1969 York Race Riot

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1969 York Race Riot refers to a period of racial unrest in York, Pennsylvania in 1969, sparked by the murder of a black resident and culminating in the murder of Lillie Belle Allen, an out-of-town visitor.

The York race riots began July 17, 1969, after Taka Nii Sweeney, 17, is shot by an unseen gunman (possibly a white gang member) when Detective George Smith stops him and friends for violating the city’s youth curfew. White and black gangs begin rumbles that afternoon.^[1]

Fights broke out, buildings were set ablaze and police began barricading black neighborhoods. More than 60 people were injured, 100 were arrested and entire city blocks burned. A white rookie police officer was fatally shot while patrolling the city in an armored car. No one has ever been identified as the assassin, and the case is still unsolved.

The killing was followed by rallies of white citizens. These rallies were attended by police officers, including future mayor Charlie Robertson, who admits yelling "white power" and providing ammunition to white vigilantes. Witnesses say Robertson told them to "kill as many niggers as you can" and "If I weren't a cop, I'd be leading commando raids against niggers in the black neighborhoods."

Black citizens of York had been marching on city hall since 1963, protesting police violence and official discrimination. Their demands for a bi-racial police review board were turned down by the all-white city council. The marchers were frequently clubbed or had German shepherds set on them by police.^[2]

A second murder occurred on the fifth night of rioting, July 21, 1969, on when a car containing five African-American out-of-town visitors, three of them women, drove through a white neighborhood. They were menaced by a crowed, which opened fire after the car became stuck on railroad tracks. The driver, Lillie Belle Allen, was killed.^[3]

[edit] External links

• Race Matters: Handcuffed by History
• NYT Article
• NYT Article
• Long sentences in '69 riots case
• YORK RACE RIOT
• Riots echo across York
• Whopper of the Week: Charles Robertson
• Lillie Belle Allen FBI file

[edit] References

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