The scene was intense. Black residents of Minneapolis angered over an incident of police brutality fought with officers in the streets and set buildings ablaze. Many were injured; dozens were arrested. Eventually the National Guard, called in to patrol the streets, ordered black citizens back into their homes.
This may sound a lot like a scene from the past week, but it’s actually a flashback to 1967, when African Americans took to the streets of north Minneapolis after a series of abuses that, like today, culminated in days of unrest.
It took place in one of the “long, hot summers” of the 1960s, when black Americans in cities across the country protested and rioted over police abuse and segregation. While our history books remind us of famous riots in major cities like Los Angeles, Newark and Detroit, what took place in Minneapolis – where the black population back then was just 8% – is often forgotten. Continue reading.