The LA Watts Summer Games- Legacy Vs. Legacy

Community News, Sports — By Buddy Sampson on August 9, 2025 at 7:00 pm

The LA Watts Summer Games have helped the community immensely. They were founded in 1968 as a direct result of the 1965 Watts Riots, a way of empowering the community to bring resilience and hope. “That was the catalyst for the LA Summer Games,” said Khalifa Bey, Chair, and Executive Director of The LA Watts Summer Games. “We had the Riots and Lou Dantzler, the founder, and other members of the Junior Chamber of Commerce decided to get involved. At that time, we needed to corral the youth- get them back on a certain path.”

On August 8^th, 2025, a Gala took place, the Legacy vs. Legacy Gala at the Carson Event Center, that was a celebration of several sports icons, and an announcement of the Revival of the LA Watts Summer Games.  The attendees included Jim Hill, CBS2 News Director, Honoree Lo Clark, Ruby Dantzler (Widow of Lou Dantzler), Khalifa Bey (Executive Director of the L.A. Watts Summer Games), Jennifer Pierce-Asst News Director CBS/KCAL News,  Lo Clark (Honoree), Kim Estes, Emmy Winning Actor, Co-Host & Presenter, Presenter Rodney Allen Rippy Jr.(Jack In The  Box Former Child Star and Producer), Presenter Rawcel Cooks, songwriter and performer, Co-Host & Presenter Tyrone DuBose(R&B Historian, California Music Hall of Fame Inductee), Honoree Dennis Love ( Founder /Southern League Connection), James Hays, (Plasma Solutions, LLC and a co-founder of PlasmaGenix Corporation), and Mustafa Khan, President (Southern California Junior Cricket Academy) among others.

According to the King Institute at Stanford, on Wednesday, August 11, 1965, Marquette Frye, a 21-year-old black man, was arrested for drunk driving on the edge of Los Angeles’ Watts neighborhood. The ensuing struggle during his arrest sparked off 6 days of rioting, resulting in 34 deaths, over 1,000 injuries, nearly 4,000 arrests, and the destruction of property valued at $40 million. The Riots spotlighted problems of inequality in the community- in housing, employment and police brutality. “I remember when the Games were here,” said Jim Hill. “And I remember the circumstances surrounding it. There were people trying to disrupt the games. That’s the funny thing about sports- you can try to stop them, but they’re still going to go on.”

Originally launched as the Watts Junior Olympics, The L.A. Watts Summer Games, was a response to the unrest, and was founded in 1968. It was designed to bridge communities and foster understanding through sports, the Games brought together high school athletes from diverse backgrounds across Southern California. The inaugural event took place at Locke High School, featuring basketball, volleyball, and track and field.  Lorinzer “Lo” Clark, an honoree at the Gala, and one of the founders of the Games, discussed some of the growing pains of getting them started. “In 1968 we started setting up the program for the games,” said Lo Clark.  “But we had to get sponsors, and that was the hardest part. We were able to get Coca Cola, which enabled the kids to get Cokes, and the stores around the neighborhood were sponsors, so we were able to get T-shirts and caps to give our referees. I had been a referee since 1961, so I was in charge of the referees.”

At 98 years young, Lo, a former athlete, referee and basketball player, still seemed in charge of his game. He keeps up with current sports and considers himself a sports enthusiast. When asked how basketball today compares to when he played, he had a candid answer. “Basketball in those olden days- well they were better than the current players,” he laughed. “But they still didn’t have the charisma that the guys have now. They have so much more to work with. When I was refereeing, we didn’t have all the weightlifting and all that, but all the guys had beautiful skills- just play everyday and take care of business.”

 

Over the decades, the Games have grown to include football, softball, soccer, and other sports, ultimately involving, thousands of young athletes and continuing to serve as a symbol of unity, opportunity, and hope. The issue of mental preparedness and mental health, are too often overlooked in the Black community, especially in sports. Athletes must be at the top of their games mentally for success. “At the end of the day, if you’re not good mentally, regardless of what your talent is, you’re not going to go far,” said Kamelah Clark, Founder & Executive Director, Envision Youth Services, Inc. and one of the attendees of the gala. “How are you going to be able to perform on the field, if your mental sense of being is not intact? I’m a mother of a college athlete, so I’ve mentored athletes in mental health for many years and things like depression, anxiety, suicidal ideations- those are things that they don’t feel comfortable discussing- especially young men, to their coaches and peers and things like that. So, we open up the space to do that.” Visit their website at www.envisionyouthservices.org.

One of the presenters, Rawcel Cooks, a songwriter and recording artist known as one half of the group ZupaNova had a special connection to the games. “My sister Alise ran track for the LA Summer games,” he said. “And with that experience, she was awarded by Jesse Owens himself.” Ruby Dantzler, the widow of Lou Dantzler, accepted an award on his behalf. “You don’t know the hours, and the sleepless nights that people give to do things like this to invest in our young people,” said Ruby Dantzler. “My husband’s spirit is here tonight. He wouldn’t have wanted an award, but I accept the award because of his unselfishness and because of his ability to give and not receive.”

The Legacy vs. Legacy Black-Tie Gala marked the powerful return of the L.A. Watts Summer Games. The event included several awards that were given to many of the honorees and an auction to benefit the games. During the event, there were several touching moments, but Master of Ceremonies,  Sportscaster, News Director and Los Angeles icon Jim Hill had the most touching moment of the night, after he received an award. “I always wanted to get up early, work late and work like hell in between,” said Jim Hill. “That was one of my mottos- I was always told, if you work hard and you stay with it, good things will come.” Jim Hill has not only been an icon in the community and a sports star, but he has mentored many kids and aspiring journalists. He deserves any accolades that are presented to him.

Special thanks to Kevin Michael Callup (Coach K 4 U) of SYBN Advisors, The LA Watts Summer Games and Joy Perris for inviting us to this wonderful event.

For more information and to help donate or contribute to the Games, visit their website at https://www.friendsofthelawsg.org.