They shot them down like rabbits . . . September 30, 1919. The United States teetered on the edge of a racial civil war. During the previous three months, racial fighting had erupted in twenty-five cities. And deep in the Arkansas Delta, black sharecroppers were meeting in a humble wooden church, forming a union and making plans to sue their white landowners, who for years had cheated them out of their fair share of the cotton crop. A car pulled up outside the church . . . What happened next has long been shrouded in controversy.In this heartbreaking but ultimately triumphant story of courage and will, journalist Robert Whitaker carefully documents--and exposes--one of the worst racial massacres in American history. Over the course of several days, posses and federal troops gunned down more than one hundred men, women, and children.But that is just the beginning of this astonishing story. White authorities also arrested more than three hundred black farmers, and in trials that lasted only a few hours, all-white juries sentenced twelve of the union leaders to die in the electric chair. One of the juries returned a death verdict after two minutes of deliberation. All hope seemed lost, and then an extraordinary lawyer from Little Rock stepped forward: Scipio Africanus Jones. Jones, who'd been born a slave, joined forces with the NAACP to mount an appeal in which he argued that his clients' constitutional rights to a fair trial had been violated. Never before had the U.S. Supreme Court set aside a criminal verdict in a state court because the proceedings had been unfair, so the state of Arkansas, confident of victory, had a carpenter build coffins for the men.We all know the names of the many legendary heroes that emerged from the civil rights movement: Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King Jr. among them. Whitaker's important book commemorates a legal struggle, Moore v. Dempsey, that paved the way for that later remaking of our country, and tells too of a man, Scipio Africanus Jones, whose name surely deserves to be known by all Americans.From the Hardcover edition.

On the laps of gods : the Elaine Massacre, Scipio Africanus Jones, and the struggle for justice that remade a nation

Golden Books Publishing Company, Incorporated

Random House, Incorporated

Crown; Crown Publishers

Vintage Books

1st ed., New York, New York State, 2008

United States, United States of America

First Edition, 1st, PS, 2008

1st ed, New York, c2008

June 10, 2008

Includes bibliographical references and index.

subject: Jones, Scipio Africanus, 1863-1943; Elaine Race Riot, Elaine, Ark., 1919; Race riots; African Americans; Trials (Murder)

contributor: Internet Archive

format: Image/Djvu(.djvu)

rights: The access limited around the compus-network users

unit_name: Internet Archive

topic: Jones, Scipio Africanus, 1863-1943; Elaine Race Riot, Elaine, Ark., 1919; Race riots; African Americans; Trials (Murder)

Type: 英文图书

Bookmarks:
1. (p1) 1 A Union in Hoop Spur
2. (p2) 2 The Path to Hoop Spur
3. (p3) 3 The Red Summer of 1919
4. (p4) 4 Helena
5. (p5) 5 The Killing Fields
6. (p6) 6 They Shot Them Down Like Rabbits
7. (p7) 7 Whitewash
8. (p8) 8 The Longest Train Ride Ever
9. (p9) 9 A Lesson Made Plain
10. (p10) 10 Scipio Africanus Jones
11. (p11) 11 The Constitutional Rights of a Race
12. (p12) 12 I Wring My Hands and Cry
13. (p13) 13 All Hope Gone
14. (p14) 14 Great Writ of Liberty
15. (p15) 15 Taft and His Court
16. (p16) 16 Hardly Less than Revolutionary
17. (p17) 17 Thunderbolt from a Clear Sky
18. (p18) 18 Birth of a New Nation
19. (p19) Epilogue
20. (p20) Appendix: The Killing Fields
21. (p21) Notes
22. (p22) Bibliography
23. (p23) Acknowledgments
24. (p24) Index

theme: Jones, Scipio Africanus, 1863-1943; Elaine Race Riot, Elaine, Ark., 1919; Race riots; African Americans; Trials (Murder)

They shot them down like rabbits . . .
September 30, 1919. The United States teetered on the edge of a racial civil war. During the previous three months, racial fighting had erupted in twenty-five cities. And deep in the Arkansas Delta, black sharecroppers were meeting in a humble wooden church, forming a union and making plans to sue their white landowners, who for years had cheated them out of their fair share of the cotton crop. A car pulled up outside the church . . .
What happened next has long been shrouded in controversy.
In this heartbreaking but ultimately triumphant story of courage and will, journalist Robert Whitaker carefully documentsand exposesone of the worst racial massacres in American history. Over the course of several days, posses and federal troops gunned down more than one hundred men, women, and children.
But that is just the beginning of this astonishing story. White authorities also arrested more than three hundred black farmers, and in trials that lasted only a few hours, all-white juries sentenced twelve of the union leaders to die in the electric chair. One of the juries returned a death verdict after two minutes of deliberation.
All hope seemed lost, and then an extraordinary lawyer from Little Rock stepped Scipio Africanus Jones. Jones, whod been born a slave, joined forces with the NAACP to mount an appeal in which he argued that his clients constitutional rights to a fair trial had been violated. Never before had the U.S. Supreme Court set aside a criminal verdict in a state court because the proceedings had been unfair, so the state of Arkansas, confident of victory, had a carpenter build coffins for the men.
We all know the names of the many legendary heroes that emerged from the civil rights Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King Jr. among them. Whitakers important book commemorates a legal struggle, Moore v. Dempsey, that paved the way for that later remaking of our country, and tells too of a man, Scipio Africanus Jones, whose name surely deserves to be known by all Americans.

September 30, 1919. The United States Teetered On The Edge Of A Racial Civil War. Racial Fighting Had Erupted In 25 Cities. Deep In The Arkansas Delta, Black Sharecroppers Formed A Union To Sue Their White Landowners, Who Had Cheated Them For Years. What Happened Next Has Long Been Shrouded In Controversy. Over Several Days, Posses And Federal Troops Gunned Down More Than 100 Men, Women, And Children. White Authorities Arrested More Than 300 Black Farmers, And In Brief Trials, All-white Juries Sentenced Twelve Union Leaders To The Electric Chair. And Then, A Lawyer From Little Rock Stepped Forward. Scipio Africanus Jones, Born A Slave, Joined With The Naacp To Mount An Appeal In Which He Argued That His Clients' Constitutional Rights To A Fair Trial Had Been Violated. Never Before Had The U.s. Supreme Court Set Aside A Criminal Verdict In A State Court Because The Proceedings Had Been Unfair.--from Publisher Description. A Union In Hoop Spur -- The Path To Hoop Spur -- The Red Summer Of 1919 -- Helena -- The Killing Fields -- They Shot Them Down Like Rabbits -- Whitewash -- The Longest Train Ride Ever -- A Lesson Made Plain -- Scipio Africanus Jones -- The Constitutional Rights Of A Race -- I Wring My Hands And Cry -- All Hope Gone -- Great Writ Of Liberty -- Taft And His Court -- Hardly Less Than Revolutionary -- Thunderbolt From A Clear Sky -- Birth Of A New Nation. Robert Whitaker. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [361]-367) And Index.

Describes the 1919 massacre of more than one hundred black men, women, and children in Arkansas and the court battle, led by ex-slave-turned-attorney Scipio Africanus Jones, that set the stage for the civil rights movement a half-century later

2023-06-28