What We Should Have Learned From the L.A. Riots

As the director of a documentary on the Rodney King uprising, I hope what we’re seeing today makes more of a difference than 1992 did

The author, at right, with George Holliday, who in 1991 used his new camcorder to capture LAPD officers beating Rodney King. (Photo: courtesy of the author)

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In the right hands and on the right occasion, the pen is mightier than the sword — and a camera can be louder than a cannon. The one in the above photo blew a hole in America’s façade of equal justice under the law; the shots fired reignited an ongoing fight against racist policing policies and the savage tactics officers employ. It’s an age-old tug of war with both sides white-knuckled and heels dug in.

Today, this stalemate plays out in real time on cable networks as the George Floyd rebellion becomes the main attraction in post-quarantine America. But when I see the looted Target, the smoldering city blocks, the inconsistent police presence, and the hope for something new, I see echoes of the Rodney King riots that took place 28 years ago. And like everyone who has lived through that tsunami of rage, I am haunted by the question: What the fuck have we changed?

On March 3, 1991, George Holliday, an Argentinian immigrant who worked as a plumber, heard a…