2022 marks the 30th anniversary of a dark period in the city of Los Angeles, which is when the LA Riots occurred following the verdict on the Rodney King trial.
CNN political commentator Van Jones will be revisiting the event and the circumstances that led to the riots in a one-hour special on CNN, premiering Friday, April 29 at 11 pm ET.
The all-new special examines the simmering issues beneath LA, including a drug epidemic, rising crime, economic collapse, and a broken criminal justice system.
All these problems finally reached a boiling point after a jury acquitted four officers charged with using excessive force in the arrest and beating of King.
“The first time I went to jail was in the aftermath of the Rodney King uprisings,” Van Jones said. “The impact of those days has never left me. It’s a powerful experience to return to the streets 30 years later – and learn what has changed, what hasn’t, and why it all happened in the first place.”
Jones will also be talking with people notable people for the special, including Representative Karen Bass (D-CA); Henry “Kiki” Watson, one of the “LA Four” convicted of beating trucker Reginald Denny; Rodney King attorneys Milton Grimes and Steve Lerman; Christina Rogers, the sister of Latasha Harlins; former LAPD Captain Thomas Elfmont, and others.
Eduardo Razo is the Assistant Content Editor for BNM, which includes writing daily news stories on the news media industry. He can be found on Twitter @eddierazo_ or you can reach him by email at eddie1991razo@gmail.com.
