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Strange Fruit
Lynching
Mob violence against African-Americans
served four functions within southern
society during the lynching era:
 to
eradicate specific persons
accused of crimes against the
white community;
 as a mechanism of statesanctioned terrorism designed to
maintain a degree of leverage over
the African-American population;
Mob violence against African-Americans
served four functions within southern
society during the lynching era:
 to
eliminate or neutralize
competitors for social, economic,
or political rewards; and
 as a symbolic manifestation of
the unity of white supremacy".
suspiciously
The Acting
Reasons
Given for
BlackGambling
Lynchings:
Quarreling
Adultery
Grave robbing
Race hatred; Race troubles
Aiding murderer
Improper with white woman
Rape
Arguing with white man
Incest
Rape-murders
Garfield Burley
Curtis Brown
Nebern, TN
October, 1902
Will James
Cairo, IL
November 1909
 Joseph
Richardson
 Leitchfield, KY
 September,
1913
Jesse Washington
Robinson, TX
May, 1916
Elias Clayton, 19 Elmer Jackson, 21
Isaac McGhie, 21
Duluth, MI
June, 1920
 Unknown
 Center,
TX
 August, 1920
James Clark
Eau Gallie, FL
July, 1926

.
Strange Fruit

Southern
trees
strange
fruit,
Here
Pastoral
is fruit
scene
for the
ofbear
the
crows
gallant
to pluck,
south,
Blood
on
the
leaves
and
blood
at
For
Thethe
bulging
rain to
eyes
gather,
and for
thethe
twisted
wind to
the root,
suck,
mouth,
Black bodies swinging in the
For
Scent
theofsun
magnolias,
to rot, forsweet
the trees
andto
southern
breeze,
Strange fruit hanging from the
drop,
fresh,
poplar
trees.
Here
Thenisthe
a strange
sudden and
smellbitter
of burning
crop.
flesh.