Murder at the Sleepy Lagoon

Zoot Suits, Race, and Riot in Wartime L.A.

Author: Eduardo Obregón Pagán
ISBN: 9780807854945

The notorious 1942 "Sleepy Lagoon" murder trial in Los Angeles concluded with the conviction of seventeen young Mexican American men for the alleged gang slaying of fellow youth Jose Diaz. Just five months later, the so-called Zoot Suit Riot erupted, as white soldiers in the city attacked minority youths and burned their distinctive zoot suits. Eduardo Obregon Pagan here provides the first comprehensive social history of both the trial and the riot and argues that they resulted from a volatile mix of racial and social tensions that had long been simmering. In reconstructing the lives of the murder victim and those accused of the crime, Pagan contends that neither the convictions (which were based on little hard evidence) nor the ensuing riot arose simply from anti-Mexican sentiment. He demonstrates instead that a variety of pre-existing stresses, including demographic pressures, anxiety about nascent youth culture, and the war effort all contributed to the social tension and the eru

Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Press
Publish Date: 2003

Subjects: History / United States / State & Local / General, History / United States / 20th Century, History / United States / State & Local / West (AK, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, UT, WY), Social Science / Minority Studies, Social Science / Ethnic Studies / Hispanic American Studies

This book is available in the following Community Centers: Cross-Cultural Center (Location: Urban Studies & Class (URBN))