Black, Korean communities come together at 25-year LA riots anniversary

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Members of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church and Korean-American community came together on the 25-year anniversary of the L.A. riots as a symbol of progress and unity.

A service was held Saturday morning in West Adams with the church members and Korean-American Federation of Los Angeles.

During the 1992 Los Angeles riots, thousands of fires were set and hundreds of businesses - many owned by Korean-Americans - were looted. Officials estimated the Korean community suffered an estimated loss of $400 million during the riots.

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But since then, the communities have worked together to repair the damage.

"We were without power. It was just horrible. But it was done. What can you do but move forward from that and hopefully we learned a lesson," one woman said during the service.

At the service, a bank also promised to fund jobs and business loans in the African-American community to promote a better future and partnership.

Many people said more still needs to be done to prevent a situation similar to the riots from happening again. Mayor Eric Garcetti, who was also in attendance, said the city has worked hard to be better.

"We have to remember that we should never destroy what's before us. We need to build, and I think that's what we've done for 25 years," he said.