Civil Rights and Vietnam War Protests
The Civil rights movement in the United States actively brought calls for black power and against racism to Omaha, while simultaneously youth throughout the city were being drafted to fight in the Vietnam War. This led to a series of protests and riots, the repercussions of which are still felt today in some communities.
| Riots and civil unrest related to civil rights and the Vietnam War chronological order | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Issue | Event | |||
| July 4, 1966 | Racial tension | After a 103 degree day, a crowd of African Americans gathered at the intersection of North 24th and Lake Streets in the evening. They responded violently when the Omaha Police Department requested their dispersal. The crowd demolished police cars and roamed the North 24th Street business corridor for hours, throwing firebombs and demolishing storefronts. Millions of dollars of damage was caused to businesses in the Near North Side community. The riot lasted three days. | |||
| August 1, 1966 | Racial tension | Riots erupted after a 19-year-old was shot by a white, off-duty policeman during a burglary. The Omaha World-Herald and local television stations were accused of blaming African Americans for the conditions they faced in their deteriorating neighborhoods. Three buildings were firebombed, and 180 riot police were required to quell the crowds. | |||
| March 4, 1968 | Racial tension | A crowd of high school and university students were gathered at the Omaha Civic Auditorium to protest the presidential campaign of George Wallace, the segregationist governor of Alabama. After counter-protesters began acting violently toward the youths, police brutality led to the injury of dozens of protesters. An African-American youth was shot and killed by a police officer during the melee, and fleeing students caused thousands of dollars of damage to businesses and cars. The following day a local barber named Ernie Chambers helped calm a disturbance and prevent a riot by students at Horace Mann Junior High School. Chambers was already recognized as a community leader. After finishing his law degree, Chambers was elected to the Nebraska State Legislature, and served a total of 38 years, longer than any of his predecessors. | |||
| June 24, 1969 | Racial tension | An African-American teenager named Vivian Strong was shot and killed by police officers in an incident at the Logan Fontenelle Housing Projects. Young African Americans, led by a group called the Black Association for Nationalism Through Unity (BANTU), rioted throughout the Near North Side neighborhood in response to the teenager's death, with looting along the North 24th Street business corridor. During this initial surge eight businesses were destroyed by firebombing or looting. Events went on for several more days. This is the last noted riot in Omaha. | |||
| July 10, 1971 | Anti-war | The city was on alert after four days and nights of anti-Vietnam War protests at Memorial Park. Thousands of youth activists were involved. | |||
Read more about this topic: List Of Riots And Civil Unrest In Omaha, Nebraska, 20th Century
Famous quotes containing the words civil rights, civil, rights, vietnam and/or war:
“The common goal of 22 million Afro-Americans is respect as human beings, the God-given right to be a human being. Our common goal is to obtain the human rights that America has been denying us. We can never get civil rights in America until our human rights are first restored. We will never be recognized as citizens there until we are first recognized as humans.”
—Malcolm X (1925–1965)
“Come, civil night,
Thou sober-suited matron all in black.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“I set out on this ground, which I suppose to be self evident, “that the earth belongs in usufruct to the living”: that the dead have neither powers nor rights over it.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
“I was proud of the youths who opposed the war in Vietnam because they were my babies.”
—Benjamin Spock (b. 1903)
“Once lead this people into war and they will forget there ever was such a thing as tolerance.”
—Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)