Following the murder in 1942 of a young Mexican American
in wartime Los Angeles, violent riots between zoot suiters
and sailors scarred race relations for decades to come.
Above, young men wait outside the Grand Jury Room.
UTSA offers pre-screening of PBS's 'Zoot Suit Riots'
(Jan. 31, 2002)--Members of the Tri-Campus community will have an opportunity to view the PBS documentary "Zoot Suit Riots" before it airs nationally. The free screening will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 4 at the Downtown Campus Buena Vista Street Building Theater. Faculty are encouraged to tell their classes about the film or to allow their classes to attend as a group.
The work was produced by San Antonio native Joseph Tovares, who will speak and take questions at the screening. A graduate of Central Catholic High School, Tovares grew up on the West side and worked for the independent Hispanic Television Network and KLRN before joining WGBH-Boston seven years ago. "Zoot Suit Riots" is the first major documentary on this topic and is part of the American Experience series.
"The zoot suit riots remain significant because the underlying issues that led to the violence are still with us today," said Tovares. "The riots were about racial profiling in a time of war…they were about fear of people of color."
In August 1942, the murder of a young Mexican American man ignited a firestorm in Los Angeles. Tensions that had been building up for years between Latinos and Anglos boiled over. The news media claimed Mexican youth -- known as "zoot-suiters" for the clothes they wore -- were terrorizing the city with crime. Police fanned out across Los Angeles, arresting 600 Mexican Americans. Seventeen zoot-suiters were tried for murder, and despite a lack of evidence, all were found guilty.
In the months following the convictions, racial tensions escalated, and in June 1943, full-scale riots erupted between U.S. sailors and the Mexican American community. Zoot-suiters were beaten and stripped of their clothes, which were burned in the streets. On the fifth day of the melee, 5,000 civilians showed up to assist the servicemen. Mexican American youths organized and fought back.
This compelling, yet little-known, story not only reveals fascinating details about Latino culture in Southern California but also exposes the widespread xenophobia that characterized Los Angeles during World War II.
Narrated by actor Hector Elizondo, Tovares' piece blends evocative original photography, archival footage and many eyewitness interviews. San Antonio is one of a handful of cities nationwide chosen for special screenings of the program, which will air nationally on Feb. 10. KLRN will broadcast the program locally at 9 p.m.
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© The University of Texas at San Antonio, 2001