Bongo

This tape appears to be raw or crudely edited footage (perhaps a very rough cut) from a documentary about the 1992 riots in Los Angeles sparked by the acquittal of the police officers who beat Rodney King. The first 15 minutes are taken up by an interview with Bongo, an African-American artist and business owner in South Central Los Angeles. Bongo’s comments, which are often very passionate and animated, center on the racist mistreatment of African-Americans, particularly African-Americans i n Los Angeles. The remainder of the tape is raw footage shot in Los Angeles following the riots. Most of the shots are of National Guardsmen patrolling the streets on foot and in armored vehicles. These images make Los Angeles look eerily similar to occupied Baghdad.