One saw the riots from the safety and privacy of his house and saw the Black community as an outsider not understanding their intentions and somewhat frightened by their deeds. However, when he saw the raw documentary of the brutal police assault on Rodney King and the unwarranted flogging of the man, he felt a sadness and anger that he had hardly felt before. It was then, he told me, that he understood the actions of the 'other' and suddenly, this other who lived in a ghetto distant form him suddenly relocated to the same State. The other interviewee was a man who lived in South Central Los Angeles. Whilst he himself did not participate, his son did and he saw many of the actions from his window. Whilst understanding the frustration and anger of the Blacks, the depth and anarchy of the riot bothered him. He was able to distance himself from the riots and feel repugnance for the mess whilst blaming the police and...

They did not have the jobs and opportunities that the wealthy Whites around them had. They were demeaned on a regular basis. He, however, through their actions misdirected and out-of-control.
I found it interesting that two people from such disparate backgrounds and so far removed in age too could meet together and converge to share similar views.

Conclusion

Anna Deavere Smith's Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 was my favorite writing assignment of this year since it made me see the place where I live with fresh eyes. Each of us habitually live in our own tight world and become immune to the world of the other. The other in fact often becomes invisible to us. This writing assignment made the invisible other more visible to me and by so doing revealed an entirely new and more alive Los Angeles that taught me so much in innumerable ways.