"Lynchings were violent public acts that white people used to terrorize and control Black people in the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly in the South. Lynchings typically evoke images of Black men and women hanging from trees, but they involved other extreme brutality, such as torture, mutilation, decapitation, and desecration. Some victims were burned alive.
A typical lynching involved a criminal accusation, an arrest, and the assembly of a mob, followed by seizure, physical torment, and murder of the victim. Lynchings were often public spectacles attended by the white community in celebration of white supremacy. Photos of lynchings were often sold as souvenir postcards"
-Image and quote from the NAACP article, "History of Lynching in America," cited below.
Featured below are some general resources, both articles and online collections about hate groups, violence, and white supremacy in American history. View the other tabs in this box for more specific information about how segregation permeated all areas of life.
Created in 1909 to fight racial injustice, the N.A.A.C.P ( The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization and continues on today. Learn about using the links and resources below.
Sources Citations:
History of Lynching in America. (n.d.). NAACP. Retrieved April 8, 2022, from https://naacp.org/ find-resources/history-explained/history-lynching-america