Surviving Hell Summer: Baton Rouge, Louisiana, racial polarization, and implications for community healing

Abstract

ABSTRACT Race matters in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. For centuries racial inequality has divided the city into two separate cities. In the summer of 2016, Baton Rouge experienced a series of events that heightened racial division. First was the killing of an unarmed black man, Alton Sterling, by two white police officers as he sold CDs outside of a local convenience store. Second was the shooting of three law enforcement officers and wounding of a fourth officer by a black ex-military shooter. By the time a massive flood took 13 lives and wiped out billions of dollars of property almost a month later, racial tensions were at an all-time high. Using Baton Rouge as a case study, this paper provides context for peeling back the layers of racial discord that have plagued the city for centuries.