Rodney King
Los Angeles victim
Rodney King was an African American man whose beating by Los Angeles police officers in 1991, captured on videotape by a bystander, became a flashpoint for discussions of police brutality and racial injustice in America.
The acquittal of the officers in 1992 sparked the Los Angeles riots, one of the most destructive civil disturbances in U.S. history.
King is remembered for his plea during the unrest: Can we all get along?
Unjustified force by officers
- excessive forceUnwarranted severity in restraint
- proneInclined or face-down
- swollenAbnormally enlarged
- injuriesBodily damage or harm
brutalized · traffic stop · grainy footage · defenseless · surrounded · subdued · use of force · videotaped
Theft during disorder
- arsonCriminal deliberate burning
- curfewMandated return time
- National GuardState-level reserve military
- KoreatownDistrict with Korean culture
burning · destruction · unrest · chaos · violence · smoke · flames · citywide
Formal clearing of charges
- juryLegal decision-making body
- verdictOfficial court decision
- change of venueMoving legal proceedings elsewhere
- prosecutionPursuing legal charges
defense · testimony · deliberation · not guilty · courtroom · civil rights violations · retrial · convicted
One harmed by another
- survivorOne still alive after
- motoristPerson operating a vehicle
- paroleeConditionally freed prisoner
- drowningDeath by water inhalation
swimming pool · Rialto · autobiography · settlement · civil lawsuit · struggling · troubled · addiction
Changing how law enforcement operates
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
- oversightSupervision or inadvertent omission
- civilian reviewNon-police assessment of officers
- community relationsLinks between organizations and locals
citizen journalism · body cameras · precursor · systemic change · racial justice · catalyst · watershed moment · awareness
Restoration of friendly relations
- unityWholeness through cohesion
- healingRestoration of health
- calmingInducing a settled state
- public addressBroadcast communication system
nonviolence · ceasefire · dialogue · coexistence · forgiveness · understanding · coming together · broadcast
police brutality
Unjustified force by officers
- excessive forceUnwarranted severity in restraint
- proneInclined or face-down
- swollenAbnormally enlarged
injuries · brutalized · traffic stop · grainy footage · defenseless · surrounded · subdued · use of force · videotaped · nightsticks
looting
Theft during disorder
- arsonCriminal deliberate burning
- curfewMandated return time
- National GuardState-level reserve military
Koreatown · burning · destruction · unrest · chaos · violence · smoke · flames · citywide · martial law
acquittal
Formal clearing of charges
- juryLegal decision-making body
- verdictOfficial court decision
- change of venueMoving legal proceedings elsewhere
prosecution · defense · testimony · deliberation · not guilty · courtroom · civil rights violations · retrial · convicted · sentenced
victim
One harmed by another
drowning · swimming pool · Rialto · autobiography · settlement · civil lawsuit · struggling · troubled · addiction · symbol
police reform
Changing how law enforcement operates
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
- oversightSupervision or inadvertent omission
- civilian reviewNon-police assessment of officers
community relations · citizen journalism · body cameras · precursor · systemic change · racial justice · catalyst · watershed moment · awareness · conversation
reconciliation
Restoration of friendly relations
public address · nonviolence · ceasefire · dialogue · coexistence · forgiveness · understanding · coming together · broadcast · emotional
- US HistoryAmerican Revolution, US history, Civil War, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln
- 90sTamagotchi, pogs, Furby, slap bracelets, Tickle Me Elmo
- Black AmericaBlack churches, NAACP, civil rights activism, Jim Crow, racial justice
- California historystatehood, Spanish colonization, Spanish mission, gold rush, Sutter's Mill
- Police Historyconstables, Metropolitan Police, night watch, Scotland Yard, sheriffs
- TragediesHamlet, Macbeth, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, Oedipus Rex
Rodney KingGeorge Wallace
Alabama segregationist politician
Jim Crow · segregationists · white supremacists · demagogues · systemic racism