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The Watts Riot began on August 11, 1965 in Los Angeles, California
when the Los Angeles Police pulled over
Marquette Frye, whom they suspected of driving drunk. While police
questioned Frye and his brother, a group of people began to gather around the scene. A struggle ensued shortly after Frye's
mother Rena arrived on the scene,
resulting in the arrest of all three family members. Police used their batons to subdue
Frye and his brother, angering the growing crowd. Shortly after police left, tensions boiled over and the rioting began. What
followed was six days of rioting that claimed the lives of 34 people, injured 1,100 and caused an estimated $100 million dollars
damage.
One of the few structures in Watts that remained untouched
by the damage was the Watts Towers, a group of tall steel sculptures
constructed by Italian immigrant Sam
Rodia (often erroneously called Simon Rodia).
Thomas Pynchon wrote an article about tensions in Watts that
continued even after the riots (and which seemed to foreshadow further riots).
Further Reading
- Cohen, Jerry and William S. Murphy, Burn, Baby, Burn! The Los Angeles Race Riot, August, 1965, New York: Dutton,
1966.
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