Livernois–Fenkell riot

The Livernois–Fenkell riot was a racially motivated riot that occurred in July 1975 on Livernois Avenue at Chalfonte Avenue, just south of Fenkell Avenue, in Detroit, Michigan.

A White American bar owner shot a Black American teenager who was seen tampering with the bar owner's car. The gunman reportedly thought that the teenager's screwdriver was a weapon. Following the teenager's death, gathered crowds reacted with random acts of vandalism, assault, looting and racial fighting. A Nazi concentration camp survivor in his mid-50s was beaten to death by a group of black youths. There were no other deaths.

Fatal shooting of an 18-year-old

The trouble began on the evening of July 28, when Andrew Chinarian, the 39-year-old white owner of Bolton's Bar, observed three black youths tampering with his car in the parking lot. He fired a pistol or rifle, fatally wounding 18-year-old Obie Wynn.Template:Sfn According to some accounts, Wynn was fleeing; according to others, he was approaching Chinarian with what the latter thought was a weapon, it later emerged that Wynn was holding a screwdriver. He died from a gunshot wound to the back of the head.Template:Sfn Crowds gathered and random acts of vandalism, assault, looting and racial fighting along Livernois and Fenkell avenues ensued. Bottles and rocks were thrown at passing cars.Template:Sfn

Beating to death a concentration camp survivor

The second man killed was Marian Pyszko, a 54-year-old dishwasher and Nazi concentration camp survivor who had emigrated from Poland in 1958.Template:Sfn As he drove home from the bakery/candy factory where he worked, he was pulled from his car by a group of black youths and beaten to death with a piece of concrete.Template:SfnTemplate:Page needed Ronald Bell Jordan, Raymond Peoples, and Dennis Lindsay were all charged with first-degree murder, but acquitted.Template:Sfn Several years later, Peoples returned to headlines after being arrested for dealing heroin.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Police avoiding the use of deadly force

Police were ordered to not use deadly force, so no shots were fired.Template:Sfn A crowd of 700 was dispersed by morning. Angry crowds reappeared and violence resumed the following night – a car became a battering ram and a mob ransacked Bolton's Bar.Template:Sfn

Intervention by the mayor

Detroit mayor Coleman Young defused the disturbance by appearing in person (along with several clergymen) and ordering every black policeman in the city to police the riot.Template:SfnTemplate:Incomplete short citation

Property damage

The damage to property in the Livernois-Fenkell area amounted to tens of thousands of dollars. Fifty-three people were arrested, and ten injuries were recorded (including one firefighter and one police officer).Template:Sfn

CBS News reports about discriminatory hiring practices

CBS News reported an unverified claim that the bar served white patrons only, and noted the 25% unemployment rate as an aggravating factor.Template:Sfn

See also

• List of riots in Detroit
• List of homicides in Michigan
• List of incidents of civil unrest in the United States

Bibliography

Notes Template:Reflist References

• Template:Cite book - Total pages: 80
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• Template:Cite book - Total pages: 325 - Article on book: Detroit: Race Riots, Racial Conflicts, and Efforts to Bridge the Racial Divide
• Template:Cite journal
• Template:Cite news
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• Template:Cite book - Total pages: 337
• Template:Cite web