Southern Historical Society
We saw something in the news regarding “lynching memorials” and we want to address it. For some reason, “lynchings” are tied to Confederates and the South alone. This is a blatant lie at worst and abject ignorance at least. It’s hard to think about such horrible things, but they did in fact happen. However there are misconceptions and falsities surrounding the subject, and it’s time to correct them.There are several misnomers we need to straighten out. Whether it’s by intentional agitation, confusion or plain old stupidity, ignorance unanswered is ignorance allowed. We don’t allow ignorance. And we are sick to death of lies.
1. Lynchings were done by mobs. Sometimes horrendous crimes were committed and the law did not move quickly enough, or sternly enough to suit people, so angry mobs would form and carry out their own “justice.” FACT.
2. People of every race were “lynched”. American Indians, Mexicans, White outlaws and yes, Black persons were recipients of vigilante justice. FACT.
3. The South gets a bad rap from horrible things that happened during “Jim Crow” era. Some of it is deserved, after all, the children of illegal invading Yankee hoards were born in the South and technically were Southern when these things were done. But that does not make them Confederate.
FACT.
4. What you may not know is lynchings were carried on, regularly, in the North both before and after Lincoln’s illegal and unconstitutional war. The Sacramento Daily Union records a Negro lynched in Urbana Ohio in June of 1897 and there are hundreds of other accounts both before and after Lincoln’s war. And in July of 1863 New York city was on fire. A Black orphanage was burned, as well as Black persons being lynched, tortured and burned. FACT.
In all our research, we have not found such things happening in the South prior to Lincoln’s war. We don’t say it never happened, we state we can not find any concrete proof of such. A question begs then: Why is what happened after Lincoln’s war the fault of any Confederate?
Well, it’s not. Stop thinking it is.
Photo- Federal soldiers of the 7th Regiment New York State Militia keeping order during the New York City Draft Riots, New York City, July 1863.
Web Source: Sons of Confederate Veterans Facebook Page
Lani Burnette Rinkel, 5/29/2018 Post
