Teens Dragged A Bunch Of Trash Into The Street, And Then Authorities Learned Their Ulterior Motive

During the 1960s, the winds of change swept across America. The Vietnam War, racial inequality, and youthful rebellion led to mass protests, though none were quite like a 1969 crusade in New York. A little-known group called the Young Lords brought city authorities to their knees, all by dragging out heaps of trash into the streets. They called their act of defiance the Garbage Offensive, but critics had to ask — had these revolutionaries gone too far?

A marginalized community

Life was hard in East Harlem, the New York City neighborhood that many Puerto Ricans called home. Riddled with crime and poverty, one of the largest problems faced by East Harlem was that it had been entirely neglected by the local government. Matters appeared to be getting worse when local youths began sweeping piles of garbage into busy intersections — but they were actually making a larger point.

A deteriorating neighborhood

Over 50 percent more densely populated than other areas in Manhattan, East Harlem also had more condemned housing units than anywhere else in the city. As a result, rat-infested dumping grounds emerged throughout the neighborhood, filled with piles of animal carcasses to furniture, appliances, and other types of garbage. The question remained — why hadn't the local government done anything about it?

The group's origins

Well, one group wasn't willing to abandon these people. Formed in 1960, the Young Lords started out as a street gang in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago. Inspired by other social justice initiatives, the group's founder, Jose Cha Cha Jimenez, restyled the group as a national civil and human rights movement. Little did he know how influential his group would become on the streets of New York City, though things would get worse before they got better.

A new chapter

As the Young Lords intensified their advocacy for Chicago's Latino population, they formed new chapters in Puerto Rican communities across the East Coast, including the densely populated New York City. Members in the Big Apple took it upon themselves to uplift their struggling community — causing mass upheaval in the process.