Notes

In 1892, there was a biracial man that was named Homer A. Plessy, and he challenged the Louisiana Law by going out of his way to choose a seat in a whites-only coach car (Parks 12). To people's dismay, he was ordered to leave the train immediately (Parks 12). However, Homer refused to leave, and his decision to stay resulted in his arrest, forcible removal from the car, and subsequent imprisonment—all within a single night (Parks 12). Plessy hired an attorney to represent him, however, he was ultimately found guilty of violating the law (Parks 12). He appealed the verdict though, and his case eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where it became known in history books as Plessy v. Ferguson (Parks 12). As a result of Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, the court ruled that Louisiana's Separate Car Act could no longer remain in effect (Parks 12). The court declared that racial segregation did not constitute a lack of equality and, therefore, did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment (Parks 12). They established a new legal standard for racial separation, which became known as the doctrine of "separate but equal" (Parks 12). Under this doctrine, businesses and public facilities had the ability to become legally designated for only blacks or only whites if they met the standard that they were of equal quality (Parks 12). However, the facilities that were only allowed for African Americans were rarely of equal standards and quality compared to the facilities that were only allowed for whites (Parks 12). According to Pilgrim, "Discrimination against blacks is acceptable as an implicit but clear message that echoed throughout the states" (Parks 13).

The Jim Crow system affected basically every aspect of African American living and lots of the laws prohibited and restricted social interaction between people of different races (Parks 13). An example would be in South Carolina, where those working in textiles, black and white, were forbidden from working in the same room (Parks 13). They were not allowed going in and out of the same doors, and even looking through the same windows (Parks 13). A law in Birmingham Alabama made it so that blacks and whites were not allowed to play checkers or dominoes together and the State of Oklahoma even passed a law prohibiting people of different races from going boating together, exemplifying the lengths to which segregation laws extended (Parks 13). Across the South, segregation was strictly enforced, with signs prominently displayed above water fountains, doorways, and public entrances to indicate whether they were designated for "white" or "colored" use (Parks 13). This system of separation dictated nearly every aspect of daily life. Black and white individuals were kept apart in hospitals, prisons, schools (both public and private), churches, cemeteries, washrooms, and public accommodations (Parks 13). The facilities designated for Black people were almost always grossly inferior, a reflection of the systemic inequality that was legally upheld (Parks 13). The ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson not only validated these practices but also gave Jim Crow states a legal framework to ignore their constitutional obligations to Black citizens (Parks 13). This widespread and institutionalized discrimination underscored the oppressive nature of segregation and its far-reaching consequences.

Under the Jim Crow laws, black people we forced to to live in fear their whole lives and if people of African American descent were to break or violate these laws and rules of etiquette in any way, they were faced with harsh, violent and severe punishment (Parks 13). Whites were given the right to beat black folk, and often times they were strongly encouraged to (Parks 13). The most extreme cases of violence under the Jim Crow system were lynchings, lynchings being public murders back then (Parks 13). Often times, these public murders would be hangings that were carried out by mobs and masses of angry white people a statement from Pilgrim reinforcing this historical reality, stating, "Violence was instrumental for Jim Crow" (Parks 14). The impact of Plessy v. Ferguson and the Jim Crow era shows how deeply racial segregation shaped American society. By enforcing inequality through laws, violence, and discrimination, this period left a legacy of injustice that still affects the fight for racial equality today.

Rosa Park’s mugshot from February of 1956 when she was arrested for not giving up her seat on the bus.
At the bus station in Durham, North Carolina, May 1940

The 1992 Los Angeles Riots were a series of violent protests, looting acts of arson, and civil unrest that occurred in Los Angeles, California. The riots were an act of uprising against racial injustice and connects to several underlying causes regarding racial discrimination and equality. The riots followed the release of four white police officers that were involved in the beating a black man named Rodney King in 1991 ("Los Angeles Riots"). Rodney King was a black activist who led the Los Angeles police on a high-speed car chase, and when he was caught and apprehended, Kings beating was videotaped by bystanders ("Los Angeles Riots"). The video of his beating spread to repeated broadcasts by multiple different news organizations, and his case became known city wide extremely quickly ("Los Angeles Riots"). The reaction from the public was surprise and shock that the jury did not go through with convicting the police officers ("Los Angeles Riots"). There was concrete digital evidence that depicted the officers beating a prostrate man with savage intent, and this decision ignited outrage, particularly within the Black community, as it was seen as another example of systemic racism and a lack of accountability for police misconduct ("Los Angeles Riots"). Hours after the verdict, protests began in South Central Los Angeles ("Los Angeles Riots"). They quickly escalated into riots, marked by looting, arson, and violence ("Los Angeles Riots"). Chaos spread across the city, targeting businesses, public spaces, and infrastructure ("Los Angeles Riots"). Throughout Los Angeles City, the riots went on and killed at least 53 people, and leaving 2,300 people injured ("Los Angeles Riots"). Around 12000 buildings were destroyed during the riots and the estimated cost of destruction to these buildings came to be around $1 billion dollars, making the LA riots one of the costliest civil disturbances in U.S. history ("Los Angeles Riots"). Ultimately, the Los Angeles riots of 1992 was a reaction to the racial conflict that has been present for many years and was initiated by the verdict of the police officers that beat Rodney King ("Los Angeles Riots"). It exposed the existing divide within the society and also emphasized the requirement of change and equality for black and other colored communities.

The riots were not just a reaction to the Rodney King verdict but also reflected long-standing issues of racial inequality, police brutality, economic disparity, and systemic neglect in marginalized communities in Los Angeles and beyond.

"A depiction of the violent nature of rioting and the characteristics that separate rioting from protests: e.g., arson, destruction of buildings, etc."

Rioting is a deeply perplexing and often troubling form of collective action that raises important questions about human behavior, social unrest, and the limits of civil discourse. Unlike peaceful protests, which seek to draw attention to injustices in a nonviolent way, riots involve the breakdown of order and often escalate into destructive acts such as looting, arson, and violence. But what drives people, often from diverse backgrounds, to engage in such extreme behavior?

Rioting is a complex and often troubling form of collective action that stimulates important questions regarding human behavior, social unrest, and the limits of civil discourse. It's characteristics are completely opposite of peaceful protests and provokes wonderment of what drives people, often from diverse backgrounds, to engage in such extreme behavior? Although there have been several decades built upon research regarding crowd behavior and collective violence, the set definition of the term riot has stayed to be the subject of intense debate among masses and researchers ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). The traditional views surrounding riots and crowd psychology, supported by scholars like Gustave Le Bon and others, suggest that events of crowd behavior are typically described as unruly mayhem ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). These views argue that such behavior is brought upon by an organized network of delinquents, while the rest of the general population remains more or less as silent spectators ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). According to the Encyclopedia article titled "Riot Behavioral Aspects", "Rioting has thus been portrayed as a kind of collective mayhem." ("Riot Behaviors Aspects")*. These views have been continuously upheld by law enforcement agents and often times are also represented deep within media ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). This makes public support for police suppression of discriminatory events prominent within some communities, and can also alter peoples perceptions and opinions on how rioting should be handled ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). Because of law enforcement statements about rioting, negative views and stereotypes may arise and cause even more divide between communities and society in general ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). In comparison, there have been multiple researchers to argue and defend that riot behavior is not exactly irrational, neither is it the crowd's characterization that makes riot behavior collective ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). Focusing on the civil unrest of the 1960s, some scholars with leftist views have argued that riots are not just chaos, but a way for people who feel ignored by the government to express their anger and frustration, thinking of them more as a form of protest ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). Instead of using the term "riot" there have also been activists with allies that usually use substitution words for riot like "rebellion" or "uprising", underlining the protest nature of these events (Riot Behavioral Aspects"). Avoiding the use of the word "riot", is another way of refusing the association of collective mayhem, and demotes the word into a more neutral, even defensive vocabulary ("Riot Behavioral Aspects"). Thus, the nature of rioting is a rather complex and rather controversial question, as there are different approaches to understanding crowd behavior and collective action. While the conventional approach tends to view riots as disorganized and disorderly acts of disorder by rowdy people, the current research shows that such happenings are in fact reasonable reactions to oppression by the oppressed people.















Rioting is a complex and often violent form of collective behavior that can arise from various social, political, or economic pressures.