Race & Rage is a new documentary commemorating the 20th anniversary of the vicious beating Rodney King took from Los Angeles police in 1991. The beating and events that followed ultimately sparked a weeklong spree of riots and looting and forced the city to re-examine its racial divides.
The documentary, hosted by CNN anchor Don Lemon, depicts how mayhem gripped L.A. in the aftermath of the acquittal of four officers who were videotaped in the act of brutalizing a seemingly defenseless King, who had been apprehended for speeding on the way, he says, to a construction job.
Two decades later, Race & Rage shows King as largely unchanged by what befell him. He still flaunts a taste for flashy clothes and a high-maintenance hairstyle. He still speaks in the same halting tone as when he uttered the unforgettable plea: "Can't we all get along?" And King admits to Lemon that he squandered the $1.5 million in settlement money that he won in a civil lawsuit against the LAPD. The documentary is worth watching to see not only how much has changed in 20 years but also how much has remained the same.
Race & Rage airs March 4 at 8 p.m. ET and PT.
Previous recommendation: 'Thurgood.'
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