Black Americans weren’t spared lynching on Christmas Day during the lynching era.
Featured in this episode are the stories of three lynchings
December 25, 1901
Prairie Blossom Community, Lamar County, Texas
Reverend J N McClinton, a farmer and popular preacher, was inside on Christmas night when he heard men outside of his home, shouting for him to come outside. The pastor assumed it was a group of Christmas frolikers having some fun and joking around. He ignored their calls. Later that night, they would return.
December 25, 1906
Scooba, Kemper County, Mississippi
December of 1906 was a particularly violent month in Kemper County, Mississippi. What’s been referred to as riots, was a series of lynchings that resulted in the death of between 12 – 15 men. The lynching of Colvin Nicholson became known as one of the most violent in Mississippi since Reconstruction.
December 1943
Live Oak, Suwannee County, Florida
15 year old Willie James Howard was known to his friends and family as “jolly” and “lovable.” He sent Christmas cards to all of his co workers at the local five and dime store, including a white co-worker he had a crush on. The girl, Cynthia Goff, was offended by the card and Willie James mentioning he had a crush on her.
Cynthia did what Willie James never imagined she would do…she showed the card to her father who became enraged and set out to find Willie James.
More about this episode
60 Years Later, a Cry for Justice in Florida Killing by Audra D.S. Burch, McClatchy-Tribune
The Legacy of Harry T. Moore, PBS.org
Music
Performed by Ross Gentry. Courtesy of Headway Recordings in Asheville, North Carolina.
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