Tompkins Square Park Riot
1988 CE.
Shown on the map at 40.729°, -73.981°.
The Tompkins Square Park riot occurred on August 6–7, 1988, in Tompkins Square Park, located in the Alphabet City section of the East Village neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City. Groups of "drug pushers, homeless people and young people known as squatters and punks," had largely taken over the park. The East Village and Alphabet City communities were divided about what, if anything, should be done about it. The local governing body, Manhattan Community Board 3, recommended, and the New York City Parks Department adopted a 1 a.m. curfew for the previously 24-hour park, in an attempt to bring it under control. On July 31, a protest rally against the curfew saw several clashes between protesters and police. Another rally was held on August 6. Here, the police charged a crowd of protesters, and a riot ensued. Bystanders, activists, police officers, neighborhood residents and journalists were caught up in the violence. Despite a brief lull in the fighting, the melee continued until 6 a.m. the next day. Mayor Ed Koch temporarily rescinded the curfew.
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