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 eruption of violence.
Moreover, he recovers a multidimensional picture of Los Angeles
during World War II that incorporates the complex intersections of
music, fashion, violence, race relations, and neighborhood
activism.
Drawing upon overlooked evidence, Pagan concludes by reconstructing
the murder scene and proposes a compelling theory about what really
happened the night of the murder.