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Item # 722184
THE RALEIGH TIMES, N.C. May 12, 1970
* 1970 Augusta, Georgia race riot
* African Americans - Negroes
* Largest urban uprising in deep South
* Black teenager Charles Oatman killing
* Police brutality protests - racial injustice
The front page has a two column heading: "Six Men Die In Race Riot" with lead-in: "'Guerilla Warfare'" and photo showing the turmoil in downtown Augusta, Georgia. (see images)
Complete with all 30 pages, light toning at the margins, a few binding holes along the spine, nice condition.
background: The May 1970 Augusta, Georgia race riot erupted following the death of 16-year-old Charles Oatman, an African American teenager who died while in police custody under suspicious circumstances; his body showed signs of torture, including cigarette burns and deep wounds, which local authorities initially dismissed as accidental. Outrage among Augusta’s Black community—already frustrated by systemic racism, police brutality, poor social conditions, and official indifference—culminated on May 11 when hundreds, eventually thousands, of protesters gathered downtown demanding justice. The demonstrations escalated quickly: the state flag was torn down and burned, and looting, arson, and confrontations with law enforcement spread across a 130-block area, causing roughly $1 million in property damage. Police, sheriffs, state patrol officers, and the Georgia National Guard responded with lethal force, resulting in the deaths of six unarmed Black men and injuries to dozens more. In the aftermath, nearly 100 protesters were arrested, but no law enforcement officers were ever convicted, highlighting enduring racial injustice and underscoring the riot as one of the largest urban uprisings in the Deep South during the late Civil Rights era, whose legacy was commemorated decades later with a historical marker in Augusta.
May 12, 1970
THE RALEIGH TIMES, N.C. May 12, 1970
* 1970 Augusta, Georgia race riot
* African Americans - Negroes
* Largest urban uprising in deep South
* Black teenager Charles Oatman killing
* Police brutality protests - racial injustice
The front page has a two column heading: "Six Men Die In Race Riot" with lead-in: "'Guerilla Warfare'" and photo showing the turmoil in downtown Augusta, Georgia. (see images)
Complete with all 30 pages, light toning at the margins, a few binding holes along the spine, nice condition.
background: The May 1970 Augusta, Georgia race riot erupted following the death of 16-year-old Charles Oatman, an African American teenager who died while in police custody under suspicious circumstances; his body showed signs of torture, including cigarette burns and deep wounds, which local authorities initially dismissed as accidental. Outrage among Augusta’s Black community—already frustrated by systemic racism, police brutality, poor social conditions, and official indifference—culminated on May 11 when hundreds, eventually thousands, of protesters gathered downtown demanding justice. The demonstrations escalated quickly: the state flag was torn down and burned, and looting, arson, and confrontations with law enforcement spread across a 130-block area, causing roughly $1 million in property damage. Police, sheriffs, state patrol officers, and the Georgia National Guard responded with lethal force, resulting in the deaths of six unarmed Black men and injuries to dozens more. In the aftermath, nearly 100 protesters were arrested, but no law enforcement officers were ever convicted, highlighting enduring racial injustice and underscoring the riot as one of the largest urban uprisings in the Deep South during the late Civil Rights era, whose legacy was commemorated decades later with a historical marker in Augusta.
Category: The 20th Century
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