Unrest Spreads Throughout Los Angeles (1992)

April 30, 1992, proved to be the most chaotic, destructive, and deadly day of the LA Riots. This segment of The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour documents various scenes of disorder. Unrest was largely concentrated in South Central Los Angeles on April 29, but on April 30, rioting broke out across the city in dozens of different neighborhoods, primarily low-income Black and Latino areas. With police spread thin and fire departments struggling to keep up with hundreds of fires, an atmosphere of lawlessness prevailed. News cameras captured scenes of widespread looting, as Angelenos exited stores with arms full of merchandise. Americans in Los Angeles and across the country watched these scenes of urban chaos on live television; the level of unrest hadn’t been seen in the U.S. since the upheaval of the 1960s.

The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour | NewsHour Productions : Washington D.C. | May 05, 1992 This video clip and associated transcript appear from 14:09 - 21:42 in the full record.