DR. MADISON RICHARDSON, 30 YEARS AFTER THE LA RIOTS, REFLECTS ON HIS EXPERIENCE AS ONE OF REGINALD DENNY’S LIFE SAVING TEAM
Dr. Madison Richardson had no idea that on April 29, 1992, he would receive a page for emergency surgery that would change his view on life so dramatically. As the L.A. Riots raged throughout Los Angeles, he did not know that the patient he was being called into emergency surgery for was Reginald Denny. Reginald Denny is infamously known for the beating he received by four African American assailants which happened to be captured by helicopter news crews after the acquittal of four white police officers in the beating of Rodney King. Unfortunately, this incident became the symbol of the LA Riots but thankfully Dr. Richardson, who to this day refuses to see race, was there to save his life.
He adamantly noted that there was no way Reginald was not going to not make it on his watch! As Dr. Richardson reflects on the passing of 30 years, he contemplates what lessons we, as a society, have learned and not. As the son of a successful physician, Dr. Richardson discovered at an early age that his true passion was to heal people and that he wanted to spend his life doing that as a physician. He graduated at the top of his class at Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, DC, where he earned an honors distinction.
It’s not every day that anyone is lucky enough to participate in history making, life-changing, and profound moments to do good, make good, and rise to the occasion that alters one’s life experience. Dr. Madison Richardson is that man and a good man that during Covid-19 donated his time visiting nursing homes, mentors aspiring physicians, and gives back to the community through numerous community hours. He is a true pillar of our City of Angels and hearing him recount and reflect on the LA riots, 30 years later, will shake you and inspire dreams of a better tomorrow.
