education, so therefore they have to be cautious on the demands they make on the students, so they can't just throw them out of school right quick, make them cut their hair off, or take the hems off the young lady's skirt.Caucasian schools we observed, they do more adolescent stunts and tricks and play more pranks on the administration and teachers than we probably even think of doing." Not only did African-American students feel the harsh restrictions, but also they were aware of the leniency at the European-American schools. The other problem with Jordan was not only the administration or the teachers, but also the parent's involvement in their children's education. Jordan was not plagued with an entire faulty of worthless teachers. It was the fact that throughout the administration and teachers, these individuals existed like a body invaded by HIV. I compare the negative teachers to HIV, because the students are young adults with developing minds, and negative comments or ineffective teaching could easily turn the young students away from education. If the insults are coming from a European-American teacher or counselor, it builds animosity between the European- American administrator and the African-American student. The young African-American student develops hate not for just that one European-American person, but for all European-Americans, because the African-American students will encounter it at an interview with a European-American employer, or with a European-American police officer. Teachers must realize that they are more than educators. They are respected, influential, mentors and role models. Students look up to teachers and turn to them for advice, confidence and assurance. Comments from a teacher can be the difference between a successful student and an unsuccessful student. The unemployed and uneducated African-American develops an anti-social attitude towards society, and the assistance from the Los Angeles Police Department did not provide any hope for the African- American. Los Angeles has put the African-American in a particular situation. He was not wanted and had no where to turn. European-Americans did not want to employ him or provide an accessible adequate education. The African-American lived in poverty and only saw a few African-Americans make it across the road of success. Instead of assisting fellow African-Americans, the successors packed their belongings and fled the ghettoes. Los Angeles Police Department and African-Americans During the 1960s, Los Angeles was just as racist as any other city in the United States. Los Angeles has boasted that their city is not as bad as the rest of the cities in the United States. No racist act is greater or lesser than another. The racism in Los Angeles existed in the places that crippled the African- American citizens the worst: government, education, employment, and law enforcement. In his book Black Violence: Political Impact of the 1960s Riots, James Button explains that not only did the African-Americans of Watts know their suffering was far greater that the rest of the city, but, "To many there it seemed as though white society intended to keep them in poverty, on relief, uneducated, unemployed, out of the way." If the City Council kept up on their history, it would have been known that if the social and economical conditions did not improve soon an uprising was eminent. The Russian Revolution was caused by similar conditions that the African-Americans of Los Angeles experienced. With the entanglement of job discrimination and unequal education, the Los Angeles African-American was under constant harassment by the militaristic police Chief William Parker and his blood thirsty soldiers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The role of a police department is to serve the community's citizens, to protect citizens from unlawful actions, and to enforce federal, state and local laws. The police department works for the government both federal and local and the citizens. It is the citizens' tax dollars that pay the policemen's salary. Taxes are not only paid through earned wages but also by any type of purchase made in the United States. Now who would pay someone to beat or harass them? Who beats or harasses an employer who can not afford to hire or pay them? Without an option to defer taxation, the Los Angeles African-American was paying the LAPD to beat them and harass them. The malicious treatment of the LAPD reached a level where they could have had just cause to use force and the suppressed African-American would have seen a different picture. The Los Angeles Times printed numerous articles related to attacks on the LAPD by organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The Los Angeles Times, the City Council and Mayor Sam Yorty stood by the LAPD through all of its allegations. The ACLU wanted to set up an independent review board to investigate complaints made against the LAPD. The Los Angeles Times labeled the proposed review board as a kangaroo court and claimed the ACLU would be working for special interest groups and not the entire city. The proposed review board would have alleviated some of the police misconduct. Without the review board, the policemen treated the African Americans any way they wanted. A woman complained that her son was arrested for a vandalizing a school, which he walked through to get to church. The late responding policemen just needed someone to blame the incident on, and the woman's son was the unlucky victim. The woman went to the 77th police station to get her son; the policeman intimidated her by telling her it is unlawful to say a policeman is committing malpractice in an intimidating voice. (Conot 147). Without the police review board the African-American was in a no win situation with the abusive police department. The Los Angeles Times and Mayor Sam Yorty repeatedly claimed that the LAPD was the best in the United States and for Yorty, the LAPD was the best in the world. Yorty confidently boasted to the LA Times, ".. our police force, one of the best in the world." The Los Angeles Times adds its opinion about the LAPD, "Our department is the best in the country." The LAPD could have been the best police department, but it would have to exclude relations with African-Americans. As long as the LAPD was cracking down on unlawful European-Americans and doing whatever they had to do to keep the African-Americans contained in their ghettoes, the LAPD was the best in the nation. "Order had been maintained by white police through force. Nearly all blacks in Watts believed the police were brutal, deliberately brutal, as a technique of control (Button 118). Part of the police department's racist attitude problems was the recruitment of Southerners, probably the most racist people in the entire country. Chief Parker claimed on 13% of the department was from the south. Any percentage from the south should be considered terrible. Parker was looking for some hard-nosed European-American southerners that would relentlessly come down on African-Americans. If Parker wanted to alleviate the tension between the police department and the African-Americans, he should have recruited more African-Americans, Latinos and European-Americans from cities that had a sense of equality among human beings. Instead, Parker took a trip down to the Mason-Dixon Line to recruit police officers. The police department undermined the rights of the African-American. As Robert Conot explains, "A black waitress returning home from work at 2:00am was stopped by a white motorist who attempted to rape her, but she escaped and called the police, the cop refused to believe her and arrested her. She then filed a complaint against the cops, it was disallowed, and she was arrested again for filing a false complaint (Conot 147). Such actions toward African-Americans were common and the officers were seldom punished. The attitude of Chief Parker sums it up, "We're on the top and they're on the bottom " (Boskin 116). Change was seriously needed and fast. African-American leaders relentlessly strove to implement changes in the LAPD as well in the city of Los Angeles. Assemblymen Mervyn Dymally and F. Douglas Ferrell proposed a human rights commission, the teaching of African-American history (in the schools), employment information centers, a course in human relations in all police training and low cost co-operative housing to eliminate "existing ghettoes." The LAPD would not except any such changes readily. Ferrell and Dymally referred to Chief Parker as " closed minded except for police science." Despite the complaints made against the LAPD and the CORE's push for the removal of Chief Parker for his crimes, Mayor Yorty and the City Council refused to believe the complaints and never considered removing Chief Parker from his post. The Mayor called the cry of police brutality an attempt to undermine law enforcement and that the criers were twisting the facts. Twelve Southern California CORE chapters demanded the chief's resignation, accusing the police department of brutality against minority groups. Yorty, who never visited the African-American community, commented on the CORE's demand, " I think what happened was that some irresponsible people in CORE, who don't speak for the Negro community and who are self appointed (made the) demand and wanted to get credit for it." The only African-Americans Yorty probably ever talked to was Thomas Bradley who was on the City Council and the two assemblymen, and they did not have strong ties with the African- American community. The two African-American assemblymen boasted how they were pressured to join CORE, but steadily refused. In the beginning of the riot, Assemblyman Dymally tried to calm the crowd, but they saw him as an African-American who lived outside the ghetto area. When Dymally confessed to living in the area, he was shunned for living in a big house. One rioter asked Dymally if he was for the people, he was instructed to throw a bottle, which he was handed by the rioter. Dymally refused and was accused as being on the European-American's side (Boskin 96). Dymally was just another person stepping on the African-Americans to the rioters. Dymally should have thrown the bottle and asked the rioters what solutions were found by destroying property and trashing the streets. Dymally would have caught the attention of the rioters, so the rioters could question their own actions. CORE was not the only organization pushing for Chief Parker's resignation. The open arrogant comments by Parker have labeled him a racist in the African-American community. "Police Chief Parker['s].public utterances have earned him a racist image in the African-American community". Parker failed to show his fellow African-American police officers any type of regard. "Negro police officers are not as competent as Caucasian officers and the only reason for sending them in would be because they have black skins and are invisible at night." Racist statements like the ones coming from Parker should have an embarrassment to the LAPD, the Mayor and the city of Los Angeles and her citizens. Parker was no doubt a racist, but he was undoubtedly supported and backed by Mayor Yorty and the City Council. "This council should stand up and defend the man who is trying to defend this city," cried Councilman Henry. The economical and educational status of the African-Americans in Los Angeles served as fuel for the riots. The anger of the rioters was directed at Chief Parker and the police department. The riots provided the opportunity for the local African-Americans to get back at the unfair local merchants who were mainly Jews. If the majority of the store ownership had been African-Americans, most likely they would have been spared. The anger towards the police department was so great that it included all European-Americans. The rioters expressed extreme discontent for the police department. Innocent European-Americans were attacked because they were associated with the malicious European-American policemen. One rioter expressed himself saying, "They have been picking on me all my life. I don't care what you say, I'm going to kick Whitey's ass tonight. I wish Parker would come out here. I'd like to throw a brick at his ass." It is clear that the LAPD was the main cause of the increase in tension between African- Americans and European-Americans. When the rioter said "they been picking on me." he is referring to the LAPD. That he is going to kick Whitey's ass is in reference to any European-American person he sees, but then he points Chief Parker out specifically. " Whitey ain't no good, he talk 'bout law and order, it's his law and his order, it ain't mine." explained another angry rioter. The majority of the contact that the African-Americans in Los Angeles had with European-Americans were the policemen. The policeman's malicious actions toward African-Americans condemned the entire European-American population, because the LAPD represented the white population. The finger is consistently pointed at the police department. African-Americans explained how they witnessed cops brutalizing African-Americans, by splitting the heads of African-Americans with their nightsticks, generally treating them like dirt, and the African-Americans related the treatment from the police department to slavery. Some believed the cops were trained to beat on African- Americans and to keep them penned down in Los Angeles's ghettoes like hogs in a pen. " They come in with them silly helmets, sticks and guns and things. Who the [hell] Parker think he is -- God?" a rioter commented. The suppressed African-American in Los Angeles was striving to make progress, through the civil rights movement and local peace demonstrations, demanding improvement in employment opportunities, education, police relations and the resignation of Chief Parker. The LAPD stood in the way of the African-American's progressive movement, mainly with unlawful arrest, that added a burden to the African-American's chance at obtaining employment. An African-American searching for a job with an arrest record is like fishing for catfish in a tar pit. Conclusion People can argue that African-Americans in Los Angeles in the 1960s were better off than most African-Americans in other cities across the United States. The fact is that the conditions in Los Angeles the African-Americans faced were unacceptable. They suffered from poor economic conditions, an ineffective educational system in their neighborhoods and police brutality. The lack of skills, education and a minor arrest record were not the only set backs that African- Americans faced while attempting employment. The fact that they were African-American were enough to disqualify them for employment. An African-American could be given an arrest record for questioning a police officer, disagreeing with an officer or any other minor senseless offense. Employers were not concerned with the details of the arrest. The African-American left the employer unemployed. The educational system in African-American communities in Los Angeles was behind those in European-American communities. An unequal schooling between African-Americans and European- Americans create unequal opportunities for jobs and college admission. The African-American youth views an education as a waste of time, which produces a high dropout rate among African-Americans. The African-Americans in Los Angeles wanted their present conditions to change for the better. African-Americans protested against the faulty education system in their neighborhoods and discrimination in the employment industry. The essential ingredient for the 1965 riots was the police brutality that the African-American community faced. The Los Angeles Police Department felt they could do what ever they wanted to do against African-Americans. People are more likely to riot over physical abuse than political oppression. The African-Americans in Los Angeles experienced political oppression and physical abuse. The result was a riot. The riot could have been prevented if the city politicians would have listened to the African-American's complaints. The African-Americans called for some changes in a rational manner, and the politician apparently did not take the complaints serious enough. They cried police brutality existed and it needed to stop. The Mayor and City Councilmen called the complaints an act of communism and that African- Americans wanted to undermine law enforcement. The city of Los Angeles turned its back on the African-American citizens. African-Americans were noticed through a riot that was preventable. Bibliography: Books: Nash, Gary B., and Julie Roy Jeffery. The American People: Creating a Nation and a Society. 3rd Edition New York: HarperCollins College Publishers, 1994. Bennett, Lerone Jr. Before the Mayflower: A history of Black America. 5th ed. New York: Johnson Publishing Company, Inc., 1982. Burby, Liza N. The Watts Riots San Diego: Lucent Books, 1997. Bullock, Paul, Eds. Watts: The Aftermath New York: Grover Press, 1969. Fogelson, Robert M. The Los Angeles Riots Salem: Ayer Co., 1988, Original Publication: New York, Arno Press, 1969. Button, James W. Black Violence: Political Impact of the 1960s Riots Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1978. Boskin, Joseph Urban Racial Violence: In the Twentieth Century, 2 edition Beverly Hills: Glencoe Press, 1976. Akbar, Na'im Ph.D. Chains and Images of Psychological Slavery Jersey City: New Mind Productions 1984. Conot, Robert Rivers of Blood, Years of Darkness Toronto, New York: Bantam Books, 1967. Cox, Earnest Sevier Lincoln's Negro Policy Los Angeles: The Noontide Press, 1968. Newspapers "Negro Leaders Urge Massive March Today" Los Angeles Times 24 June 63 "Toward Abolishing Job Bias" Los Angeles Times 25 June 63 "Feelings Behind Rioting Analyzed" Los Angeles Times 14 August 65 "Undermining the Police Force" Los Angeles Times 19 June 60 "Police Board, Yorty, Council Back Parker: Hit CORE's call for his resignation" Los Angeles Times 7 May 64 "2 Negro Assemblymen Rap Brown Over Rights" Los Angeles Times 28 April 64 "Jordan Posts Top Graduates" Los Angeles Sentinel 1960s