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1968 Chicago riots

1968 in Illinois1968 riots20th century in ChicagoAfrican-American history in ChicagoAfrican-American riots in the United States
April 1968 events in the United StatesKing assassination riotsRichard J. DaleyRiots and civil disorder in Chicago

The 1968 Chicago riots, in the United States, were sparked in part by the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Rioting and looting followed, with people flooding out onto the streets of major cities. Soon riots began, primarily in black urban areas. Over 100 major U.S. cities experienced disturbances, resulting in roughly $50 million in damage. Rioters and police in Chicago - ironically a place of which King himself said “I’ve been in many demonstrations all across the South, but I can say that I have never seen, even in Mississippi and Alabama, mobs as hostile and as hate-filled as I’m seeing in Chicago” - were particularly aggressive, and the damage was severe. Of the 39 people who died in the nationwide disturbances, 34 were black. Chicago, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. experienced some of the worst riots following King's assassination. In Chicago itself, more than 48 hours of rioting left 11 Chicago citizens dead, 48 wounded by police gunfire, 90 policemen injured, and 2,150 people arrested. Three miles of East Garfield Park and West Garfield Park on West Madison Street were left in a state of rubble. Later the same year, around the Democratic National Convention, Chicago would once again be a place for political protest and clashes with the authorities.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article 1968 Chicago riots (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

1968 Chicago riots
West Roosevelt Road, Chicago North Lawndale

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N 41.866666666667 ° E -87.733333333333 °
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Greater New Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church

West Roosevelt Road
60624 Chicago, North Lawndale
Illinois, United States
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Guyon Hotel
Guyon Hotel

The Guyon Hotel is a historic former hotel in Chicago, Illinois. The hotel was designed by Jensen J. Jensen - no relation to the famous landscape architect Jens Jensen - in 1927 and was built in red and cream brick with arched windows on two floors and exquisite, detailed terra cotta ornaments typical of Jensen's work. It was built at a cost of $1,650,000 by J. Louis Guyon, a French-Canadian nightclub owner and dance instructor.The Guyon Hotel's first floor included commercial space and the hotel's lobby. Two ballrooms were located on the second floor. Guyon resided in the south penhouse.After the hotel opened in 1928, owner J. Louis Guyon mounted two AM radio towers to broadcast his radio station, WGES; the station aired morally conservative programming and music. One of the second floor ballrooms was used as the station's studio. Control of WGES was transferred to Harry and Thomas Guyon in the mid-1930s, and the station left the hotel in 1942, but it continues to broadcast as WGRB. The hotel entered into receivership during the Great Depression, and in 1939 it was sold for $425,000. In 1940, it was sold to Jack Galper and George London. In 1948, the AM towers were replaced with an FM tower, and WOAK began broadcasts from the hotel. WOAK became WFMT in 1951 and began airing classical music. In 1954, the station's studios and transmitter were moved to the LaSalle–Wacker Building. In 1964, the hotel was sold for $500,000.In 1985, the Guyon Hotel was sold to the Lutheran non-profit organization Bethel New Life, who renovated the building and converted it to affordable housing. Former President Jimmy Carter stayed in the renovated hotel for a week while working on a rehabilitation project with Habitat for Humanity; his room was reportedly "roach-infested" and "furnished with only a couch and a milk crate". The housing effort ultimately failed when Bethel New Life ran out of funds. The building currently lies vacant and has changed possession over six times since 1995. Due to building code violations, the hotel is in city demolition court; it is considered one of the ten most endangered landmarks in Illinois by the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois.The Guyon Hotel was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 9, 1985.