4.29/ Saigu/ LA Uprising

 

April 29, 1992, known in the Korean American community as Saigu, was a watershed moment in Los Angeles. Some have named this event as the L.A. Uprising, Riot, or Rebellion. Even after thirty years, we still have a difficult time agreeing on how to name the event because it impacted the diverse communities so differently.

We gathered 30 years later to remember and testify.  We remembered that 30 years ago, violence erupted in the city we live and love.  We testified that on March 3, 1991 Rodney King, a black man was involved in a high-speed chase which resulted in his brutal arrest. Four officers tasered, struck, kicked and tackled him excessively. Unbeknownst to the police and King, the incident was captured on a camcorder by a local civilian and released to the world to see. We remembered that on April 29, 1992, the jury acquitted all four officers of assault and acquitted three of the four of using excessive force. The cup of oppression flowed over right here in South Central Los Angeles where many knew that what happened to King was the reality of so many black and brown brothers and sisters. We remembered that as the anger and rage was unleashed, our government, law enforcement, and the media did not act responsibly. Communities were pitted against one another destroying lives, neighborhoods and livelihoods. 53 lives were lost, 2,000 businesses destroyed, and over a billion dollars in property damage were incurred.  We also remembered the devastation and trauma on the Korean community who incurred over 45% of the billion dollars of property damage. They witnessed the fragility of the American dream as their life’s savings and dream were burned and destroyed in the ashes without political or police protection. But we also gathered to remember the words of Min Jin Lee who wrote in the first line of her book, Pachinko: “History has failed us, but no matter.” Government has failed us, but no matter. Law enforcement, the media, and sometimes even our church has failed us, but no matter. God is with us. And thirty years later, the Holy Ghost is reminding us to remember, to name the hauntings, to face them with courage- together. 

See photos from the commemoration HERE

The vision behind this poster by artist, Hyeyoon Song:

This poster is dedicated to SAIGU, 4.29 an event that left many communities, bodies, land and city at unease. I wanted to defy the dominant perspective of this event that left a mark on many lives, and to use the dichotomies between the past and present, visible and invisible, and reality and mythology to evoke many perspectives from those who witnessed and heard.

The imagery of this poster was interpreted as black and white silhouettes who linger in the landscape of Los Angeles. I wanted to use the fundamentals of a stenciling technique in screen printing using positive and negative spaces to bridge the material and conceptual narrative. The figures who remain as white silhouettes, the “cut outs” from the black curtain backdrop are the subjects drawn from images of the L.A. uprising.

It was important to blur the line between the imagery that will be perceived as those who are running away or running towards something. While the figures of the past exist in the shadows of escaping towards prospect and hope, the figures depicted in black silhouettes are many voices of activism triggered by the current unrest and showed up to protest and remember this day.

The typeface of the font used in this poster is Martin and Marsha, both from Vocal Type, designed by an African American designer Tré Seals. The font Martin named after Martin Luther King Jr. was specifically inspired by the posters “I AM A MAN” from the Memphis Sanitation Strike of 1968. Marsha is named after the African American transgender woman, Marsha P. Johnson was prominent for her activism in the Stonewall Uprising of 1969. These two typefaces are nonviolent but bear stories of the American past and introduce minority culture in design.

Healing Our Hauntings 30 Years Later- Webinar (April 22, 2022)

In-person gathering at Family Mennonite Church in South Central Los Angeles (April 23, 2022)

25th Commemoration

On April 7-9, 2017, Angelenos gathered to "remem-bear" the 1992 Los Angeles Uprising/Riot. We gathered to do our work around history, unresolved trauma, and how it impacts justice issues today. 

Friday evening centered around the stories of Korean Americans and how Saigu (4.29-the date when the verdict for Rodney King's trial came out) traumatized this immigrant community). Many Korean-owned businesses were targeted and looted incurring 45% of the one billion dollar property damage.

The Uprising/Riot for 1.5 and second generation Korean Americans  was a wake up call that we needed to prioritize engaging in our local communities. This unrest instilled in a generation of Korean-Americans, the importance of engaging with civic organizations, being activists, about caring for all members of the community to fight racism and economic inequality.


Morning Panelists: Remem-bearing 1992 - Art Cribbs, Michael Mata, Daniel Lee, and Leonardo Vilchis (Video by Kang Soo Yu)

The panel session was followed by workshops:

  • Faith-focused organizing (Art Cribbs)

  • Koreatown from 1990-2015: What does statistics tell us? (Soyeon Choi, Junghyun Choi, Cheolho Lee)

  • Social investment and community building in an age of gentrification (Leonardo Vilchis)

  • Women doing justice (Elaine Enns, Grecia Reyes, Elizabeth Leu, Sue Park-Hur)

  • Organizing urban communities for transformation(Michael Mata)

These workshops helped us to dig deeper into the roots of the Uprising/Riot and find ways to connect with each other for the future.

In the afternoon, we had a panel of young adult community leaders, Hyung-In Kim (Fuller Seminary), Grecia Lopez-Reyes (CLUE), Jason Chu (Jason Chu Music), Elizabeth Leu (DOOR LA). They were not living in Los Angeles during the 1992 Uprising/Riot but we asked them where they saw hope as they work in the city and what they envision for the future.

 

Sula Kim of WDSU in New Orleans grew up in Los Angeles and vividly recounted the 1992 Uprising/Riot as a pivotal moment in her life that drew her into journalism and cover stories of injustices in the community (video edited by Hansoo Kim)

 
 

Mrs. Sukja Kim recalled how her business was looted but in looking back recognized that "we" included only other Koreans and challenged us to expand our understanding of "we." (video edited by Hansoo Kim)

Context of 1992 “Social, Historical and Theological Themes" - Ched Myers

 
 

What is "remem-bearing?: Trauma and Response-ability" by Elaine Enns

 
 

Closing panelists: “Where is the hope?” Hyung-In Kim, Grecia Reyes, Jason Chu and Elizabeth Leu (video by Kangsoo Yu)

Special performances by Jason Chu and Derek Brown (video by Kangsoo Yu)

 
 

Special performance by Zehnders (video by Kangsoo Yu)

Collaborative closing worship (video by Kangsoo Yu)

 
Previous
Previous

Anti-Asian Racism

Next
Next

Asian American YA & Teen Reading List