Watts Erupts: Six Days of Riots Tear Los Angeles
The Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles erupted on August 11, 1965, after California Highway Patrol officer Lee Minikus pulled over Marquette Frye for erratic driving. A routine traffic stop escalated when Frye's mother arrived and a scuffle broke out, drawing a crowd that grew increasingly angry. Over the next six days, residents burned and looted businesses across a 46-square-mile area. The California National Guard deployed 14,000 troops. When the violence subsided, 34 people were dead, over 1,000 injured, and nearly 4,000 arrested. Property damage exceeded $40 million. Governor Pat Brown appointed a commission under John McCone that identified unemployment, poverty, and police brutality as root causes, but few of its recommendations were implemented.
August 11, 1965
61 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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