I take objection that this always seems to happened. Nothing that MLK was involved in (marches and such) led to rioting and looting.
Post Civil Rights Era: 1978 to today[edit]
1978: Houston's Moody Park on the first anniversary of Joe Campos Torres death.
1980: Miami Riots (Miami, Florida)
1980: Chattanooga Riot (Chattanooga, Tennessee)
1984: Lawrence, Massachusetts Race Riot: A small scale riot centered at the intersection of Haverhill and railroad streets between working class whites and Hispanics; several buildings were destroyed by Molotov cocktails; August 8, 1984.[46]
1989: Overtown Riot (Miami, FL) In a reaction to the shooting of a black motorcyclist by a Hispanic police officer in the predominately black community of Overtown in Miami, residents rioted for two nights. The officer was later found guilty of manslaughter.
1991: Crown Heights riot (Crown Heights neighborhood, Brooklyn, New York City)
1992: Los Angeles Riots (Los Angeles, California): In a reaction to the acquittal of all four LAPD officers involved in the videotaped beating of Rodney King and the murder of Latasha Harlins; riots broke out mainly involving black youths in the black neighborhoods and shop owners in Korean neighborhoods, but overall rioting was mainly to get out the frustrations of the racial groups over the racial tensions that were building in the South Central neighborhood for years[citation needed].
1996: St. Petersburg Riots (St. Petersburg, Florida): After Officer Jim Knight stopped 18 yr. old Tyron Lewis for speeding, his car lurched forward and Knight fired his weapon, fatally wounding the black teenager. Riots broke out and lasted for about 2 days.[citation needed]
2001: Cincinnati riots (Cincinnati, Ohio): In a reaction to the fatal shooting of an unarmed young black male, Timothy Thomas by Cincinnati police officer Steven Roach, during a foot pursuit, riots broke out over the span of a few days.
2003: Benton Harbor riots (Benton Harbor, Michigan)
2005: 2005 Toledo Riot (Toledo, Ohio): A race riot that broke out after a planned Neo-Nazi protest march through a black neighborhood.
2006: Fontana High School riot (Fontana, California): Riot involving about 500 Latino and black students[47]
2006: Prison Race Riots (California): A war between Latino and black prison gangs set off a series of riots across California[48][49]
2008: Locke High School riot[50] (Los Angeles, California)
2009: 2009 Oakland Riots (Oakland, California): Peaceful protests turned into rioting after the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man, Oscar Grant, by a BART transit policeman.
2014: Shooting of Michael Brown, later riots break out after the shooting was believed to be racially motivated.