Editing Al Sharpton (section)

===Howard Beach===
{{Main|Howard Beach racial incident}}

On December 20, 1986, three African-American men were assaulted in the [[Howard Beach, Queens|Howard Beach]] neighborhood of [[Queens]] by a mob of white men. The three men were chased by their attackers onto the [[Belt Parkway]], where one of them, [[Michael Griffith (manslaughter victim)|Michael Griffith]], was struck and killed by a passing motorist.<ref>{{cite news |last=McFadden |first=Robert D. |date=December 21, 1986 |title=Black Man Dies After Beating in Queens |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/21/nyregion/black-man-dies-after-beating-by-whites-in-queens.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

A week later, on December 27, Sharpton led 1,200 demonstrators on a march through the streets of Howard Beach. Residents of the neighborhood, who were overwhelmingly white, yelled racial epithets at the protesters, who were largely black.<ref>{{cite news|first=Ronald|last=Smothers|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/28/nyregion/1200-protesters-of-racial-attack-march-in-queens.html|title=1,200 Protesters of Racial Attack March in Queens |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=December 28, 1986}}</ref> A [[special prosecutor]] was appointed by New York Governor [[Mario Cuomo]] after the two surviving victims refused to co-operate with the Queens [[district attorney]]. Sharpton's role in the case helped propel him to national prominence.