Looking back at the McDuffie riots in Miami 45 years later – NBC 6 South Florida

Saturday marks 45 years since the outbreak of the McDuffie riots, when rage and racial tension overwhelmed the streets of Liberty City and Overtown.

The unrest was sparked by the trial against four white Miami-Dade police officers who were charged in the beating death of black insurance agent Arthur McDuffie.

McDuffie was badly beaten after he was involved in a police chase in December 1979 while riding a motorcycle. The 33-year-old, who’d been in the U.S. Marine Corp, was in a coma for several days until he died from his injuries.

The officers were acquitted on May 17, 1980 and that verdict fueled the fire that erupted in Liberty City and Overtown.

“I have lost what little faith I’ve been able to maintain in the system as of today, I think a great many people will feel the same way,” community leader and historian Dr. Marvin Dunn said after the verdict.

“I think this is one of the worst things that has happened in Miami, and I was bitterly disappointed that people were not held accountable for the act,” Janet Reno, who was Miami-Dade State Attorney at the time and later became U.S. Attorney General, said after the verdict.

For several days, riots wreaked havoc in the once-thriving community, as properties and many businesses were destroyed and the National Guard was deployed.

McDuffie Riots in Miami Started 37 Years Ago

Former WTVJ reporter and anchor Ed O’Dell spoke with NBC6 in 2019 about covering the riots.

“Being in a major riot, and I did cover a lot of riots, your life is in danger you’re out there, you’re worried about how the police are going to react to you,” O’Dell said. “People are legitimately in their minds angry and you need to tread lightly, it can be an incredibly dangerous and an incredibly confusing time, listening to both sides and trying your best to be objective as a reporter.”

Former Police Benevolent Association President John Rivera, who worked for Miami Metro and was patrolling during the unrest, spoke with NBC6 about the riots back in 2017.

“For the next three days really, I mean it, really was one what one could easily describe a war zone,” Rivera said.

Eighteen people were killed and 400 others were injured during the rioting.

Following the riots, Liberty City suffered greatly as businesses remained closed or left the area.

The rioting unfolded during a year that also saw a massive influx of Cuban migrants into Miami during the Mariel Boat Lift.

“It was a horrible time and it changed the face of Miami,” O’Dell said of the riots. “Probably one of the most interesting parts of it, you had the McDuffie riots, and then you had Mariel, and at the same time you had 100,000 Haitians coming in.”