1968 Chicago Riots

1968 Chicago Riots

The 1968 Chicago riots were sparked by the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was shot while standing on the balcony of his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968 at 6:01 pm. Violence and chaos followed, with blacks flooding out onto the streets of major cities. Soon riots began, primarily in black urban areas. Over 100 major U.S. cities experienced disturbances, resulting in roughly $50 million in damages.

Rioters and police in Chicago were particularly aggressive, and the damage was particularly severe. Of the 39 people who died, 34 were black. Chicago, Illinois, Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C. experienced some of the worst riots. In Chicago, more than 48 hours of rioting left 11 Chicago citizens dead, 48 wounded by police gunfire, 90 policemen injured, and 2,150 people arrested. Two miles of Lawndale on West Madison Street were left in a state of rubble.