officers - The Black Vault

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and radios, ~en from a television· . · I first stoOd on the ~uth side of
accused of beating Rodney G. King. repair shop. · · ... · florence, on the corner of Brighton
But I am also a reporter, sworn to One young man used spray paint "Avenue, a block from Nonnandie
objectivity and fairness in covering to write the vyords, "F-Police" on in· front of an abandoned, graffiti:
the news. · · · a wall.· · :· · . : ·.. ··... ; · . : ridden storefront. .
Be cautious, I told myself. Be ex:. "They're upset but they don't Two men hurried past me down
tremely cautious. Be alert. Listen know how to stop it," said a 37- . Florence blatantly carrying car batfor
gunfire and watch for uncon- year-old woman I met a block away. teries stilJ sealed in their boxes. A
trolled mobs. Still, what I saw was Both of us watched as a man load- man laughed and yelJed, "Right on,
more than I could ever have an- ed a 19-inch television set into his brother." ·
ticipated. · · w~ite Nissan pickup truck. · Everywhere peopl~ were throw-
Badly beaten . 'Nea~by, ~veral people stood and ing "black power" signs, their fists
Arriving at the scene about 7 watched as others trashed Korean- raised. Drivers honked their horns,
p.m., I saw that a white man who e ~d ~bite-owned stores. They said speeding and maneuvering their ears
had been pulled from his trailer their anger toward Koreans was through the street to avoid the glass
truck, robbed and badly beaten, had fueled by the suspended sentence of and the people running by.
already been carted away to a g~ocer ~oo~ Ja Du who shot and !' teen-age girl in a speeding car
hospital, ·by a black man who saw kdled a IS-year-old black girl, dnven by a teen-age boy sat on the
the incident on· television. . Latasha Harlins, and by what they car's hood with her feet dangling
The man's truck was gone, and -called "rudeness" of local Korean through a sunroof, flailing her arms,
the mostly young black men _ merchants. · shouting "Yeah!"
many of them gang members - now They said they were angry at · Chased away police
filled the dirty sidewalks and street whites because a majority white jury A young man told me he was exwhere
the truck driver had lain had acquitted the four policemen uberant because he and his compa·
bleeding. who beat Rodney King. nions had chased away police who
"Are you a reporter?" someone People mad were pushing around a IS-year-old
in the crowd asked me. ..They started this shit and girl, boy the police had claimed threw
Take off badge we go!Je finish it,'' a young woman rocks at .one police-car after the Kins
"Yes," I said. said. "People are mad, baby." verdict was announced.
:'Better take off your badge," he "White people don't do nothing The altercation drew crowds of
said. "They already beat up one but down black people," an older people who st&rt;Cd pelting over a
man with a camera, but I think he woman told me. · · dozen poli~ cars with rocks. M~
was Asi~n. Maybe they wori't hurt ...-"These are gang hangers," a thir- people came running onto Florence .
. you.·~ . . ty-ish man who was standing with The police cars had tfisappcarcd .
..'Thank you," I said, removing the woman added. "Me, I work. · ••Whatcha got, man?" J beard a
the tag reading "Wave Newspaper" One of them gave me this 'here man ask his friend.
from my collar. beer.'' Disbelief and shame
High heels Eye of riot But several residents expreued
I regretted that I hadn't changed ·After parking my car three blocks disbelief and utter shame.
from my slacks and high-heeled away from the eye of the riot,· J .. lbcy're getting it mixed up.
shoes, - too conspicuous among' made my way down Halldale We're all together," a 30-year-old
the 200 or so riotous people who A venue past mostly black women ~ ~· ••Everybod>: ~ 10 ~
were clad in T -shirts, tennis shoes and