The reported origins vary from the police mishandling a teen dispute over a wig to a pre-meditated plot by Black Panther leader Stokely Carmichael.
[2] Widespread violence, including rock and bottle-throwing at law enforcement and fires set to businesses along Plymouth Avenue, quickly engulfed the area and lasted three days.
[4] The civil rights movement occurring mainly in the southern portion of the United States to protest the unequal treatment of African Americans in business, politics, education, and housing resulted in rippling effects across the nation.
Before 1960, restrictive housing guidelines prevented the working-class African American and Jewish communities from residing in certain parts of Minneapolis.
In the aftermath of the 1966 riot, a community center called "The Way" was established on Plymouth Avenue, the cultural and business hub of North Minneapolis.
Its emergency purpose was to help calm the neighborhood by providing an off-the-street facility for youth and a meeting place for residents.The reports on the genesis of the riot on July 20, 1967, vary dramatically.
Historical documents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) allege that Stokely Carmichael, the Black Panther movement's political leader, met with acquaintances in North Minneapolis months before July 1967.
[6] Most news outlets report that the riots began when two teen girls were in an altercation over a wig at the Aquatennial Torchlight Parade.
Minneapolis mayor Arthur Naftalin, petitioned governor Harold LeVander to activate the National Guard to restore order to the area.
Throughout the three days of protest, African Americans expressed anger at police brutality, discriminatory housing, and education practices.
The grand jury concluded that police responded appropriately and did not fire weapons at the protesters, despite one young resident's report of a gunshot wound.