2.4 The rise of lynching and racial violence

Lynching refers to the extrajudicial killing of an individual, typically by a mob, often motivated by racial hatred. This brutal practice emerged as a widespread form of racial violence in the United States, particularly targeting African Americans, as a means of enforcing white supremacy and social control. Lynching played a significant role in the social landscape of the post-Reconstruction South, serving as both a tool for intimidation and a response to perceived threats to the established racial order.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States from the late 19th century until the civil rights movement.

Ku Klux Klan: A white supremacist hate group founded in the aftermath of the Civil War that sought to maintain white dominance through intimidation and violence, including lynching.

Civil Rights Movement: A decades-long struggle for social justice aimed at ending racial discrimination and segregation against African Americans, particularly during the 1950s and 1960s.

Racial violence refers to acts of aggression and harm directed at individuals or groups based on their race or ethnicity, often resulting in physical injury or death. This term encompasses a range of violent acts, including lynching, mob violence, and systemic oppression, which have historically targeted African Americans in the United States, shaping their social and political landscapes. The legacy of racial violence not only reflects the deep-seated racism in society but also prompts various forms of resistance and activism aimed at combating such injustices.

Lynching: A form of extrajudicial punishment where a mob kills someone, often by hanging, without a legal trial, primarily targeting African Americans during the Jim Crow era.

Civil Rights Movement: A social movement aimed at ending racial discrimination and securing equal rights for African Americans, gaining momentum particularly in the 1950s and 1960s.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States from the late 19th century until the Civil Rights Movement.

White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other racial backgrounds and therefore should dominate society. This ideology has been a driving force behind various forms of racial violence and discrimination, manifesting in acts like lynching and influencing movements such as the Universal Negro Improvement Association led by Marcus Garvey, which sought to uplift and empower Black communities in response to systemic racism.

Lynching: Lynching refers to the extrajudicial killing of individuals, primarily African Americans, carried out by mobs in public settings, often as a means of enforcing racial control.

Jim Crow Laws: Jim Crow laws were state and local statutes enacted in the South that enforced racial segregation and discrimination against African Americans from the late 19th century until the civil rights movement.

Pan-Africanism: Pan-Africanism is a movement that seeks to unify and empower people of African descent worldwide, promoting solidarity against colonialism and racism.

Ida B. Wells was a prominent African American journalist, activist, and suffragist born in 1862 who is best known for her anti-lynching campaign and her fight for civil rights. She used her investigative journalism skills to expose the brutal realities of racial violence and injustice in the post-Reconstruction South, becoming an important figure in the struggle against lynching and for social justice. Her work laid the groundwork for later civil rights movements, particularly through her involvement in founding organizations that sought to promote equality and address racial issues.

Lynching: A form of extrajudicial punishment where individuals, often African Americans, were hanged or killed by mobs without legal authority, primarily as a means of enforcing racial control.

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP): A civil rights organization founded in 1909 aimed at fighting discrimination and advocating for the rights of African Americans through legal challenges and public advocacy.

Suffrage Movement: A social and political movement aimed at securing voting rights for women, in which Wells was actively involved, advocating for both women's and African Americans' rights.

The Southern United States, often referred to simply as 'the South,' is a region that encompasses 16 states, characterized by its unique cultural, social, and historical identity. This area is particularly known for its complex legacy of slavery, segregation, and the subsequent rise of racial violence, as well as its significant role in the Great Migration, where African Americans sought better opportunities and escaped oppressive conditions.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States from the late 19th century until the mid-20th century.

Racial Terrorism: Acts of violence and intimidation directed at African Americans, often used to maintain white supremacy and control over the black population in the South.

The Great Migration: The movement of over six million African Americans from the rural South to urban areas in the North and West between 1916 and 1970, seeking better economic opportunities and escaping Jim Crow laws.

Psychological trauma refers to the emotional and mental distress that results from experiencing or witnessing a highly distressing event. This type of trauma can lead to long-lasting psychological effects, influencing an individual's thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. The impact of psychological trauma is especially pronounced in communities subjected to severe violence and oppression, such as those affected by lynching and racial violence.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A mental health condition triggered by experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, characterized by flashbacks, severe anxiety, and uncontrollable thoughts about the event.

Collective trauma: Trauma that affects an entire community or society, often resulting from events like war, genocide, or systemic oppression, leading to shared emotional pain and disruption.

Resilience: The ability to recover from or adapt to difficult situations and traumatic experiences, often involving personal strength and support from the community.

The Great Migration refers to the mass movement of over six million African Americans from the rural Southern United States to urban areas in the North and West from around 1916 to 1970. This migration was driven by a search for better economic opportunities and escape from the oppressive conditions of the South, which included systemic racism, disenfranchisement, and violent reprisals.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws enacted in the Southern United States that enforced racial segregation and disenfranchised African Americans after the Reconstruction era.

Urbanization: The process by which an increasing percentage of a population comes to live in urban areas, often associated with migration from rural settings.

Harlem Renaissance: A cultural movement in the 1920s that celebrated African American cultural expressions through literature, art, and music, largely fueled by the influx of Black migrants to cities like New York.

The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) is a white supremacist hate group that emerged in the Southern United States during the Reconstruction era, initially founded in 1865. The Klan aimed to maintain white supremacy through violence and intimidation against African Americans and their allies, significantly impacting social and political dynamics during and after Reconstruction.

Reconstruction: The period following the Civil War from 1865 to 1877, focused on rebuilding the South and integrating formerly enslaved people into society.

Lynching: A form of extrajudicial punishment, often carried out by mobs, where individuals, especially African Americans, were killed without legal trial, usually as a means of racial control.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws enacted in the South from the late 19th century to enforce racial segregation and disenfranchisement of African Americans.

The NAACP, or the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is a civil rights organization founded in 1909 to fight for racial equality and eliminate discrimination against African Americans. The organization played a crucial role in challenging Jim Crow laws, advocating for civil rights legislation, and addressing issues such as lynching, disenfranchisement, and segregation.

Civil Rights Act: A landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, which was essential in advancing the goals of the NAACP.

Lynchings: The illegal execution of individuals by a mob, often racially motivated, that was a significant issue the NAACP sought to combat through advocacy and public awareness campaigns.

Thurgood Marshall: A prominent civil rights lawyer who served as the chief counsel for the NAACP and played a key role in landmark cases like Brown v. Board of Education, which ended racial segregation in public schools.

The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization founded in 1910, aimed at improving the social and economic conditions of African Americans in urban areas. Its mission focuses on economic empowerment, educational opportunities, and equal access to jobs, all of which connect deeply to the broader struggles against racial violence, the founding of other civil rights organizations, the hardships of the Great Depression, and the ongoing urban crisis faced by African Americans.

Civil Rights Movement: A social movement in the United States aimed at ending racial discrimination and ensuring equal rights for African Americans, especially during the 1950s and 1960s.

Economic Opportunity Act: A law enacted in 1964 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society program, aiming to eliminate poverty by providing job training and economic development.

Lynching: A form of extrajudicial punishment often targeting African Americans in the U.S., characterized by mob violence and public executions, especially prevalent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The National Equal Rights League was an organization founded in 1864, aimed at advocating for civil rights and equality for African Americans in the United States. It emerged during a time of intense racial violence and lynching, serving as a response to the systemic injustices faced by Black individuals. The League sought to unite African Americans and their allies to promote equal rights under the law, including voting rights, education, and access to public facilities.

Lynching: Lynching refers to the illegal execution of individuals, often by a mob, without a legal trial, primarily targeting African Americans during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Civil Rights Movement: The Civil Rights Movement was a social and political movement during the 1950s and 1960s aimed at ending racial discrimination and securing equal rights for African Americans.

NAACP: The NAACP, or National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is an organization founded in 1909 that works to eliminate racial discrimination and promote civil rights for African Americans.