The Night of Rage on February 7, 2039, signified the date of the single greatest anti-metahuman riot of all time. Anti-metahuman hate crimes were escalating prior to the Night of Rage due to the 14th amendment to the UCAS Constitution (and similar legislation throughout the world) which proclaimed that metahumans had no rights. These hate crimes culminated into worldwide riots that saw the death of thousands of people. In many cities, metahumans were rounded up and detained "for their own protection", but this often led to the populations to become sitting ducks for the violence that followed. Many metahumans lost their homes and livelihood.
In Seattle, metahumans were sent to warehouses that were being used as makeshift detention centers. Hand of Five terrorists firebombed the warehouses and killed hundreds of metahumans in the blaze, which the Seattle Metroplex Guard did nothing to stop.
Repercussions
The Night of Rage was the kickoff for some of the worst terrorist attacks in the Sixth World. Three days later, Alamos 20,000 used explosives and magic to collapse and destroy the Sears Tower. The area around the tower was utterly devastated, and was never repaired (now called the "Shattergraves").
In retaliation for the Night of Rage, Sirrurg attacked and destroyed EuroAir flight 341.
Gradually, legislation was introduced that gave all metahumans equal rights, but the damage had been done.
References
- Shadowrun, Third Edition p 52