Rebelling and Protesting in Los Angeles
After reading the excerpt from City of Inmates about the 1965 Watts riots and listening to Ms. Goldin’s depiction of events while she was in Los Angeles during the 1992 Los Angeles riots, I was reminded again of the level at which civil disobedience, protesting, and rioting/rebelling has taken place in Los Angeles over time. The big ones have always been talked about more in the public sphere because of sheer size, but others such as the Chicano Moratorium that we read about from Always Running and the Immigration Rights Protests of 2006 in which 500,000 Latino immigrants took to the streets to protest a bill that would have made illegal immigration a felony have also been important to Angelenos in recent past. Furthermore, recent protests such as the Women’s March and March For Our Lives have also grasped LA's attention, even if they weren't limited to our city.
As we learned from City of Inmates, riots such as the 1965 Watts ones often stem from decades of oppression in brewing that is let out in one moment after some sort of catalyst. In looking at nearly every other protest/riot in our city’s history, that similar thread is always evident. I’m interested in knowing if any of you think the general trajectory that our city/nation is going in right now may be leading to another sort of violent eruption like the LA Riots, especially because there seems to be a particularly large amount of tension in our country right now.
If you’ve been to one of these recent protests like the Women’s March or March For Our Lives, do you believe they created real change? Or is the only thing that really grasps the city’s attention something violent like the LA Riots? How are the goals/impacts of more organized protests and small acts of rebellion like the Women's March and the March For Our Lives different from those of ones that sprung out all of a sudden like the Rodney King Riots? How have these protests/riots, no matter how big or small, played a role in shaping Los Angeles? Why has Los Angeles, seemingly more than any other major city, always been a city that constantly has protests?
As we learned from City of Inmates, riots such as the 1965 Watts ones often stem from decades of oppression in brewing that is let out in one moment after some sort of catalyst. In looking at nearly every other protest/riot in our city’s history, that similar thread is always evident. I’m interested in knowing if any of you think the general trajectory that our city/nation is going in right now may be leading to another sort of violent eruption like the LA Riots, especially because there seems to be a particularly large amount of tension in our country right now.
If you’ve been to one of these recent protests like the Women’s March or March For Our Lives, do you believe they created real change? Or is the only thing that really grasps the city’s attention something violent like the LA Riots? How are the goals/impacts of more organized protests and small acts of rebellion like the Women's March and the March For Our Lives different from those of ones that sprung out all of a sudden like the Rodney King Riots? How have these protests/riots, no matter how big or small, played a role in shaping Los Angeles? Why has Los Angeles, seemingly more than any other major city, always been a city that constantly has protests?
It seems like protests recently have been shifting towards national-scale rather than local. Even demonstrations related to similar issues that caused the Watts/Rodney King rebellions like the Black Lives Matter movement, which one might think should be more locally-focused, have turned national because of online organizing. I think that this trend is interesting, as it allows us to better see how issues can transcend city. However, I think that it might take the spotlight off solely local protests.
ReplyDeleteI think that recent protests such as the Women's March or the March for Our Lives create real change in that they engage people who might not have otherwise been. For better and worse, protesting is a "feel-good" activity– people feel engaged and affirmed, and I think that this feeling is only amplified by social media, which allows people to gain social points by attending/posting evidence of their protest activity. I think that this can be helpful if coupled with things like voter registration or donation drives at protests, or as a way of raising awareness for the issue. I hope that people who were engaged by recent protests also are doing things in their community to help the issue at the ground level.
I agree with Emma. I think that because social media has become so popular over the past few years, protests have become more nationally spread rather than locally-focused. I also think that protests such as the Women's March and March For Our Lives have been less effective as the LA Riots, as many go to protest even if they are not particularly interested in the purpose of the protest.
ReplyDeleteThough I haven’t had the chance to actually attend the Women’s March or March For Our Lives, I have seen them all over social media and in the news. Similarly to Emma, I can’t say for sure that they have created real change, but they’ve definitely created awareness and gotten lots of people involved. However, this does have its downsides. For example, I feel like the Women’s March has become sort of a trend in that people will dress up and make a cute sign just to post a picture. It’s hard to say whether or not they really know what they are marching for, or if they are doing it just to be woke. I don’t know… I could be wrong.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, I don’t believe that the only way to get the city’s attention is through violent protests. That being said, I do think that they have more of a lasting impact on the community. The Rodney King Riots are still being talked about today and are an integral part of LA history. What I find interesting is that I only really hear about the Women’s March a couple months before it happens and for a couple months after it has happened, so I think they differ in that sense.
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ReplyDeleteLarge-scale, national protests like the Women's March and March for Our Lives, like Emma, Jono, and Sophie mentioned, are calls for unity, social awareness, and equality. National marches feel empowering and inspiring regardless of whether they demand specific, concrete policy changes or simply recognition and umbrella rights for a group. Based on our readings and my observations, localized protests are powerful in that they speak to a specific issue in a certain community, forcing residents to understand that the protested issue is indeed impacting them. While national protests are televised and broadcasted across social media, gathering millions if not hundreds of thousands of allies, they don't have the power of connection and immediate relevancy that localized ones do.
ReplyDeleteGiven the number of national marches that have occurred over the past few years,
I'm wondering if you guys think that frequent protests dilute issues as opposed to raise awareness for them? In other words, if protests were fewer and farther between, would they be more powerful and have a greater impact?
I believe that the Women’s March and March For Our Lives is a great step in the right direction. They provide a platform for people to exercise their voice that may be unheard, voiceless or ignored elsewhere. I agree with Sophia in that marches are empowering and inspiring especially when executed on a national and sometimes even international level. While people may post on their social media and may perhaps allude to the fact that the marches have become a trend, the posts on social media still create exposure to the public eye. Social media has been very influential and almost necessary to communicate with others and advocate for those who may not have the ability to do so. However, while marches create awareness and consciousness around the country, they still do not immediately “fix” whatever issue that might have been, or still is, at hand.
ReplyDeletePeaceful protests and marches have been a great platform to utilize one’s voice; however, because the results are not always immediate, it can create frustration. The Black Lives Matter movement is an example of something that has been both approached peacefully and violently. Like Lux said, most of the protests have been in response to the years of oppression that has indeed been brewing. People are upset when there is no change. People are upset when police officers continue to murder young unarmed Black males. People are upset when there is constant discrimination and blatant racism in our country. Additionally, people are upset when there are no consequences for other people’s terrible actions. There is a pattern with protests like these. I #see that there are similarities between the Nat Turner rebellion and the Watts/Rodney King rebellions. Frustration is built up and voices are still unheard . Consequently, people rely on violence because there seems to be no other way to express their concerns and feelings when no one will listen and there is zero action taken to remedy certain issues.
Sophia, that's a good question and I can see how there could possibly be people on both sides of he argument. In my opinion, I don't know if it's the frequency that makes a protest more or less impactful. But then again, I am not sure what does. I do think that the the type of attention a protest or march speaks to how impactful it will be and also speaks to the awareness it receives (I didn't really answer your question...my bad). I also have to agree with Sophie regarding the idea that protest like the Women's March become trends and are sometimes not always done in the improvement of the problem but rather to seem with the time and woke. I definitely don't have hard cold facts to back that up but it seems that recently issues that seem too deem a person as woke have attracted many individuals to receive that title rather than fighting that issue.
ReplyDeleteI think the Women’s March or March For Our Lives caught a lot of attention. However, they may not have created real change. These marches were both national instead of city-local. As we have seen, the LA Riots definitely caught the city’s attention; however, I wonder if there is a better method to actually attain change. The small acts of rebellion are largely organized unlike the LA Riots, which was a sudden burst of chaos and clearly unorganized. A large turnout for both of these protests reveals how Los Angeles is uniting for similar goals. Moreover, it brings awareness not only to those in power but to those watching/reading at home.
ReplyDeleteI agree in that I think organized marches that are spread via social media like the Women's March and the March for Our Lives spark awareness and unity, and participating and feeling like you are involved is really empowering. However, I personally don't think a lot was changed after some of these marches. I happened to be in New York over spring break visiting colleges at the time of the March for Our Lives, and I was able to attend. Unlike other major cities, the march in NYC only planned to showcase student speakers, some of which were Parkland survivors. I thought, after witnessing everything that day, something would change. While it seemed as though things were looking up in the days that followed, in a matter of weeks, the march seemed to be forgotten. A similar thing happened with the Women’s March: the turnout was enormous, the signs and the hats were all incredible, but then, come Monday, the new Administration continued work as planned. It’s upsetting that this kind of thing has happened so many times over the years– with the 2011 Occupy Wall Street protests in New York, the 2014 Black Lives Matter protests in Missouri, and then all the way back in 2003, when over sixty countries protested the idea of going to war with Iraq- a few weeks later, the US was at war with Iraq. I don’t know what the answer is. I think that demonstrations and protests allow us to have a voice, but how do we allow that voice to be heard?
ReplyDeleteSadly I haven't been able to attend the Women's March or the March For Our Lives. Both of these major marches have been covered by the media very well especially social media which blew up before, during, and after these events. Like Emma said, events like these have turned national because of the influence social media has. These issues can turn into major movements which allows for a change to be created. I think that most nation wide marches and rebellions create change because of all of the people that can see the issues going on and then address them.
ReplyDeleteI feel like the acts of rebellion by smaller groups of people or in a more local setting instead of nation wide impact are important for the city to see how its people are feeling and to create more of a sense of unity in the community. I feel protests and riots like these have more of an impact because they are set in a more intimate setting and have more passion and spontaneity than large-scale movements.
As tensions surrounding immigration and Trump’s border wall rise an upcoming event may serve as the catalyst for marches and other acts of civil disobedience. The outcome of the 23 day government shutdown may also be a cause for unrest due to the sheer number of workers without jobs and citizens who do not agree with building a wall. It is hard to predict if there will be another violent eruption similar to the LA riots; however, it is definitely possible.
ReplyDeleteI have not attended the women's march or march for our lives; however, I do think that they positively create a change by raising awareness for issues that might not be at covered by the news. These protests play a role in shaping Los Angeles because it establishes the city as a place that strives for change, and is willing to participate in events that they support. Los Angeles is home to a diverse range of people which inevitably leads to protests that seek to achieve equality for all of the citizens of Los Angeles.
I think that the national protests we've seen happening in the last few years have been really important in the fact that they create awareness for certain issues, but like other's have mentioned, it's unclear as to whether any actual progress is happening. Marches like the Women's March and March for Our Lives feel empowering, but if action stops there then I personally don't think the protest was effective.
ReplyDeleteI think there's an interesting phenomenon going on with protests and social media where people attend protests to get a picture for their Instagram. While this is definitely annoying, I'm not sure I think it's completely a bad thing. There's a really interesting history of photography and the spread of photography in connection with social movements, and with the onset of such collaborative and widespread mediums for photography like Instagram and Twitter I feel like it's become more and more apart of how progress can even happen. I don't know- this is something I've been thinking about a lot recently. In my mind performative activism has the potential to become real activism. People have to start somewhere...
I have been to the Women's March and I do think that these events have made people more aware. As for actual change however, I'm not sure... a lot of the rise in awareness around these issues has to do with social media. It's kind of crazy because we live in an age now where pretty much everyone is getting information and news shoved at them through social media, and many make assumptions and form opinions off of information that may not even be true. Even our president uses twitter as a way to express opinions and make false claims. Because social media can clearly have so much impact, perhaps simply showing awareness of an issue is a form of change...Idk just a thought. I am interested in what Sophie said in her response about the Women's march becoming a "trend." Performative social justice is definitely an issue and while it is frustrating to see people going to these marches just for the instagram picture of their cute poster of a uterus giving the middle finger, I do think it is still a good thing because again, it spreads awareness and incites young people to become involved in these issues. At least they are still going to the march. I agree with Rachel — people have to start somewhere. Sorry this was kind of scattered. In our round up, I would be interested in talking about how truth, social media, and political change tie together in today's world.
ReplyDeleteLux, you bring up a very valid observation when you question the effectiveness of movements like the Women's March and March For Our Lives. Interestingly enough, I've noticed more national movements/riots/protests in the past five years than ever before during my lifetime. Although I hypothesize this may just be due to pent up anger towards our government and political state, I'm not sure why it's resulted in so many national movements only recently. While I do see the great value in national events like Lux stated, I do think it's important to awklonoge there have been no radical changes in our policies or laws. I do agree we're currently taking the right steps to achieve international awareness regarding these topics; however, the goal of these protests are not only to raise awareness but to enact change and challenge the status quo. For these reasons, I do not think the Women's March or March For Our Lives played much of a role in shaping Los Angeles but rather expressing an attitude felt by much of the country. For more localized movements like the Rodney King Riots and Watts Riots, I do believe these are more representative of Los Angeles' people as they reflect the blatant racism felt by minority groups for centuries. I do think it's worth noting that these events would have never happened if Los Angeles didn't exist. Although police misusing their power is nothing new in the context of the country, these riots are suggestive of the unique misuse of power within the judiciary system of Los Angeles not necessarily the nation.
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