The 1992 LA Riots and the Significance of Korean American Race-Relations

bubblepuffizcool
Jul 13, 2022
6 min read

Updated: Jul 14, 2022

By: Will Tan

A shopping center in Koreatown burning during the 1992 LA Riots. Image credit: Hyungwon Kang / Los Angeles Times

April 29th, 1992. This was the date that four Los Angeles police officers stood trial for the beating of Rodney King. All of them were charged with assault with a deadly weapon and excessive use of force. Caught on camera was irrefutable proof of their wrongdoings. Its depiction of events was nothing short of a vicious act of police brutality. Surrounding the African American man, the officers took wide swings at him with their batons, savagely kicking him in the back as he crawled on the ground. Yet, in a surprising twist of events, a jury of 12 people found the officers not guilty and acquitted them of all charges.

For many African Americans, this was the last straw in what was already a myriad of racial injustices. Many of them had already suffered through the full extent of the city’s deep-rooted racism. Their unemployment rate was at an all-time high and the community struggled in the face of a drug epidemic and high crime rates. Faced with the reality of an unjust society and bleak economic prospects, they took to the streets of Los Angeles. They thrashed the city, burning and looting as they went, plunging it into anarchy. For days, Los Angeles burned as government officials and law enforcement scrambled to fix the mess. And through it, all stood one ethnic group to face some of the worst the riots had to offer: Koreans. Of the approximately $1 billion in property damage caused over those 6 days, nearly half of it was sustained to the city area of Koreatown. While the media portrayed the issue as a simple race war between minorities, the reality went far deeper than that. This was a story of xenophobia and systemic racism. This was a story of prejudice and misrepresentation. And through the indifference and apathy of society, came great suffering for one city’s people.

Latasha Harlins’ Death- A Prelude to Disaster

The Rodney King trial was not the first of its kind- the city had a history of racial issues. Just a year before the riots, the African American community in Los Angeles had been dealt another great blow. On March 16th, 1991, a 15-year-old, African-American girl, Latasha Harlins, had gone out to purchase a bottle of orange juice. As she placed it in her bag, a Korean store clerk, Soon Ja Du, mistakenly believed she was attempting to steal it. After a short physical confrontation, Harlins attempted to leave the store, returning the orange juice. Instead of letting her go, however, Du shot Harlins in the back of the head, killing her instantly. Harlins’ body was found afterward, clutching $2 in her hand to pay for the orange juice. Police concluded there was no shoplifting attempt. When Du was put on trial for manslaughter, the verdict was lenient- instead of jail time, she was put on probation and fined $500. Media coverage of the event played into the idea that the killing was racially motivated. Thus, the outrage stoked by this incident served to heighten racial tensions between the African American and Korean communities.

Stereotypes and the Media

An important issue highlighted by the riots was the perpetuation of stereotypes by the media. Harmful depictions of both ethnic groups helped to instill within the populace numerous hateful and divisive views.

African Americans, for example, were often viewed by Korean Americans as lazy, economically dependent, and violent. This perception was largely a byproduct of neoconservative views originally meant to undermine the Civil Rights Movement. The prevalence of the “model minority” myth would be an example; using Asian American “success” to disprove the effects of racism. As this idea took hold in society, many Koreans came to believe that hard work had let them overcome racial barriers that other minorities had not, justifying their state of poverty. However, as many of these Koreans were recent immigrants, they were unaware of the volatile civil rights history of the United States. From their point of view, the impoverished state of the African Americans was the result of their work ethic rather than a subordinate nature forced upon them by racism. This belief led many Koreans to look down on African Americans, something the latter was acutely aware of.

On the other hand, Korean Americans were disliked by African Americans because they were perceived as a threat to their economic survival. Their large mercantile presence in the city and the aforementioned minority myth led to the view that Koreans were stealing economic opportunities from them.

To this end many stereotypes also existed of the Koreans, being seen as greedy, cold, and untrustworthy. Media portrayal of Korean Americans would often change to fit different narratives and deflect white guilt. In the case of the trial for Latasha Harlins, Koreans would be made out as the oppressors of African Americans and demonized for it.

Media coverage of topics like this fed into the issue due to their negative portrayal of race relations. Instead of focusing on efforts of cooperation between the communities, news instead sought to publicize conflicts. This had the effect of creating more animosity, making the races seem as though they were warring groups.

Carnage and Devastation

The verdict for Rodney King’s attackers had set off a cataclysmic reaction. For the African Americans, it had proven that all their civil rights efforts thus far had been futile. Only hours after the acquittal of the officers, order broke down in Los Angeles. Rioters and looters went throughout the city burning and destroying local businesses. Koreatown was specifically targeted due to the conflict between the Korean and African Americans. Nearly 2,000 Korean-run businesses were either damaged or destroyed in the chaos.

The extent of the damage was further exacerbated by a lack of police response. Woefully inadequate in number, and without proper plans for containment, law enforcement stayed put, allowing rioters to destroy property with almost complete impunity. Due to this, Korean store owners often had to resort to the use of firearms in various acts of vigilantism and self-defense.

Korean American volunteers armed with pistols guard a store in Koreatown, Los Angeles. Image credit: Hyungwon Kang / Los Angeles Times

As the situation quickly deteriorated, Mayor Tom Bradley declared a state of emergency in Los Angeles, and the California National Guard along with federal law enforcement was deployed to put down the civil unrest. The riots finally ended on May 4th, the city in ruin and in many parts, burnt to the ground. 63 people were dead, more than 2,000 were wounded, and an estimated 12,000 people had been arrested.

Soldiers of the National Guard form a line in front of a post office in South Central Los Angeles during the riots. Image credit: Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty Images

The Destruction of Koreatown in History

In many regards, the 1992 LA Riots could be considered to have been more symbolic than they were physical. As the sites of various stores throughout Koreatown went up in flames, so too did their owners’ aspirations of an American Dream. Ravaged and destroyed, the entire livelihoods of many were lost. And through the ashes and rubble that was left, remained a staunch reminder for years to come- the price of racial intolerance and misrepresentation. For the African Americans, the riots exemplified their frustration over years of mistreatment. For the Koreans, it painfully highlighted the need for a proper political presence. Above all, the riots showed these people what it meant to be a minority in America. They are a testament to the fact that many of the great lessons we learn from history are earned in blood.