Rodney King was an African American man with a criminal record. On March 3, 1991, King was severely beaten by four police officers after a high-speed chase in Los Angeles. A bystander recorded the scene, who captured 15 minutes of King's torture (Sastry & Bates, 2017). After a nation and worldwide circulation of the video, the four officers involved were arraigned, and the public believed that the graphics and pictures of King's beating were enough evidence to convict them. A year later, the four officers were acquitted, with the judge ruling that the force used in King's arrest was reasonable. This sparked riots and looting in Los Angeles. Like King's beating and riots, Gorge Floyd was also an African American and faced brutality from white officers. In both cases, the scene was recorded by a bystander and shared nationwide and worldwide, leading to the officers' arraignment. Therefore, the cause of the two events is similar as they involved resistance towards racism meted on African Americans in the form of police brutality.
In King’s beating and the subsequent riots, the victim did not succumb to injuries. During the riots, King attempts to quell down rioters who were violent and causing more riot-related deaths. Also, King’s beating did not result in spontaneous riots. The public waited until the four officers were acquitted. The acquittal sparked the riots. In Floyd's case, the victim succumbs to injuries, and the riots are spontaneous, even before the officers are taken on trial.
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There are some positive impacts from King’s events to the current event. In the historical event, the public is highly polarized, with African Americans and Latinos siding to brutalize Whites and Koreans perceived as the offenders. In the current event, multiple races, whites, and blacks, take part in the riots against police brutality. Also, the officers in King’s case are acquitted, while officers in Floyd’s case are convicted, indicating positive steps in the judicial system.
The two events have reinvented social work by emphasizing fair distribution of opportunities, wealth, and privileges to fight racism and injustices. In the historical event, the social work profession may have stressed the administration of justice to the victim with little emphasis on underlying factors that fuel racism and racial disparities. Social workers currently approach factors such as inequality, which contribute to socioeconomic disparities and increased cases of racism (National Association of Social Workers, 2020; Reisch, 2002). The U.S has made positive steps towards eliminating systemic racism, but the rate of this change is slow and, at times, has shown signs of stagnation and deterioration.
References
National Association of Social Workers. (2020, July 28). Black Lives Matter: The role of social work in dismantling structural racism in the USA . https://www.socialworkers.org/News/Social-Work-Talks-Podcast/EP57-Black-Lives-Matter-The-Role-of-Social-Work-in-Dismantling-Structural-Racism-in-the-USA
Reisch, M. (2002). Defining social justice in a socially unjust world. Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services , 83 (4), 343-354. https://doi.org/10.1606/1044-3894.17
Sastry, A., & Bates, K. G. (2017, April 26). When LA erupted in anger: A look back at the Rodney King riots . NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/2017/04/26/524744989/when-la-erupted-in-anger-a-look-back-at-the-rodney-king-riots
