Rev. William Barber: 123 Years After Wilmington Massacre by White Supremacists, Voting Rights Fight Continues

A long-overdue commemoration was held this month in Wilmington, North Carolina, in memory of Joshua Halsey, who was killed by white supremacists during the November 10, 1898, Wilmington massacre.

A long-overdue commemoration was held this month in Wilmington, North Carolina, in memory of Joshua Halsey, who was killed by white supremacists during the November 10, 1898, Wilmington massacre. His unmarked grave got a headstone, and he was honored with a funeral, after he became one of the first identified victims in the massacre that killed at least 100 people, and possibly as many as 250. At the time of the massacre, Wilmington had a thriving Black community, and Black residents were also part of the city’s government. We look at the long-overlooked massacre and its relevance to today’s ongoing fight for civil and voting rights with Bishop William Barber of the Poor People’s Campaign, who gave the eulogy at Halsey’s funeral 123 years after he was killed.