1967 Newark riots

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The 1967 Newark Riots were a major civil disturbance that occurred in the city of Newark, New Jersey between July 12 and July 17, 1967. In the period leading up to the riots, several factors led local African-American residents to feel powerless and disenfranchised. In particular they had been largely excluded from political representation and often suffered police brutality. Furthermore, unemployment, poverty, and concerns about low-quality housing contributed to the tinder-box.

According to a Rutgers' study on the riot, blacks had been disenfranchised in Newark despite the fact that Newark became one of the first majority black major cities in America alongside Washington D.C. Italian-American mayor Hugh Addonizio (who was also the last non-Black mayor of Newark) failed to incorporate Blacks in various civil leadership positions and failed to help Blacks get better employment opportunities. The police department was dominated by Irish and Italian officers who would routinely stop and attack Blacks with or without provocation. Despite being one of the first cities in America to hire African American police officers, the department's current demographics did not adequately match the city's demographics leading to unrest between Blacks and the Police Department (According to a legal essay, only 150 of the 1500 police officers were African American, roughly 10% of the police force while the city was over 50% African American).

This unrest came to a head when a black cab driver named John Smith was arrested for illegally passing a double-parked police car and brutally beaten by police who accused him of resisting arrest. A crowd gathered outside the police station where he was detained, and a rumor was started that he had been killed while in police custody. (Actually he had been moved to a local hospital.)

This set off six days of riots, looting, violence, and destruction — ultimately leaving 23 people dead, 725 people injured, and close to 1,500 arrested. Property damage exceeded $10 million.

In an effort to contain the riots, every evening at 6 p.m. the Bridge Street and Jackson Street Bridges (both of which span the Passaic River between Newark and Harrison) were closed until the next morning.

The riots are often cited as a major factor in the decline of Newark and its neighboring communities, as many of the city's residents immediately fled to the suburbs.

The 1967 Plainfield riots occurred during the same period in Plainfield, New Jersey, a town about 18 miles southwest of Newark.

The riots were depicted in the Philip Roth novel American Pastoral.