State of Emergency

An investigative documentary on police brutality that uses the Rodney King incident as a springboard to analyze the inner workings of the LAPD under the leadership of former police chief, Daryl Gates. Containing hard-hitting footage of police violence, the tape also depicts communities working against the daily occupation of their neighborhoods. Through interviews with LAPD officers and supervisors, the tape reveals what life is like behind the “thin blue line” and documents a national crisis of violence.

“The film raises vital questions about responsibility, and proposes solutions that are worthy of discussion... Unedited video clips — which many people haven’t seen —don’t lie; and the sight of several police officers attacking peaceful marchers from a janitor’s union is not an easily explained away aberration.”

—Video Librarian, September/October (1994)