Lynching, which began in the United States around 1880, was one of the most profound ways of demonstrating racial violence towards blacks in the South. Lynching continued in the United States until it began to settle down in the mid 1900s. This historical act of violence left an impactful strain on the relationship between black and whites for years forward. In the novel, 100 Years of Lynchings, author Ralph Ginzburg compiles primary source articles from 1880-1961 to demonstrate how ideas and impacts of lynching changed over the course of time. The government's attention and cessation in lynching went from minor to greater during this time period. Anti-Black mobs became power hungry as the government started playing a greater role in lynching.
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The government's attention and cessation in lynching went from minor to greater during this time period. During the early stages of the lynching era, the government and local authorities chose to stay out of the picture in hopes of preventing more fights from occurring. "Sheriff Brown was importuned to give up the prisoner, and finally in order to avoid an assault on the jail and possible bloodshed, he turned the negro over to the waiting crowd." This statement from an 1899 article, reinforces the idea that the government was hesitant to intervene in these mobs, and as a result many Sheriffs chose to release their prisoners. However, by the 1920s the government finally stepped into the picture and began holding mobs accountable for their actions. "Sheriff H. M. Mayo declared that tracks leading from the scene of the murder led to the home of the brothers. One of the brothers was arrested yesterday and the other surrendered after the mob had taken the Negroes…" This quote from a 1922 article, demonstrates the government pursuing punishment towards two white males for the death of innocent Negroes. Another example of the government taking action towards ending lynching is seen in a 1961 news article from Montgomery, Alabama. "The marshals formed a "wall of men" and advanced toward the mob. There to fight were U.S. marshals, police, highway patrolmen----and finally National Guardsmen." At this particular scene, a rather large part of the government, including U.S. Marshals, police, highway patrolmen, and the National Guard, stepped in to prevent the mob from proceeding towards the Black community. This statement provides proof of the actions the government finally started taking towards the end of the lynching time period. The government not only made it priority to stop mobs once they started, but also to conquer them as
The government's attention and cessation in lynching went from minor to greater during this time period. During the early stages of the lynching era, the government and local authorities chose to stay out of the picture in hopes of preventing more fights from occurring. "Sheriff Brown was importuned to give up the prisoner, and finally in order to avoid an assault on the jail and possible bloodshed, he turned the negro over to the waiting crowd." This statement from an 1899 article, reinforces the idea that the government was hesitant to intervene in these mobs, and as a result many Sheriffs chose to release their prisoners. However, by the 1920s the government finally stepped into the picture and began holding mobs accountable for their actions. "Sheriff H. M. Mayo declared that tracks leading from the scene of the murder led to the home of the brothers. One of the brothers was arrested yesterday and the other surrendered after the mob had taken the Negroes…" This quote from a 1922 article, demonstrates the government pursuing punishment towards two white males for the death of innocent Negroes. Another example of the government taking action towards ending lynching is seen in a 1961 news article from Montgomery, Alabama. "The marshals formed a "wall of men" and advanced toward the mob. There to fight were U.S. marshals, police, highway patrolmen----and finally National Guardsmen." At this particular scene, a rather large part of the government, including U.S. Marshals, police, highway patrolmen, and the National Guard, stepped in to prevent the mob from proceeding towards the Black community. This statement provides proof of the actions the government finally started taking towards the end of the lynching time period. The government not only made it priority to stop mobs once they started, but also to conquer them as