1967 Detroit riot

On July 23, 1967 triggered broke through a police raid on a bar without fully licensed the Detroit race riots. They walked with a duration of 5 days, 43 deaths, 1189 injured and more than 7,000 arrests than the zweitbrutalsten race riots the United States (only surpassed by the race riots in Los Angeles in 1992 ) in the story.

Outbreak

The bar - a so-called " Blind Pig " - was located near the intersection of Mount Clair Avenue and 12th Street (now renamed Rosa Parks ), where should remember a place as a memorial to the unrest today. There was at that time special police units from each of four officials, called " Tac Squad" or " Big 4 ", compiled especially for such missions. When police arrived, they expected about a dozen guests, but instead found 82 people in front that held a welcome ceremony for two Vietnam veterans. The police decided to arrest everyone present and called for this purpose to gain. While they waited, formed on the street outside the bar a Protestant mob. Although the coverage of the Detroit Free Press about the riots was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, there are disagreements on the exact circumstances of the outbreak.

One version assumes that after the removal of the arrested the protesting people in their anger over the closure of the only bar in which they still could have gone that night, began to break shop windows of the surrounding shops, followed by further vandalism and arson joined. The unrest that is developed out of non-directional vandalism and a general dissatisfaction. Such blind vandalism has developed in Detroit in the form of Devil's Night in Detroit the night of 30 to 31 October an annual tradition.

The other version describes a violent outburst based. The rear window of the last police car should have been thrown upon leaving the intersection with a stone. Spurred on by this attack and the subsequent clashes, the protesters are said to have moved with vandalism and arson first to the northwest and the riots have then beaten in the East Detroit. In this version, the race riots are the result of a rebellion against the prevailing police force.

The eyewitness Ronald Hewitt not described the riots as racially motivated, but as a revolt of the poor and oppressed against the authorities.

Course of turmoil

The unrest developed from initial vandalism quickly looting and a stern fight with snipers and people trying to defend their property. Since the police the riots could not knock down of President Lyndon B. Johnson decided to mobilize the National Guard. Only after five days managed the National Guard together with the police to calm the situation. Since the police stations did not have sufficient capacity for as many prisoners, many people were often held for days and illegally detained in closed-off parking garages.

According to surveys, is cited as the main reason for the prevailing unrest, racially motivated police violence, and the lack of affordable housing for African Americans as a result of urban renewal projects. In particular, in the area around 12th Street, the population moved within only a decade of mostly white residents to nearly only African Americans. The density increased this to three to four times.

Discussion of the term

The English term " riots" (German uprising ) is related to the 1976 riots, even though he is here mostly used for discussion. Different population groups they call " riot", "was" (German War), "social unrest" (Eng. about civil disobedience ) or " rebellion " (Eng. rebellion ). This also shows how unclear and how little understood this event to this day.

The memorial

The course, which is situated at the intersection of Rosa Parks / Mount Clair Avenue next to the former site of the illegal bar, is a nonprofit project of the local residents who care for and entertain him. It serves as a meeting place for the young people of the district and as an annual barbecue. It found there seating under trees, which obviously come from different eras. Thus, there are chairs and tables made ​​of concrete and benches that seem to be made out of old body parts. Since a transformation of the square in the last year by a group led by Antoine Butler ( a juvenile residents ), there are also combined benches and planters made ​​of wood. A steel sculpture showing two -dimensional diamonds, was red-blue recolored from the original purple. Plank walls that divide the space on the opposite sides of the junction, show colorful paintings. Man looks at the place that it is subject to constant change.