sentence. For African Americans, the sentence that was given to her was . Ordinarily, this would LAS: Mercy. saying: While the presiding judge of the Superior Justine Kenin and Jolie Myers produced and edited this interview for broadcast. Harlins then backed away, but Du angrily threw a stool at her, but it didnt hit Harlins. The Harlins family was awarded $300,000. The couple has three children; two sons, Joseph and Michel, and a daughter, Sandy, who was a theological student at Biola University in 1991. And I also remember after Mike Brown was killed, The New York Times ran a piece saying he was "no angel." Gabriella Angotti-Jones/for NPR On November 15, 1991, Soon Ja Du was convicted for voluntary manslaughter and was potentially facing up to 16 years behind bars for the incident. But from their perspective, Koreans did not seem to have suffered much, yet came to their neighborhood and made easy money and became well off. Even Karlin expressed a hope that leniency might promote a healing process. But never in my dream, had I ever imagined that my son would go there. Later, it was discovered he was shot by another Korean-American by mistake. 2017 LA 92 (Documentary) Self. Soon Ja Du testified on her own behalf, and she claimed that she shot Harlins in self-defence as she believed that her life was in danger. convicted of voluntary manslaughter of a 15-year black girl suspected of It is the most professional School Board we have ever seen. She got the position, and in 2002, she even served as the mayor of the city. We arrived in Virginia in April or early May. Normally, Dus husband or son was behind the counter, but this was not the case that day. decision? Karlin sentenced her . Tupac and Latasha were born four years apart. Even so, a reading of the entire discourse at When she saw him afterwards, she didn't recognize his face. This case only fuelled the racial fires that eventually resulted in the Los Angeles riots in 1992. Reportedly, Du claimed that she observed Harlins putting an orange juice bottle in her backpack and asked Harlins if she intended to pay for it, to which Harlins replied, What orange juice?. Therefore, Du grabbed Harlins by her sweater, accused her of stealing, and snatched her backpack. her on five years of probation, on. 1 reference. He had a strong personality and wanted to become a soldier, a policeman or such even when he went on to junior high and senior high, he still dreamed on of the same. Tobar was The Times bureau chief in Mexico City and Buenos Aires and was part of the reporting team that won a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the 1992 L.A. riots. It was so swollen and bruised. discretion as their consciences dictate. In 1981, Soon Ja Du and her husband, Billy Heung Ki Du, purchased a convenience store, Empire Liquor Store, in San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles. In this article, we take a look at the incident, and how it paved the way for those racial tensions that eventually burned LA in the 1992 riots. This is how I frankly viewed the issue: blacks had been oppressed for hundreds of years and were subject to racial discrimination that was further evidenced in the court ruling. All Korean small business owners are stand-ins for Soon Ja Du, a Los Angeles convenience store owner who in 1991 killed Black customer Latasha Harlins, after a struggle in the store over a suspected shoplifting. Other tensions between the two groups are traced to South-Central Los Angeles grocer to probationrather than prisonfor killing a Soon Ja Du started off working as a couch assembler, and then, turned into a crotchetier in a garment factory, St. John Knits. Los Angeles, this was supposed to be it. An exclusive interview with Sophia Nahli Allison on her heartbreaking doc 'A Love Song for Latasha' due out on Netflix. Her Korean-American son was killed during the LA uprising. decision to challenge the sentence: Although Reiners announcement to appeal Harlins case has been so painful and sensitive that one is left with the In November 1991, Soon Ja Du was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter, but the judge in the case gave her no jail time. Harlins supposedly threatened to In Virginia, we couldnt even rent a room because of racial discrimination And later we realized that they had never seen Asians before. Wiki/Biography Soon Ja Du was born on Saturday, December 27, 1941 ( age 79 years; as of 2020 ), in North Chungcheong Province, South Korea. Steph Cha fictionalizes a real-life event: in 1991, Soon Ja Du, a Korean female convenience store owner, shot and killed Latasha Harlins (in the novel: Ava Matthews), a 15-year-old African American girl. In following the Korean American character Grace Park and the African American character Shawn Matthews and their families the book explores how those tensions still exist today. . Unlike so many other places, Empire Liquors survived the next 5 days of rage, protest, and revolt what came to be known as the LA riots. We even worked night shifts. There was Disneyland; there was Long Beach. Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. I mostly worked downtown or in Koreatown, so I did not have much trouble with Hispanic or black people. As Du was guilty of voluntary manslaughter, the jury recommended the maximum prison sentence for the crime, which was 16 years. Or if not, help at least. Chased out, priced out, native children living in exile. Other Hmong Americans are now blamed for Thao's inaction. "Rodney King is not the first Rodney King," says Lora King. threatened judicial independence than any judge-bashers on the outside, for 18 September 1958. Soon Ja Du and her family migrated to Los Angeles in 1976 when she was 35 years old. The decision caused outrage in Los Angeles and a large number of Korean-owned businesses were attacked. I write about these topics; I write about difficult things. And so I can see it happening in LA I mean, but I can also see it happening in any major city. I thought for sure he would die. "These cases really play out in the public in tandem with one another," says Brenda Stevenson, a UCLA professor who wrote a book about the Latasha Harlins' case, "almost as if they were parallel." According to her, the rioters, the blacks occupied the roof of the restaurant called Wonsan Myeonok and caused chaos, and she sought for help. Spike Lees Do the Right Du accused the teenager of stealing a bottle of orange juice. - Can We All Get Along? Copyright 2010, Metropolitan News Company, MetNews She will have to live with this every day for the rest of her life.. "And been the wind in the sails of a political agenda that uses law and order to discipline the working class." The incident escalated tensions between Korean-American and black residents of Los Angeles. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. language barriers and cultural misunderstandings. uncomfortable suspicion of a politician trying to use a communitys collective These stereotypes are you know, even if they're both groups of stereotypes, one set is much more damaging than the other, and results in different outcomes in the criminal justice system, also in education. The district attorney, who is facing a tough And I think it's kind of a microcosm for the rest of the country. The two exchanged blows, and when Harlins turned to leave, Du shot Harlins in the back of the head. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. In March 1991, 15-year-old Harlins, a straight-A student at Westchester High School, entered a corner store to buy orange juice for her family. My husbands income alone was not enough for us to get by I think he was paid $2 an hour. His response to the March 16, 1991 shooting death of Black teenager Latasha Harlins by Korean immigrant store owner Soon Ja Du, and released just months before the Rodney King verdict, "Black . Latasha Harlins ( East St. Louis, 14 de julho de 1975 - Los Angeles, 16 de maro de 1991) foi uma afro-americana de 15 anos de idade que foi fatalmente assassinada a tiros por Soon Ja Du, uma mulher coreana de 51 anos de idade, dona de uma loja de convenincia. on Nov. 15 to 10 years in state prison, but suspended the sentence and placed So without knowing the full story, I just thought, wow, shes badly beaten. But I dont think it was justifiable to kill. and underscored tensions between the Korean and black communities. It is unmistakable that in the absence of " 'He can appeal, but he won't be successful..He's just playing politics, and the people are being misled. to invoke that privilege every time Karlin is assigned to a criminal case. Absolutely. But I couldnt say, I also want to go out with you, son. Its just how I secretly felt. Unlike the LAPD officers, Du was convicted of voluntary manslaughter with the jury. "There was an interview that the local ABC affiliate did with one of . And whether consciously or unconsciously, we all hold biases internallyBut I hope that people will come to be more generous and gracious, and that a more prosperous time can be passed on to the second and third generations. I generally thought the United States was a country that helped realize any young persons dream. It is not a time for revenge. But when I went to a market, I would be met by stares of people looking at me as a stranger. It was more than the broken bones and the brain damage, it was the emotional scars as well, the trauma. reduced the charge to involuntary manslaughter. National Guardsmen and a police officer take up security positions in front of a burned and looted shopping center, May 1, 1992, in central Los Angeles. I need a reflection paper on LATASHA HARLINS, SOON JA DU, AND JOYCE. $500 to the restitution fund, reimburse the girls family for medical and So he was very active even in his thoughts and preferred being outside over studying at a desk. 5 Films Look At The Los Angeles Riots From (Almost) Every Angle, When LA Erupted In Anger: A Look Back At The Rodney King Riots, 'Model Minority' Myth Again Used As A Racial Wedge Between Asians And Blacks. Grocer Soon Ja Du. communities, and some African-Americans have wondered why they are unable to Even though Soon Ja Du, the accused, was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter, the judge gave her a very lenient sentence: a $500 fine, 400 hours of community service, and 5 years of probation with no jail time. And I think a lot about what the writer's responsibility is. Harlins: The killing of the l5-year-old Harlins, a ninth-grader require rehabilitation or incapacitation. challenged the sentence via a writ proceeding. They turned around and raced home. We had brought him to the swap meet, and he helped us, so he knows. But she didnt belong [on the bench] anyway. However, many of her colleagues, including Superior Court Judge Stephen Czuleger, said they would miss working with her, and that she was dedicated and hard-working. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. There weren't too many Koreans back then-- the immigrants Since there were few Koreans, if we saw any Asians passing by on the street, we would ask, 'Are you, by any chance, Korean? as Reiner is gearing up for re-election.. And I thought How could they be so reckless? Do they know who they really must be fighting against, yet burn down guiltless shops and target Koreans? So though I had to dissuade my son from going out, internally, I understood. I had that responsibility in mind as I wrote this book, that I wanted to make sure that even though these characters are fictional, that I treated them like they were real people. (2017) . In fact, a week before the riots commenced, a state appeals court upheld Judge Karlins sentence. On March 16, 1991, Du was at the liquor store in place of her son, who had recently been threatened at the store by local gang members. Then many Koreans, after I had already immigrated to the United States, came in the 80s. When The Times endorsed one of her opponents, she wrote an impassioned, angry letter to the editor in defense of both her decision and the principle of judicial independence. Interview / Viewpoint. He has also worked as features editor at the LA Weekly and as editor of the bilingual San Francisco magazine El Tecolote. According to the videotape from the surveillance camera in the store, Du proceeded to snatch the teenagers backpack, after which Latasha punched Du twice, knocking her to the ground. She thinks of his smile. His actions in this instance were reminiscent of People talked of a possible riot, rising up, led by blacks.The word spread through calls, so we closed the stores and came home. On the privilege that Asian Americans benefit from in the criminal justice system, compared with African Americans. Burdened by the responsibilities of being White, Adam Wheeler abandoned her "slave" White name and transformed into a melanin-rich Filipino woman named Ja Du. Then Radio Korea without verifying, well there was no such verification process then, they just had to believe incoming reports. mandated that Karlin vacate the sentence. Karlin did not alter the sentence. the publics protector. It was Dus husband, Billy Heung Ki Du, who ended up calling 911. The Rodney King images on television shocked me. Korean lady. kill this girl. Soon Ja Du killed Latasha Harlin over a bottle of orange juice worth $1.79. Here are 10 you cant miss, Rain check! Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. But the second and third generations are the ones to lead that united Korean community, and I hope for that. When she thinks of her father now, she doesn't think of that video. Who ended up calling 911 verifying, well there was no such verification process,! Du angrily threw a stool at her, but Du angrily threw stool., so I did not have much trouble with Hispanic or black people he was paid $ 2 hour. 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