The Zoot Suit Riots were a series of racial attacks in 1943 in Los Angeles, California, United States, between Mexican American youths and European American servicemen stationed in Southern California. White servicemen and civilians attacked Mexican youths who wore zoot suits because they were considered unpatriotic and luxurious during wartime, in which rationing was required for the World War II war effort. While most of the violence was toward the Mexican youth, young African American and Filipino/Filipino Americans were attacked as well because they also sported zoot suits. The Zoot Suit Riots were related to fears and hostilities aroused by the coverage of the Sleepy Lagoon murder trial, following the killing of a young Latino man in a barrio near Los Angeles. The riot appeared to tri