Mentioned during GoyFire #20
"Virginia Beach has benefited from its wider strip of sand, courtesy of a $125 million beach-widening project several years ago. Virginia Beach fought long and hard to remake its image as a Southern beach town with little to offer travelers desiring ritzier hotels, restaurants and shops. In addition, the
infamous 1989 Greekfest riots during an annual gathering of black college students left the city grappling with accusations of racism and police brutality. For years, many black tourists promised not to return."
http://www.freep.com/features/travel...e_20051002.htm
"Many outsiders portrayed the situation as a racial confrontation. Perhaps the students saw it that way as they vandalized stores, loaded their cars with stolen goods and chanted
"fight the power." Perhaps they felt somehow justified because of the deeply-ingrained racist attitudes many in the area hold. But the reality is that the only ones who can truly be blamed for the riot are the blacks. What gives anyone the right to
pillage on a wanton rampage?"
http://www-tech.mit.edu/V109/N36/atkins.36o.html
"1989: "Greekfest" riots
Over the Labor Day weekend in 1989, Virginia Beach experienced the
worst civil disturbance in its history, which resulted in over 500 arrests and citations and millions in property damage, not to mention the damage to the city's reputation, which lingered for years afterward.
Many people predicted a riot weeks in advance, and this came to pass. Casual observers suggested that the city went out of its way to make the students feel unwelcome; that the students rioted not out of anger, but out of a simple desire for the clothing displayed in the shops along the Boardwalk; and that the police were out of control, attacking anyone who was black, looter or not.
It took M-16 toting National Guard troops to restore order after two days of rioting. Property damage took several years to repair; some small businesses were destroyed and were unable to reopen.
The incident brought widespread publicity and public outcry from many factions. Two slogans commonly heard in the following weeks were: "It's a black thing; you wouldn't understand" and "It's a cop thing; we'll make you understand." The incident was immortalized by Public Enemy in their song
"Welcome to the Terrordome " from their album Fear of a Black Planet (1990).
One tourist recalls "I was there that weekend attempting to enjoy the long weekend. We met with belligerent attitudes and observed several incidents of inappropriate behavior and language. Many of those in our group were over 60 years of age. I, with my two-year son in his stroller, was forced off the sidewalk several times."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Beach,_Virginia