UNDERSTANDING THE RIOTS / PART 3 : WITNESS TO RAGE : MOMENTS OF TERROR : ‘Six or seven men kicked me.’

I work at a car wash in Inglewood. My boss is black, I work with blacks, 90% of the clients are black. I’ve never had any problems with them until I took the bus on Wednesday, April 29. It almost took an hour for the bus to come. And there weren’t many people on it, we were maybe 15 or 18 persons.

When we got to Central and Imperial Streets, on the corner, three black men with guns stood in front of the bus.

They trapped the driver and told him to open the doors. Then one man got on board and one stayed with the bus driver at gunpoint. There were only four Latinos on the bus and I was the second one to get off. When we got off there was a group of black men in the back. They began pushing me. They threw me to the ground. About six or seven men kicked me. I saw a drainage ditch at the side of the curb. I rolled inside it and they didn’t see me anymore. For awhile, I didn’t hear anything.

I was disoriented. I lost my senses. When I woke up I got out. I think because of fear or because of my color or because of the blood, no one ever tried to help me.

I didn’t know where I was. I came upon three patrol cars. I was waving my hands to see if they could help me and they didn’t want to stop. Around me people were looting the markets, breaking windows.

About 8:30 p.m., I was still walking on Central Street. I took a bus to Florence Street. There were two policemen there. It was about 10 p.m. They didn’t ask me what had happened to me, absolutely nothing. At no moment did I see protection from police, even though I asked for it. I made signs to the policemen to come to my aid, but they didn’t respond. It was like I didn’t exist to them.

It makes me feel real bad, like we Latinos don’t have any rights here, like we’re worthless. The police don’t see you as a person, as a human. I know I’m a person. I know I’m a person with worth. I have never done wrong to anyone.

I called my sister at home so that she would pick me up. I didn’t tell her what shape I was in at that moment, only to give me a ride. When she saw me, she went pale from nervousness.

Before this happened to me, I felt real good about Los Angeles. I worked with a lot of enthusiasm. I’ve always worked.

I would walk among people of many colors and nothing ever happened to me. I would chat with blacks, with whites, with Latinos because in my job you come upon different classes of people and color. I felt very happy here. I lived with no fear.

Now, I don’t know how I’m going to feel when I’m among blacks. I don’t want to say that all blacks are bad. There is bad in everyone of us, in every place, in every color, every race.

I pray to God that he helps me not to feel resentment over the people who beat me, that I will not accumulate hatred, because we are humans and we err. I don’t blame the police because they didn’t help me. I simply blame the political system for not doing what’s necessary to protect the persons who are here to help the economy of this country.

The blacks had their reasons to do what they did. They were protesting justly because of what happened with the Rodney King verdict. But I didn’t have to take those blows that they gave me simply because they were furious from the verdict.

I don’t want to think negatively. I want to have faith that there will be a better system and better treatment towards all of us. I am dedicated to work to survive here. I have never sold drugs, never robbed. I’ve always worked. And when one is like that, one sees the future as being a good one.