Philadelphia 1964 race riot

Philadelphia 1964 race riot

The Philadelphia race riot took place in the predominantly black neighborhoods of North Philadelphia from August 28 to August 30, 1964. Tensions between black residents of the city and police had been escalating for several months over several well-publicized allegations of police brutality.

This riot was one of the first in the civil rights era and followed the Rochester race riot and the New York City race riot.

The Riots

The unrest began on the evening of August 28 after a black woman named Odessa Bradfordgot into an argument with two police officers, one black, Robert Wells, and the other white, John Hoff, after her car stalled at 23rd Street and Columbia Avenue. [ [http://www.upenn.edu/gazette/0301/early4.html No Other Life] ] After Bradford refused to comply with the two officers' orders to move the car, because the car had stalled, and she was unable to drive it, an argument ensued. The officers then tried to physically remove Bradford from the car. She resisted and a large crowd assembled in the area. A man tried to come to Bradford's aid by attacking the police officers at the scene, but he and Bradford were arrested.

Rumors then spread throughout North Philadelphia that a pregnant black woman had been beaten to death by white police officers. Later that evening, and throughout the next two days, angry mobs looted and burned mostly white-owned businesses in North Philadelphia, mainly along Columbia Avenue. Outnumbered, the police response was to withdraw from the area rather than aggressively confront the rioters.

Although no one was killed, 341 people were injured, 774 people were arrested and 225 stores were damaged or destroyed in the three days of rioting. During a time period of America in which race riots broke out in Black neighborhoods such as Harlem, Watts, and Newark due to brutality from White police officers, the Philadelphia riot is notable for being caused by the brutality of both White and Black police officers.

Aftermath

Business activity in North Philadelphia declined even further after the riots, as many of the damaged or destroyed stores never re-opened for business. The riots also helped to facilitate the political rise to power of Frank Rizzo, who favored more punitive approaches to crime.

In 1987, Columbia Avenue between Front and 33rd Streets was renamed Cecil B. Moore Avenue after the influential and often controversial Civil Rights leader. Although his role was limited, Moore has been regarded as a pacifying figure who helped quell the rioting. While present-day Cecil B. Moore Avenue is still largely impoverished, it has witnessed redevelopment, including expansion of the Temple University campus, such that the area around Broad Street is much more integrated. The Brewerytown neighborhood has also been suggested as a possible site of gentrification.

Cultural References

A fictionalized version of the events of the Philadelphia riots of 1964 are depicted in the first season finale of the NBC television show American Dreams.

ee also

* Race riots
* Riots
* Urban riots

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Philadelphia — Spitzname: Philly, City of Brotherly Love, The City that Loves you Back, Cradle of Liberty, The Quaker City, The Birthplace of America, Illadelph Philadelphi …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — Philadelphia Spitzname: Philly, City of Brotherly Love, The City that Loves you Back, Cradle of Liberty, The Quaker City, The Birthplace of America, Illadelph Philadelphia …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) — Philadelphia Spitzname: Philly, City of Brotherly Love, The City that Loves you Back, Cradle of Liberty, The Quaker City, The Birthplace of America, Illadelph Philadelphia …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Philadelphia County — Philadelphia Spitzname: Philly, City of Brotherly Love, The City that Loves you Back, Cradle of Liberty, The Quaker City, The Birthplace of America, Illadelph Philadelphia …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • 1964 — This article is about the year 1964. For other uses, see 1964 (disambiguation). Millennium: 2nd millennium Centuries: 19th century – 20th century – 21st century Decades: 1930s  1940s  1950s  – 1 …   Wikipedia

  • Philadelphia Nativist Riots — The July 7, 1844, riot in Southwark The Philadelphia Nativist Riots (also known as the Philadelphia Prayer Riots, the Bible Riots and the Native American Riots) were a series of riots that took place between May 6 and 8 and July 6 and 7, 1844, in …   Wikipedia

  • Crime in Philadelphia — Philadelphia Crime rates (2007) Crime type Rate* Homicide …   Wikipedia

  • List of race riots — This is a list of race riots by country.Angola* Anti Chinese riot [ [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article 1036105/How Chinas taking Africa West VERY worried.html How China s taking over Africa, and why the West should be VERY… …   Wikipedia

  • Philadelphia — This article is about the city in Pennsylvania. For other uses, see Philadelphia (disambiguation). City of Philadelphia   Consolidated city county   …   Wikipedia

  • North Philadelphia — Map of Philadelphia County with North Philadelphia highlighted. Click for larger image …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”