Rodney King Research Paper

On March 3, 1991, after a fifteen-minute high-speed car chase, four white police officers brutally beat up an African American named Rodney King, who lay unarmed and helpless on the ground (Davis 67). Bothered by the lights and noise, George Holliday awoke in his nearby apartment and recorded the entire beating on his video camera. The video displayed the officers violently hitting him over fifty times with metallic batons, as well as kicking and shoving him to the rough asphalt. The recording was shown repeatedly on television through news broadcasts, shocking citizens across the nation about the excessive force used by police officers and the underlying motives of racism. Anger among African Americans increased when the trial took place in Simi Valley, California, a predominantly white and conservative suburb. The jury comprised ten whites, one Hispanic, and one Asian – …show more content…
The trial was different with the presence of the videotape, rather than solely relying on the testimonies of police officers in the past. However, thirteen months after the incident, the jury decided that the officers were “not guilty” of assault with a deadly weapon and excessive use of force, intensifying further outrage in the Black community. According to Davis, many whites and law enforcement officials have argued that the brutal situation with Rodney King is a rare occurrence, but it is actually only one of the many examples of a history of aggressive police-black conflict. Nonetheless, the case of Rodney King has helped shape the public opinion of police brutality, realizing that this is a significant problem in our society. While the King incident may have shone light upon institutionalized racism