What was (and is) the role of the media in determining perceptions of Asian Americans and of race relations in general?
The media played a significant role in covering the events and bringing the news to the American citizens what was happening. Slowly, the understanding between the Korean and African Americans deteriorated as the blacks felt threatened by the Koreans who were rapidly achieving their American dream at the "expense" of black Americans (Takaki, 2012). Time and again crimes, fights and loss of life between the two races occurred and all culminated in during the Sa-I-Gu when the riots against the acquittal of four police officers as ruled in the courts. The riots led to the massive looting of the Korean owned shops and in Koreatown. Koreans sought to protect themselves because there was little police assistance against the escalating targets on their businesses. Pictures and news of looting and the attempts of protection by the Koreans using guns infiltrated the media houses and spread all over, contributing to the intensified riots. Through the media, the Asian Americans viewed themselves as targets while the African Americans saw them as people who were taking away their position in the country.
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Motives behind the attacks
I think the best interpretation of the reasons behind the riots and looting is the disparity in the social and economic statuses between the African Americans and the whites. As one of the interviewee's notes; the blacks had harbored their grievances for far too long, and they could take in anything anymore (Kin-Gibson, 2011). They lived in poverty, there were fewer employment opportunities for them as compared to the rest, they were segregated, and the police used excessive force against them (Takaki, 2012). All these factors came into play and caused the Sa-I-Gu riots. The immediate cause of the riots was the police brutality against a black motorist. It could also be true that for a long time, there has been black-white tension growing in the background. This stems back to the era of historical injustices and slavery, to the post-slavery era with no jobs and poor living conditions. That said, the economic disparities played a bigger role in the uprising.
Reference;
Kim-Gobson S. D. (2011, March, 5). Sa-I-Gu. Retrieved Feb. 26, 2017 from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_UyYj-pR8U
Takaki, R. (2012). Strangers from a different shore: A history of Asian Americans (updated and revised). eBookIt. com.
