There aren’t many right now who know the name of Mark Duggan, but his death was the spark the started the fire that has quickly turned into a series of riots in London, England.
Duggan, a 29-year-old father, in economically troubled London suburb Tottenham, was shot by a police officer last Thursday night. Duggan, who had reported links to London gangs, was a passenger in a minivan pulled over by Scotland Yard’s “Operation Trident”, a unit which specialized in “dealing with gun crime among black communities, in particular drug-related shootings.” After a quick firefight, Duggan was left as another casualty in the effort to curb crime in North London.
On Saturday evening, a group of about 50 people protested the death of Duggan outside Tottenham’s police station. The event quickly turned sour as some started using the event as an excuse to riot. What at first started with shouting between members of the public disguised underneath hoodies, quickly turned riots. Before all was said and done, multiple businesses had been looted, two police cars were torched, and a few buildings were burned beyond repair.
