Brixton riot (1985)
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The Brixton riot (sometimes known as 'uprising') of 1985 started on 28 September in Brixton in South London.
It was sparked by the shooting of Dorothy 'Cherry' Groce by police while they were seeking her son Michael Groce in relation to a suspected firearms offence and believed he was hiding in his mother's home. He was not there at the time of the shooting, and Groce was paralysed below the waist by the bullet.
Groce had migrated to Britain from Jamaica in her youth and the incident was immediately perceived by many local residents of a similar background as further evidence of what was widely regarded as institutional racism in the Metropolitan Police.
As word of the shooting spread through the community, a large group of protesters gathered at the local police station chanting anti-racist slogans and demanding disciplinary action against the officers involved. However, hostility between the largely black crowd and the largely white police force quickly escalated into a series of street battles.
The police lost control of the area for approximately 48 hours during which several shops were looted and fires started, leaving at least one building and dozens of cars destroyed. One photo-journalist died as a result of head injuries and dozens of arrests were made.
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[edit] Aftermath
The police officer who shot Groce, Inspector Douglas Lovelock, was prosecuted and eventually acquitted of malicious wounding. However, Mrs. Groce did receive compensation from the Metropolitan Police for her injuries.
One week later, another serious conflict, sparked by similar circumstances, broke out between the Metropolitan Police and mainly black residents of North London's Tottenham district in what became known as the Broadwater Farm riot.
[edit] Cultural references
- Stephen Frears' 1987 film Sammy and Rosie Get Laid opens with an incident very similar to the Groce shooting.
