Zoot Suit

The local news outlets have lately been recalling the Zoot Suit Riots of the early 1940s. This reminded me that my late, great beloved Don Waller wrote a fine piece about that for England-based music mag Mojo in 2003. It is newsier than many of his features but still has his signature flair, especially in the opening bit, but even in such matter-of-fact observations as:

When First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s weekly syndicated column of June 16 saw the roots of the riots in racism rather than suits, an LA Times editorial accused her of having Communist leanings.

Quelle surprise.

Anyway, I made jpegs of the story from the magazine pages; click on them to blow up for better reading.