The Zoot-Suit and Style Warfare
Author(s): Stuart Cosgrove
Source: History Workshop, No. 18 (Autumn, 1984), pp. 77-91
Published by: Oxford University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4288588
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The Zoot-Suit and Style Warfare
by Stuart Cosgrove
INTRODUCIION: THE SILENT
NOISE OF SINISTER CLOWNS
What about those fellows waiting still
and silent thereon the platform,so still
and silent they clash with the crowd in
theirvery immobility,standingnoisy in
theirverysilence;harshas a cryof terror
in their quietness? What about these
threeboys, coming now along the platform, tall and sknder, walking with
swingingshouldersin theirwell-pressed,
too-hot-for-summersuits, their collars
high and tight about their necks, their
identicalhatsof blackcheapfelt set upon
the crowns of their heads with a severe
formality above their conked hair? It
was as though Id never seen their like
before: walkingslowly, their shoulders
swaying, their legs swingingfrom their
hips in trousersthat ballooned upward
from cuffs fitting snug about their
ankles; their coats long and hip-tight
withshouldersfar too broad to be those
of natural westernmen. Thesefellows
whose bodiesseemed- whathad one of
my teacherssaid of me? - 'You'relike
one of those African sculptures,
distortedin the interestof design.' Well,
whatdesignand whose?'
The zoot-suit is more than an exaggerated costume, more than a sartorial
statement,it is the bearerof a complex
and contradictoryhistory. When the
nameless narratorof Ellison's Invisibk
Man confrontedthe subversivesight of
three young and extravagantlydressed
blacks, his reaction was one of fascination not of fear. These youths were
not simply grotesque dandies parading
the city's secret underworld,they were
'the stewardsof somethinguncomfortClyde Duncan, a bus-boyfrom Gainesville,Georgia, appearedon the front page of the
New York Timesat the height of the zoot-suitriots.
78
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able'2, a spectacularreminderthat the social order had failed to contain their
energy and difference. The zoot-suit was more than the drape-shapeof 1940s
fashion, more than a colourful stage-prophanging from the shoulders of Cab
Calloway, it was, in the most direct and obvious ways, an emblem of ethnicity
and a way of negotiatingan identiy. The zoot-suit was a refusal: a subcultural
gesturethat refusedto concede to the mannersof subservience.By the late 1930s,
the term 'zoot' was in commoncirculationwithinurbanjazz culture. Zoot meant
something worn or performed in an extravagantstyle, and since many young
blacks wore suits with outrageouslypadded shoulders and trousers that were
fiercelytaperedat the ankles,the termzoot-suitpassedinto everydayusage. In the
sub-culturalworld of Harlem'snightlife,the languageof rhymingslang succinctly
described the zoot-suit's unmistakablestyle: 'a killer-dillercoat with a drapeshape, reat-pleatsand shoulderspadded like a lunatic'scell'. The study of the
relationshipsbetweenfashionand social actionis notoriouslyunderdeveloped,but
there is every indicationthat the zoot-suitriots that eruptedin the United States
in the summerof 1943 had a profoundeffect on a whole generationof socially
disadvantagedyouths. It was during his period as a young zoot-suiter that the
Chicano union activist Cesar Chavez first came into contact with community
politics, and it was throughthe experiencesof participatingin zoot-suit riots in
Harlemthat the young pimp 'Detroit Red' began a politicaleducationthat transformed him into the Black radical leader Malcolm X. Although the zoot-suit
occupies an almost mythicalplace within the historyof jazz music, its social and
politicalimportancehas been virtuallyignored. There can be no certaintyabout
when, where or why the zoot-suitcame into existence, but what is certainis that
duringthe summermonthsof 1943'the killer-dillercoat' was the uniformof young
rioters and the symbol of a moral panic about juvenile delinquencythat was to
intensifyin the post-warperiod.
At the height of the Los Angeles riots of June 1943, the New York Times
carrieda front page articlewhich claimedwithoutreservationthat the firstzootsuit had been purchasedby a black bus worker, Clyde Duncan, from a tailor's
shop in Gainesville, Georgia.3Allegedly, Duncan had been inspiredby the film
'Gone with the Wind'and had set out to look like Rhett Butler. This explanation
clearlyfound favourthroughoutthe USA. The nationalpressforwardedcountless
others. Some reportsclaimedthat the zoot-suitwas an inventionof Harlemnight
life, others suggested it grew out of jazz culture and the exhibitionist stagecostumpsof the band leaders, and some argued that the zoot-suit was derived
from militaryuniformsand importedfrom Britain. The alternativeand independent press, particularlyCrisisand Negro Quarterly,more convincinglyarguedthat
the zoot-suitwas the productof a particularsocial context.4They emphasisedthe
importanceof Mexican-Americanyouths, or pachucos, in the emergenceof zootsuit style and, in tentativeways, tried to relate their appearanceon the streets to
the concept of pachuquismo.
In his pioneering book, The Labyrinthof Solitude, the Mexican poet and
social commentatorOctavio Paz throws imaginativelight on pachuco style and
indirectlyestablishesa frameworkwithinwhich the zoot-suit can be understood.
Paz's study of the Mexicannationalconsciousnessexaminesthe changesbrought
about by the movementof labour, particularlythe generationsof Mexicanswho
migratednorthwardsto the USA. This movement, and the new economic and
The Zoot-suitand Style Warfare
79
social patternsit implies, has, accordingto Paz, forcedyoung Mexican-Americans
into an ambivalentexperiencebetween two cultures.
What distinguishesthem, I think, is their furtive, restless air: they act like
personswho are wearingdisguises,who are afraidof a stranger'slook because
it could strip them and leave them stark naked.
. .
. This spiritual condition,
or lack of a spirit, has given birth to a type known as the pachuco. The
pachucosare youths, for the most part of Mexicanorigin,who form gangs in
southerncities; they can be identifiedby theirlanguageand behaviouras well
as by the clothingthey affect.They are instinctiverebels, and NorthAmerican
racismhas vented its wrath on them more than once. But the pachucosdo
not attemptto vindicatetheir race or the nationalityof their forebears.Their
attitudereveals an obstinate, almostfanaticalwill-to-be,but this will affirms
nothing specific except their determination . . . not to be like those around
them.5
Pachucoyouth embodiedall the characteristicsof secondgenerationworking-class
immigrants.In the most obvious ways they had been strippedof their customs,
beliefs and language.The pachucoswere a disinheritedgenerationwithina disadvantagedsector of North Americansociety; and predictablytheir experiencesin
education, welfare and employmentalienatedthem from the aspirationsof their
parents and the dominant assumptionsof the society in which they lived. The
pachuco subculturewas defined not only by ostentatiousfashion, but by petty
crime,delinquencyand drug-taking.Ratherthandisguisetheiralienationor efface
their hostilityto the dominantsociety, the pachucosadoptedan arrogantposture.
They flauntedtheir difference,and the zoot-suitbecame the means by whichthat
differencewas announced.Those 'impassiveand sinisterclowns' whose purpose
was 'to cause terrorinsteadof laughter,'6invited the kind of attentionthat led to
both prestige and persecution.For Octavio Paz the pachuco's appropriationof
the zoot-suitwas an admissionof the ambivalentplace he occupied. 'It is the only
way he can establisha more vital relationshipwith the society he is antagonising.
As a victim he can occupy a place in the world that previouslyignoredhim; as a
delinquent,he can become one of its wicked heroes.'7The zoot-suitriots of 1943
encapsulatedthis paradox.They emergedout of the dialecticsof delinquencyand
persecution,duringa period in whichAmericansociety was undergoingprofound
structuralchange.
The majorsocial change broughtabout by the United States'involvementin
the war was the recruitmentto the armedforces of over four millionciviliansand
the entranceof over five millionwomen into the war-timelabourforce. The rapid
increase in militaryrecruitmentand the radical shift in the compositionof the
labourforce led in turnto changesin familylife, particularlythe erosionof parental
control and authority. The large scale and prolonged separationof millions of
familiesprecipitatedan unprecedentedincreasein the rate of juvenile crime and
delinquency.By the summerof 1943it was commonplacefor teenagersto be left
to their own initiativeswhilst their parentswere either on active militaryservice
or involved in war work. The increase in night work compoundedthe problem.
With their parents or guardiansworkingunsocial hours, it became possible for
many more young people to gather late into the night at major urbancentres or
simplyon the street corners.
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The rate of social mobilityintensifiedduringthe period of the zoot-suitriots.
With over 15 million civilians and 12 million militarypersonnel on the move
throughoutthe country, there was a correspondingincrease in vagrancy.Petty
crimesbecame more difficultto detect and control;itinerantsbecameincreasingly
common, and social transienceput unforeseenpressureon housing and welfare.
The new patternsof social mobilityalso led to congestionin militaryand industrial
areas. Significantly,it was the overcrowdedmilitarytowns along the Pacificcoast
and the industrial conurbationsof Detroit, Pittsburghand Los Angeles that
witnessedthe most violent outbreaksof zoot-suitrioting.8
'Delinquency'emerged from the dictionaryof new sociology to become an
everyday term, as wartime statistics revealed these new patterns of adolescent
behaviour.The pachucosof the Los Angeles area were particularlyvulnerableto
the effects of war. Being neither Mexicannor American, the pachucos, like the
blackyouthswith whom they sharedthe zoot-suitstyle, simplydid not fit. In their
own terms they were '24-hourorphans',having rejected the ideologies of their
migrantparents.As the war furtheredthe dislocationof familyrelationships,the
pachucos gravitatedaway from the home to the only place where their statuswas
visible, the streets and bars of the towns and cities. But if the pachucos laid
themselves open to a life of delinquencyand detention, they also assertedtheir
distinctidentity, with their own style of dress, their own way of life and a shared
set of experiences.
THE ZOOT-SUITRIOTS:LIBERTY, DISORDER AND THE FORBIDDEN
The zoot-suit riots sharply revealed a polarizationbetween two youth groups
withinwartimesociety:the gangsof predominantlyblackand Mexicanyouthswho
were at the forefront of the zoot-suit subculture,and the predominantlywhite
Americanservicemenstationed along the Pacificcoast. The riots invariablyhad
racial and social resonancesbut the primaryissue seems to have been patriotism
and attitudes to the war. With the entry of the United States into the war in
December 1941, the nation had to come to termswith the restrictionsof rationing
and the prospects of conscription.In March 1942, the War ProductionBoard's
first rationingact had a direct effect on the manufactureof suits and all clothing
containingwool. In an attemptto institutea 26% cut-backin the use of fabrics,
the War ProductionBoard drew up regulationsfor the wartimemanufactureof
what Esquiremagazinecalled, 'streamlinedsuits by Uncle Sam.'9The regulations
effectively forbade the manufactureof zoot-suits and most legitimate tailoring
companiesceased to manufactureor advertiseany suits that fell outside the War
Production Board's guide lines. However, the demand for zoot-suits did not
decline and a network of bootleg tailors based in Los Angeles and New York
continuedto manufacturethe garments.Thusthe polarizationbetweenservicemen
and pachucos was immediatelyvisible: the chino shirt and battledresswere evidently uniformsof patriotism,whereaswearinga zoot-suit was a deliberateand
publicway of floutingthe regulationsof rationing.The zoot-suitwas a moral and
social scandalin the eyes of the authorities,not simplybecause it was associated
with petty crimeand violence, but becauseit openly snubbedthe laws of rationing.
In the fragile harmonyof wartime society, the zoot-suiterswere, accordingto
The Zoot-suitand Style Warfare
81
Octavio Paz, 'a symbolof love and joy or of horrorand loathing,an embodiment
of liberty, of disorder,of the forbidden."0
The zoot-suit riots, which were initially confined to Los Angeles, began in
the first few days of June 1943. During the first weekend of the month, over 60
zoot-suiterswere arrestedand chargedat Los Angeles County jail, after violent
and well publicizedfightsbetween servicemenon shore leave and gangs of Mexican-Americanyouths. In orderto preventfurtheroutbreaksof fighting,the police
patrolled the eastern sections of the city, as rumoursspread from the military
bases that servicemenwere intendingto form vigilantegroups. The Washington
Post's reportof the incidents,on the morningof Wednesday9 June 1943, clearly
saw the events from the point of view of the servicemen.
Disgustedwith being robbedand beatenwith tire irons, weightedropes, belts
and fists employedby overwhelmingnumbersof the youthfulhoodlums,the
uniformedmen passed the word quietly amongthemselvesand opened their
campaignin force on Fridaynight.
At centraljail, where spectatorsjammedthe sidewalksand police made
no efforts to halt auto loads of servicemenopenly cruisingin searchof zootsuiters, the youths streamedgladly into the sanctityof the cells after being
snatchedfrombarrooms, pool hallsand theatersand strippedof theirattire."
Duringthe ensuingweeks of rioting,the ritualisticstrippingof zoot-suitersbecame
the major means by which the servicementre-establishedtheir status over the
pachucos. It became commonplacefor gangs of marinesto ambushzoot-suiters,
stripthem down to their underwearand leave them helplessin the streets. In one
particularlyviciousincident,a gangof drunkensailorsrampagedthrougha cinema
after discoveringtwo zoot-suiters.They draggedthe pachucos on to the stage as
the film was being screened, strippedthem in front of the audienceand as a final
insult, urinatedon the suits.
The press coverageof these incidentsrangedfrom the carefuland cautionary
liberalismof The Los Angeles Times to the more hystericalhate-mongeringof
WilliamRandolphHearst'swest coast papers. Although the practiceof stripping
and publiclyhumiliatingthe zoot-suiterswas not promptedby the press, several
reportsdid little to discouragethe attacks:
. . .zoot-suits smoulderedin the ashes of street bonfireswherethey had been
tossed by grimly methodical tank forces of service men....
The zooters, who
earlierin the day had spreadboaststhat they were organizedto 'killeverycop'
they could find, showed no inclinationto try to make good their boasts....
Searchingpartiesof soldiers, sailorsand Marineshuntedthem out and drove
them out into the open like birddogs flushingquail. Procedurewas standard:
grab a zooter. Take off his pants and frock coat and tear them up or burn
them. Trim the 'Argentine Ducktail' haircut that goes with the screwy
costume.12
The second week of June witnessed the worst incidents of rioting and public
disorder.A sailorwas slashedand disfiguredby a pachucogang;a policemanwas
run down when he tried to question a car load of zoot-suiters;a young Mexican
was stabbedat a partyby drunkenMarines;a trainloadof sailorswere stoned by
A young zoot-suiteris protectedfrom a racistmob duringan outbreakof street violence
in Detroit.
Two pachuco zoot-suiters,one strippedto his underwear,hiebeaten and humiliatedmna
Los Angeles street.
The Zoot-suitand Style Warfare
83
pachucos as their train approachedLong Beach; streetfightsbroke out daily in
San Bernardino;over 400 vigilantestoured the streets of San Diego looking for
zoot-suiters,and manyindividualsfrom both factionswere arrested.13On 9 June,
The Los Angeles Times publishedthe first in a series of editorialsdesigned to
reduce the level of violence, but which also tried to allay the growingconcern
about the racialcharacterof the riots.
To preservethe peace and good name of the Los Angeles area, the strongest
measuresmust be taken jointly by the police, the Sheriff'soffice and Army
and Navy authorities,to preventany furtheroutbreaksof 'zoot suit' rioting.
While membersof the armedforces receivedconsiderableprovocationat the
hands of the unidentifiedmiscreants,such a situation cannot be cured by
indiscriminateassaulton every youth wearinga particulartype of costume.
It would not do, for a large numberof reasons, to let the impression
circulatein South America that persons of Spanish-Americanancestrywere
being singledout for mistreatmentin SouthernCalifornia.And the incidents
here were capableof being exaggeratedto give that impression.14
THE CHIEF, THE BLACK WIDOWSAND THE TOMAHAWKKID
The pleas for tolerance from civic authoritiesand representativesof the church
and state had no immediateeffect, and the riots becamemore frequentand more
violent. A zoot-suitedyouth was shot by a specialpolice officerin Azusa, a gang
of pachucoswere arrestedfor riotingand carryingweaponsin the LincolnHeights
area; 25 black zoot-suiterswere arrestedfor wreckingan electricrailwaytrainin
Watts, and 1000 additionalpolice were draftedinto East Los Angeles. The press
coverage increasinglyfocused on the most 'spectacular'incidents and began to
identifyleadersof zoot-suitstyle. On the morningof Thursday10 June 1943,most
newspaperscarriedphotographsand reportson three 'notorious'zoot-suit gang
leaders. Of the thousandsof pachucosthat allegedlybelongedto the hundredsof
zoot-suit gangs in Los Angeles, the press singled out the arrests of Lewis D
English, a 23-year-old-black,chargedwith felony and carryinga '16-inchrazor
sharp butcher knife;' Frank H Tellez, a 22-year-oldMexican held on vagrancy
charges, and another Mexican, Luis 'The Chief Verdusco (27 years of age),
allegedlythe leader of the Los Angeles pachucos.15
The arrests of English, Tellez and Verdusco seemed to confirm popular
perceptions of the zoot-suiters widely expressed for weeks prior to the riots.
Firstly,thatthe zoot-suitgangswere predominantly,but not exclusively,comprised
of black and Mexicanyouths. Secondly, that many of the zoot-suiterswere old
enough to be in the armed forces but were either avoidingconscriptionor had
been exemptedon medicalgrounds.Finally,in the case of FrankTellez, who was
photographedwearinga pancakehat with a rear feather, that zoot-suit style was
an expensive fashion often funded by theft and petty extortion. Tellez allegedly
wore a colourfullong drapecoat that was 'partof a $75 suit' and a pair of pegged
trousers'very full at the knees and narrowat the cuffs' whichwere allegedlypart
of anothersuit. The captionof the AssociatedPressphotographindignantlyadded
that 'Tellez holds a medicaldischargefrom the Army'.16Whatnewspaperreports
tended to suppresswas informationon the Marineswho were arrestedfor inciting
84
History WorkshopJournal
riots, the existence of gangs of white Americanzoot-suiters,and the opinionsof
Mexican-Americanservicemenstationedin California,who were part of the wareffort but who refusedto take part in vigilanteraidson pachuco hangouts.
As the zoot-suit riots spread throughoutCalifornia,to cities in Texas and
Arizona, a new dimensionbegan to influencepress coverage of the riots in Los
Angeles. On a day when 125 zoot-suitedyouths clashed with Marinesin Watts
and armed police had to quell riots in Boyle Heights, the Los Angeles press
concentratedon a razorattackon a local mother, Betty Morgan.What distinguished this incident from hundredsof comparableattacks was that the assailants
were girls. The press related the incident to the arrest of Amelia Venegas, a
womanzoot-suiterwho was chargedwith carrying,and threateningto use, a brass
knuckleduster.The revelationthat girlswere activewithinpachucosubcultureled
to consistentpresscoverageof the activitiesof two female gangs:the Slick Chicks
and the Black Widows.17The lattergangtook its name fromthe members'distinctive dress, black zoot-suit jackets, short black skirtsand black fish-netstockings.
In retrospectthe Black Widows, and their active part in the subculturalviolence
of the zoot-suit riots, disturb conventional understandingsof the concept of
pachuquismo.
As Joan W Moore impliesin Homeboys,her definitivestudy of Los Angeles
youth gangs, the concept of pachuquismois too readily and unproblematically
equated with the better known concept of machismo.18Undoubtedly,they share
certain ideologicaltraits, not least a swaggeringand at times aggressivesense of
power and bravado, but the two concepts derive from different sets of social
definitions.Whereasmachismocan be definedin terms of male power and sexuality, pachuquismopredominantlyderives from ethnic, generationaland classbased aspirations,and is less evidentlya question of gender. What the zoot-suit
riots brought to the surface was the complexity of pachuco style. The Black
Widowsand their aggressiveimageconfoundedthe pachucostereotypeof the lazy
male delinquentwho avoidedconscriptionfor a life of dandyismand petty crime,
and reinforcedradicalreadingsof pachucosubculture.The Black Widowswere a
reminderthat ethnic and generationalalienationwas a pressingsocial problem
and an indicationof the tensionsthatexistedin minority,low-incomecommunities.
Althoughdetailedinformationon the role of girlswithinzoot-suitsub-culture
is limitedto very briefpressreports,the appearanceof femalepachucoscoincided
with a dramaticrise in the delinquencyrates amongstgirls aged between 12 and
20 years old. The disintegrationof traditionalfamily relationshipsand the entry
of young women into the labour force undoubtedlyhad an effect on the social
roles and responsibilitiesof female adolescents, but it is difficultto be precise
about the relationshipsbetween changedpatternsof social experienceand the rise
in delinquency.However, war-timesociety broughtabout an increasein unprepared and irregularsexual intercourse,which in turn led to significantincreases
in the rates of abortion,illegitimatebirthsand venerealdiseases. Althoughstatistics are difficultto trace, there are many indicationsthat the war years saw a
remarkableincreasein the numbersof young women who were taken into social
care or referredto penal institutions,as a result of the specific social problems
they had to encounter.
Later studiesprovideevidence that young women and girlswere also heavily
involved in the traffic and transactionof soft drugs. The pachuco sub-culture
withinthe Los Angeles metropolitanareawas directlyassociatedwitha widespread
The Zoot-suitand Style Warfare
85
growth in the use of marijuana.It has been suggested that female zoot-suiters
concealed quantitiesof drugs on their bodies, since they were less likely to be
closelysearchedby male membersof the law enforcementagencies.Unfortunately,
the absence of consistent or reliable informationon the female gangs makes it
particularlydifficultto be certainabout their statuswithinthe riots, or their place
withintraditionsof feminineresistance.The Black Widowsand Slick Chickswere
spectacularin a sub-culturalsense, but their black drapejackets, tight skirts,fish
net stockingsand heavily emphasisedmake-up, were ridiculedin the press. The
Black Widowsclearlyexisted outsidethe orthodoxiesof war-timesociety:playing
no part in the industrialwar effort, and openly challengingconventionalnotions
of femininebeauty and sexuality.
Towardsthe end of the second week of June, the riots in Los Angeles were
dying out. Sporadicincidentsbroke out in other cities, particularlyDetroit, New
York and Philadelphia,where two membersof Gene Krupa'sdance band were
beaten up in a station for wearingthe band'szoot-suit costumes;but these, like
the residual events in Los Angeles, were not taken seriously. The authorities
failed to read the inarticulatewarningsigns profferedin two separateincidentsin
California:in one a zoot-suiter was arrested for throwing gasoline flares at a
theatre; and in the second anotherwas arrestedfor carryinga silver tomahawk.
The zoot-suit riots had become a public and spectacularenactment of social
disaffection.The authoritiesin Detroit chose to dismissa zoot-suitriot at the city's
Cooley High School as an adolescentimitationof the Los Angeles disturbances.19
Withinthree weeks Detroit was in the midstof the worst race riot in its history.20
The United Stateswas still involvedin the war abroadwhen violent events on the
home front signalledthe beginningsof a new era in racialpolitics.
OFFICIALFEARS OF FIFTH COLUMNFASHION
Official reactions to the zoot-suit riots varied enormously. The most urgent
problemthat concernedCalifornia'sState Senatorswas the adverseeffect that the
events mighthave on the relationshipbetweenthe United Statesand Mexico.This
concern stemmed partly from the wish to preservegood internationalrelations,
but rathermore from the significanceof relationswith Mexico for the economy
of SouthernCalifornia,as an item in the Los Angeles Timesmade clear. 'In San
Francisco Senator Downey declared that the riots may have 'extremely grave
consequences'in impairingrelationsbetween the United States and Mexico, and
may endangerthe programof importingMexicanlabor to aid in harvestingCaliforniacrops.'21These fearswere compoundedwhenthe MexicanEmbassyformally
drew the zoot-suit riots to the attentionof the State Department.It was the fear
of an 'internationalincident'22
that couldonly have an adverseeffect on California's
economy, ratherthan any real concernfor the social conditionsof the MexicanAmericancommunity,that motivatedGovernorWarrenof Californiato order a
publicinvestigationinto the causes of the riots. In an ambiguouspress statement,
the Governorhinted that the riots may have been instigatedby outside or even
foreign agitators:
As we love our countryand the boys we are sending overseas to defend it,
we are all duty bound to suppressevery discordantactivitywhich is designed
The zoot-suitstyle reachesLondon. A young couple dance
on the floor of a ballroomin Hammersmithcirca 1944
A gang of Detroit zoot-suitersline up againstthe wall of a hotel. As the youthswait to
be searchedby the police their girlfriendsstand in single file along the edge of the
sidewalk.
The Zoot-suitand Style Warfare
87
to stir up internationalstrife or adverselyaffect our relationshipswith our
allies in the United Nations.23
The zoot-suitriots provokedtwo relatedinvestigations;a fact findinginvestigative
committeeheadedby AttorneyGeneralRobertKennyand an un-Americanactivities investigationpresidedover by State SenatorJackB Tenney. The un-American
activitiesinvestigationwas ordered 'to determinewhether the present zoot-suit
riots were sponsoredby Nazi agenciesattemptingto spreaddisunitybetween the
United States and Latin-Americancountries'.24SenatorTenney, a memberof the
un-American Activities committee for Los Angeles County, claimed he had
evidence that the zoot-suitriots were 'axis-sponsored'but the evidencewas never
presented.25However, the notion that the riots might have been initiated by
outside agitators persisted throughoutthe month of June, and was fuelled by
Japanese propagandabroadcastsaccusing the North American governmentof
ignoringthe brutalityof US marines.The argumentsof the un-Americanactivities
investigationwere given a certainamountof credibilityby a Mexicanpastorbased
in Watts, who accordingto the press had been 'a pretty rough customerhimself,
servingas a captainin PanchoVilla's revolutionaryarmy.'26ReverendFrancisco
Quintanilla,the pastorof the MexicanMethodistchurch,was convincedthe riots
were the resultof fifthcolumnists.'Whenboys startattackingservicemenit means
the enemy is right at home. It means they are being fed vicious propagandaby
enemy agentswho wish to stir up all the racialand class hatredsthey can put their
evil fingerson.'27
The attentiongiven to the dubiousclaimsof nazi-instigationtended to obfuscate other more credible opinions. Examination of the social conditions of
pachuco youths tended to be marginalizedin favour of other more 'newsworthy'
angles. At no stage in the presscoveragewere the opinionsof communityworkers
or youth leaderssought, and so, ironically,the most progressiveopinionto appear
in the major newspaperswas offered by the Deputy Chief of Police, EW Lester.
In press releases and on radio he provideda short historyof gang subculturesin
the Los Angeles area and then tried, albeit briefly,to place the riots in a social
context.
The Deputy Chief said most of the youths came from overcrowdedcolorless
homes that offered no opportunitiesfor leisure-timeactivities. He said it is
wrong to blame law enforcementagenciesfor the presentsituation,but that
society as a whole must be chargedwith mishandlingthe problems.28
On the morningof Friday, 11 June 1943, The Los Angeles Timesbroke with its
regularpracticesand printed an editorial appeal, 'Time For Sanity'on its front
page. The main purpose of the editorialwas to dispel suggestionsthat the riots
were racially motivated, and to challenge the growing opinion that white
servicemenfrom the SouthernStateshad activelycolludedwith the police in their
vigilantecampaignagainstthe zoot-suiters.
There seems to be no simple or complete explanationfor the growthof the
grotesque gangs. Many reasons have been offered, some apparentlyvalid,
some farfetched. But it does appear to be definitely established that any
attemptsat curbingthe movementhave had nothingwhateverto do with race
88
History WorkshopJournal
persecution,althoughsome elements have loudly raised the cry of this very
thing.29
A month later, the editorial of July's issue of Crisis presented a diametrically
opposed point of view:
These riots would not occur - no matter what the instant provocation- if
the vast majorityof the population,includingmore often than not the law
enforcementofficers and machinery,did not share in varying degrees the
belief that Negroes are and must be kept second-classcitizens.30
But this view got short shrift, particularlyfrom the authorities, whose initial
response to the riots was largelyretributive.Emphasiswas placed on arrestand
punishment.The Los Angeles City Councilconsidereda proposalfrom Councillor
Norris Nelson, that 'it be made a jail offense to wear zoot-suitswith reat pleats
withinthe city limits of LA'31,and a discussionensued for over an hour before it
was resolved that the laws pertainingto rioting and disorderlyconduct were
sufficientto containthe zoot-suitthreat. However, the councildid encouragethe
War ProductionBoard (WPB) to reiterateits regulationson the manufactureof
suits. The regionaloffice of the WPB based in San Franciscoinvestigatedtailors
manufacturingin the area of men's fashionand took steps 'to curbillegal production of men's clothing in violation of WPB limitation orders.'32Only when
GovernorWarren'sfact-findingcommissionmade its publicrecommendationsdid
the politicalanalysisof the riots go beyond the firstprinciplesof punishmentand
proscription.The recommendationscalled for a more responsibleco-operation
from the press; a programmeof special trainingfor police officers working in
multi-racialcommunities;additionaldetention centres; a juvenile forestrycamp
for youth underthe age of 16; an increasein militaryand shore police; an increase
in the youth facilities provided by the church; an increase in neighbourhood
recreationfacilitiesand an end to discriminationin the use of publicfacilities. In
addition to these measures, the commissionurged that arrestsshould be made
withoutundue emphasison membersof minoritygroupsand encouragedlawyers
to protect the rights of youths arrestedfor participationin gang activity. The
findingswere a delicatebalanceof punishmentandpalliative;it madeno significant
mention of the social conditionsof Mexicanlabourersand no recommendations
about the kind of publicspendingthat would be needed to alter the social experiences of pachuco youth. The outcome of the zoot-suit riots was an inadequate,
highly localized and relativelyineffectivebody of short term public policies that
providedno guidelinesfor the more serious riots in Detroit and Harlem later in
the same summer.
THE MYSTERYOF THE SIGNIFYINGMONKEY
The pachucois the prey of society, but instead of hiding he adorns himself
to attract the hunter's attention. Persecutionredeems him and breaks his
solitude: his salvationdepends on him becomingpart of the very society he
appearsto deny.33
The Zoot-suit and Style Warfare
89
The zoot-suitwas associatedwith a multiplicityof differenttraitsand conditions.
It was simultaneouslythe garb of the victim and the attacker,the persecutorand
the persecuted, the 'sinister clown' and the grotesque dandy. But the central
oppositionwas between the style of the delinquentand that of the disinherited.
To wear a zoot-suitwas to risk the repressiveintoleranceof wartimesociety and
to invite the attention of the police, the parent generation and the uniformed
membersof the armedforces. For manypachucosthe zoot-suitriots were simply
hightimesin Los Angeles when momentarilythey had control of the streets; for
othersit was a realizationthat they were outcastsin a society that was not of their
making.For the blackradicalwriter,ChesterHimes, the riotsin his neighbourhood
were unambiguous:'Zoot Riots are Race Riots.'34For other contemporary
commentatorsthe wearing of the zoot-suit could be anythingfrom unconscious
dandyism to a conscious 'political' engagement. The zoot-suit riots were not
'political'riots in the strictestsense, but for manyparticipantsthey were an entry
into the languageof politics, an inarticulaterejection of the 'straightworld' and
its organization.
It is remarkablehow many post-waractivistswere inspiredby the zoot-suit
disturbances.Luis Valdez of the radicaltheatrecompany,El Teatro Campesino,
allegedly learned the 'chicano'from his cousin the zoot-suiterBilly Miranda.35
The novelists Ralph Ellison and RichardWright both conveyed a literary and
politicalfascinationwith the powerand potentialof the zoot-suit.One of Ellison's
editorialsfor the journalNegro Quarterlyexpressedhis own sense of frustration
at the enigmaticattractionof zoot-suitstyle.
A third major problem, and one that is indispensableto the centralization
and directionof power is that of learningthe meaningof myths and symbols
which aboundamongthe Negro masses. For withoutthis knowledge,leadership, no matterhow correctits program,will fail. Muchin Negro life remains
a mystery;perhapsthe zoot-suitconcealsprofoundpoliticalmeaning;perhaps
the symmetricalfrenzy of the Lindy-hopconceals clues to great potential
powers, if only leaders could solve this riddle.36
AlthoughEllison'sremarksare undoubtedlycompromisedby theirown mysterious
idealism, he touches on the zoot-suit'smajor source of interest. It is in everyday
ritualsthat resistancecan find naturaland unconsciousexpression.In retrospect,
the zoot-suit'shistorycan be seen as a point of intersection,between the related
potential of ethnicityand politics on the one hand, and the pleasuresof identity
and differenceon the other. It is the zoot-suit'spolitical and ethnic associations
that have made it such a rich referencepoint for subsequentgenerations.From
the music of TheloniousMonk and Kid Creole to the jazz-poetryof LarryNeal,
the zoot-suithas inheritednew meaningsand new mysteries.In his book Hoodoo
Hollerin' Bebop Ghosts, Neal uses the image of the zoot-suit as the symbol of
BlackAmerica'sculturalresistance.For Neal, the zoot-suitceasedto be a costume
and became a tapestryof meaning,wheremusic,politicsand social actionmerged.
The zoot-suit became a symbolfor the enigmasof Black cultureand the mystery
of the signifyingmonkey:
But there is rhythm here
Its own special substance.
90
History WorkshopJournal
I hear Billie sing, no Good Man, and dig Prez, wearingthe Zoot suit of life,
the Porkpiehat tiltedat the correctangle; throughthe Harlemsmoke of beer
and whisky,I understandthe mysteryof the SignifyingMonkey.37
The authorwishes to acknowledgethe supportof the BritishAcademyfor the researchfor
this article.
1 Ralph Ellison InvisibleMan New York 1947p 380
2 InvisibleMan p 381
3 'Zoot Suit Originatedin Georgia'New York Times11 June 1943p 21
4 For the most extensivesociologicalstudyof the zoot-suitriots of 1943see RalphH
Turnerand Samuel J Surace 'Zoot Suiters and Mexicans:Symbolsin Crowd Behaviour'
AmericanJournalof Sociology62 1956pp 14-20
5 OctavioPaz The Labyrinthof SolitudeLondon 1967pp 5-6
6 Labyrinthof Solitudep 8
7 As note 6
8 See KL Nelson (ed) TheImpactof Waron AmericanLife New York 1971
9 OE Schoefflerand W Gale Esquire'sEncyclopaediaof Twentieth-Century
Men's
FashionNew York 1973p 24
10 As note 6
11 'Zoot-SuitersAgain on the Prowl as Navy Holds Back Sailors'WashingtonPost 9
June 1943p 1
12 Quoted in S MenefeeAssignmentUSA New York 1943p 189
13 Details of the riots are taken from newspaperreportsand press releases for the
weeks in question, particularlyfrom the Los Angeles Times,New York Times,Washington
Post, WashingtonStarand TimeMagazine
14 'StrongMeasuresMust be Taken AgainstRioting'Los Angeles Times9 June 1943
p4
15 'Zoot-SuitFightingSpreadsOn the Coast'New York Times10 June 1943p 23
16 As note 15
17 'Zoot-GirlsUse Knife in Attack' Los Angeles Times11 June 1943p 1
18 Joan W Moore Homeboys:Gangs,Drugsand Prisonin the Barriosof Los Angeles
Philadelphia1978
19 'Zoot Suit WarfareSpreadsto Pupils of Detroit Area' WashingtonStar 11 June
1943 p 1
20 Although the Detroit Race Riots of 1943 were not zoot-suit riots, nor evidently
about 'youth' or 'delinquency',the social context in which they took place was obviously
comparable.For a lengthystudyof the Detroit riots see R Shogunand T CraigTheDetroit
Race Riot: a studyin violencePhiladelphiaand New York 1964
21 'Zoot Suit WarInquiryOrderedby Governor'Los Angeles Times9 June 1943p A
22 'WarrenOrdersZoot Suit Quiz; Quiet Reigns After Rioting' Los Angeles Times
10 June 1943p 1
23 As note 22
24 'TenneyFeels Riots Causedby Nazi Move for Disunity'Los Angeles Times9 June
1943 p A
25 As note 24
26 'WattsPastorBlamesRiots on FifthColumn'Los AngelesTimes11 June 1943p A
27 As note 26
28 'CaliforniaGovernorAppeals for Quellingof Zoot Suit Riots' WashingtonStar 10
June 1943pA3
29 'Time for Sanity'Los Angeles Times11 June 1943p 1
30 'The Riots' The CrisisJuly 1943p 199
31 'Ban on FreakSuits Studiedby Councilmen'Los Angeles Times9 June 1943p A3
33 Labyrinthof Solitudep 9
34 ChesterHimes 'Zoot Riots are Race Riots' TheCrisisJuly1943;reprintedin Himes
Black on Black: Baby Sisterand SelectedWritingsLondon 1975
35 El Teatro Campesinopresentedthe first Chicanoplay to achieve full commercial
Broadwayproduction.The play, writtenby LuisValdezandentitled'Zoot Suit'was a drama
91
The Zoot-suit and Style Warfare
documentaryon the Sleepy Lagoonmurderand the events leadingto the Los Angeles riots.
(The Sleepy Lagoon murderof August 1942 resulted in 24 pachucos being indicted for
conspiracyto murder.)
36 Quoted in Larry Neal 'Ellison's Zoot Suit' in J Hersey (ed) Ralph Ellison: A
Collectionof CriticalEssays New Jersey 1974p 67
37 From Larry Neal's poem 'Malcolm X: an Autobiography'in L Neal Hoodoo
Hollerin'Bebop GhostsWashingtonDC 1974p 9
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