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December 1974

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Oppression
Black Students Trapped Inside South Boston High During White Riot

A white student was stabbed at South Boston High on December 11, 1974, triggering a riot that trapped Black students inside the building for hours while a white mob surrounded it. Judge Garrity subsequently placed South Boston High under direct federal receivership. The episode exemplified the sustained white resistance to desegregation in a Northern city.

Events

  1. December 11, 1974
    Black Students Trapped Inside South Boston High During White Riot

    A white student was stabbed at South Boston High on December 11, 1974, triggering a riot that trapped Black students inside the building for hours while a white mob surrounded it. Judge Garrity subsequently placed South Boston High under direct federal receivership. The episode exemplified the sustained white resistance to desegregation in a Northern city.

  2. December 28, 1974
    NYPD Officer Shoots Dead Claude Reese Jr., Age 14, in Brooklyn

    NYPD officer Frank Bosco shot and killed Claude Reese Jr., a 14-year-old Black youth, in Brooklyn, claiming he mistook a toy gun for a real weapon. Reese was shot in the head. The killing intensified community anger following the acquittal of the officer who killed Clifford Glover earlier that year.