Shortly after 8:00 p.m. on April 4, 1968, the news that Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in Memphis, Tennessee reached Washington, DC.
The District had been an area where African Americans were supposedly treated better than those in places like Detroit, according to The Washington Post. Detroit, for example, was still recovering from a race riot that had happened a year earlier.
But King's assassination ignited a powder keg of pressure that had been building up from years of mistreatment and underinvestment that the African American community suffered.
Washington exploded in massive riots that lasted four days. When it was over, 13 people were dead, over 1,000 were injured, and hundreds of buildings were burned or damaged.
The AP has put together a collection that shows photos from the riots juxtaposed with the present-day city. Check out the incredible images here:
Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at DC's National Cathedral just a few days before his assassination in 1968.
After news of his death reached DC, riots erupted across the city.
The DC Metropolitan Police was over 80% white, despite the city being around 67% black, just one element that contributed to tensions between law enforcement and people living in city.
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