It is hard to believe it has been 20 years since the LA Riots centered around the beating of Rodney King.  This is a memory I will never forget.  I remember waking up one morning, getting ready to walk to school and asking my parents what were all these particles flying through the air.  I soon found out that these particles  were ashes traveling all the way to our house from Crenshaw Blvd…the infamous Crenshaw Blvd.  Due to all the unrest in the city, my school had closed down for the next several days.

We spent that weekend visiting the ruined, dilapidated buildings on Crenshaw Blvd, cleaning up and creating assembly lines, passing canned goods to help those affected by the riots.

I recall seeing people running out of stores with couches, batteries, groceries, etc.  I also recall seeing national guards with guns the size of my son standing in front of the Crenshaw Mall.  Car jacking was at an all time high in the city.

Much has changed since that day…or has it?  I can still drive down Crenshaw Blvd and see vacant lots, cracked concrete with grass growing through it, where businesses once stood.

We want to say some things have changed, but based on the Zimmerman – Martin issue some of us can beg to differ.  Have we (as African Americans) become accustomed to raising our sons to the reality of knowing that they could be subject to racial profiling, harassment, etc?  Are there similarities on the whole idea that a black person has no presumption of innocence?

On the other hand, I do think that we have a more diverse law enforcement community.

So, I ask again…has much changed in 20 years?

Has race relations gotten better? worse? the same?

Really…I mean, “Can we all just get along?”

What are your memories from the 1992 LA Riots?