Watts riots 1

Watts Riots in LA, 1965

  • Marquette Frye pulled over

    Marquette Frye pulled over
    Marquette was pulled over for drunk driving. Police officers were attempting to arrest him when someone struck him. Events quickly escilated, his mother shoved an officer, police ended up roughing up Marquette and arresting him.
  • Mobs Form

    Mobs Form
    Word spreads that police roughed up Marquette, mobs form. Police attempt to arrest and restrain crowds, are attacked with rocks and bricks.
  • Period: to

    Watts Riots

  • Local Leaders Meet

    Local Leaders Meet
    Police and Community leaders meet to attempt to diffuse violence. This meeting fails, and violence escilates. Police call for the assistance of the National Guard
  • National Guard Ordered to attack

    National Guard Ordered to attack
    The National Guard is ordered into the unstable region. 16,000 law enforcement officials are ordered into the watts neighborhood. Police and National Guard encourage and use deadly force, killing several people. Violence erupts on both sides, with the opposition smashing cars and throwing bricks and chunks of sidewalk, and the police responding with bullets. 75 people are injured.
  • Looting and violence escalate

    Looting and violence escalate
    Burning and looting of the city continue, with many describing the neighborhood as a warzone. At this point 35,000 people are participation in the rioting, with around 16,000 members of the National Guard & Police participating.
  • Citizens React

    Citizens React
    "But I have never heard the policeman talk like they did last night. I have never seen anything like this happen here."
    -Overlmar Bradley, LA resident
    This is a quote from a citizen reacting in rejection to both sides of the violence, showing the varing opinions on both sides.
  • Riots begin to die down

    Riots begin to die down
    Rioting begins to subside, with looting and resistance beginning to slow down. Fires begin to be estinguished, and some areas of the neighborhood are completly pacified.
  • Government Action

    Government Action
    The mayor and other officials began to research information about the causes of the riot. They discovered that much of the motives for the riot was due to poor living conditions, lack of schools, and high unemployment rates. The mayor did nothing to resolve the issues.
  • Order restored

    Order restored
    Order is restored and resistance dies down completly. Once the riots are over 34 people have died, 1032 people have been injured, 3438 have been arrested, and 40 million dollars have been done in property damage. 977 buildings were looted, burned, or both.