“Behind the Lynchings:” Uncovering Racial Violence in the U.S. South, 1930-1954

11/6/2017

Racial violence, perpetrated by law enforcement or private citizens, has re-emerged as a potent social and political issue in the United States. Yet, racially motivated violence is deeply rooted in American history. Although images of Southern racial violence capture the public imagination, much is still unknown. There is no scholarly consensus on the total number of deaths. Nor do people understand the full scope and nature of such violence or its consequences for political, economic, and social life in US South.This talk discusses the development of a database of racial murders, drawing on underutilized or previously unavailable primary sources, including newspapers, NAACP papers, U.S. Department of Justice and FBI files, court papers, coroner’s reports, and contacts with surviving family members.

Speaker
Melissa Nobles Kenan Sahin Dean of the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences; Professor of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)