LOS ANGELES - City and community leaders today gathered for a virtual event to commemorate the LA Unrest of 1992. The live discussion hosted by LA Civil Rights featured remarks from Mayor Eric Garcetti, Korean Consul General Kyung Jae Park, and LA Civil Rights Executive Director Capri Maddox.
"In 1992, years of inequities and racial tension resulted in a week of violence, and caused challenges with the African American community and the Korean American community," said Executive Director Maddox, who was working for the city's housing department in 1992. "But from the ashes of 1992, we built a new relationship between the African American and Korean American community. Years of organizing, outreach, and trust-building after 1992 created new bonds in our City, and it was the courage of local organizers who made it happen."
The panel discussion reflected on the experiences of 1992, and the lessons it holds today. Panelists discussed the movement for racial justice, police brutality, inter-community dialogue, and the shared and unique challenges facing both the African American and Korean American communities. Panelists also pointed to the bonds between African American and Korean American communities in Los Angeles as a point of progress to building a safer and more inclusive city for all.
Watch the discussion below:
The panel was moderated by attorney and community leader Virgil Roberts, who is the managing partner for the entertainment law firm Bobbitt & Roberts, and the previous President/General Counsel of Solar Records. Roberts serves on the Board of Trustees of The James Irvine Foundation, Families In Schools, Southern California Public Radio, the Fedco Foundation, Community Build, and the Alliance for College Ready Public Schools. He is also the Co-founder and Chairman of the Board of African American Board Leadership Institute (AABLI).
Panelists included:
- Councilmember John Lee, representing Los Angeles' 12th Council District
- Emile Mack, Vice President of the Korean American Federation of Los Angeles (KAFLA)
- Pastor J. Edgar Boyd, Pastor at First A.M.E. Church of Los Angeles
- Commissioner Melany De La Cruz-Viesca, Commissioner on the city's Human Relations Commission and Deputy Director of UCLA's Asian American Studies Center and lead author of "The Color of Wealth in Los Angeles."
The discussion was held live over Zoom and livestreamed to facebook.com/lacivilrights.
LA Civil Rights is dedicated to empowering underserved communities and leveling the paying field through discrimination enforcement, outreach, community engagement and more. Learn more about LA Civil Rights at civilandhumanrights.lacity.org.