On that July evening in 1946; the leader counted aloud and the mob of white men fired. Seconds later; the leader counted again; "One; two; three;" and the mob fired once more. After the third and final volley of gunshots; the white men got into their cars and drove off; leaving the bullet-ridden bodies of two young black men and two young black women lying in the dirt near Moore's Ford Bridge in rural Walton County; Georgia. Since that summer evening; there have never been as many victims lynched in a single day in America. Now; more than a half century later; Laura Wexler offers the first full account of the Moore's Ford lynching; a murder so brutal it stunned the nation and motivated President Harry Truman to put civil rights at the forefront of his national agenda. With the style of a novelist; the authority of a historian; and the tenacity of a journalist; Wexler recounts the lynching and the resulting four-month FBI investigation. Drawing from interviews; archival sources; and an uncensored FBI report; she takes us deep into the landscape of 1946 Georgia; creating unforgettable portraits of sharecroppers; sheriffs; bootleggers; the victims; and the men who may have killed them. Fire in a Canebrake pursues the legacy of the Moore's Ford lynching into the present; exploring the conflicting memories of Walton County's black and white citizens and examining the testimony of a white man who claims he was a secret witness to the crime. In 2001; the governor of Georgia issued a new reward for information leading to the arrest of the lynchers. Several suspects named in the FBI's 1946 investigation are still alive; and there is no statute of limitations on the crime of murder. Fire in a Canebrake -- a phrase local people used to describe the sound of the fatal gunshots -- is a moving and often frightening tale of violence; sex; and lies. It is also a disturbing snapshot of a divided nation on the brink of the civil rights movement and a haunting meditation on race; history; and the struggle for truth.
#102316 in Books 1997-04-22 1997-04-22Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.44 x 1.00 x 5.50l; .68 #File Name: 0684830957320 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A Must-Read!By jeanhee kangIn his book; Worse Than Slavery; Oshinsky documents the rise and fall of the Southern penal farm. By exposing Parchman Farm; the current state penitentiary in the Mississippi Delta that was once a huge cotton plantation; he vividly captures a seldom mentioned shameful history of South.The author claims that slaves and freedmen were considered part of an inferior race. In an effort to eliminate them; whites invented; Pig Law; followed by Jim Crow laws mandating racial segregation and allowing law enforcement officers to arrest blacks for such crimes as disrespecting white women; stealing food to feed their families; and countless other petty offenses based on their race. These poor souls couldn't afford to pay for attorneys to receive fair trials. They were sent to infamous Parchman Farm or sent as "leased convicts" to Southern Planters. No blacks survived past 10 years; and Parchman Farm soon earned the nickname; "Little Alcatraz". A must-read!Worse than Slavery: Parchman Farm and the Ordeal of Jim Crow Justice2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Helpful information This book made me cry in places and ...By BJ WAREHelpful informationThis book made me cry in places and angry in others. The idea that man could be so inhuman to one another is actually nothing new under the sun; but this book just lets you know what lengths people will go to for profit; power; and control. But; but; but there is a God!2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Would recommend to anyone wanting to learn more about the history ...By Michelle C.Had to read this book for a class. Expected it to be scholarly and dry; but I found it to be very engaging. Would recommend to anyone wanting to learn more about the history of the South.
