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 Engage the Students
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Read (or play) the following song. It was written by Abel Meerpool in 1938 and originally performed by Billie Holliday in 1939. Print Version
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Strange Fruit
Southern trees bear a
strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and
blood at the root
Black boy swingin' in
the Southern breeze
Strange fruit hanging
from the poplar trees
Pastoral scene of the
gallant South
The bulging eyes and
the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolia
sweet and fresh
And the sudden smell of
burning flesh
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck
For the sun to rot, for the tree to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop.
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- What does the author mean by the term "strange fruit"?
- Why do you think the author chose to write about this topic?
Narrative: Read the narrative to the class, stressing the focus question at the end. Print Version
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Lynching is a form of mob violence that involves the ritualized torture and killing of a victim. The term has its roots in Revolutionary America with Colonel Charles Lynch of Virginia. Lynch had become upset with the lack of law and order in the western part of his state. Since the nearest trial court was over 200 miles away, Lynch and his associates formed an extra-legal court, with Lynch serving as the chief judge. Punishment usually entailed a whipping at the foot of a tree in the Colonel’s yard.
Systematic use of lynching against African Americans did not become prevalent until after Reconstruction when Federal Government withdrawal enabled White Supremacists to regain control of the South. Southerners, who according to WEB Du Bois had originally looked to the criminal justice system as "a means of re-enslaving the blacks", became impatient with the legal process. In order to expedite "justice", lynch mobs stormed local jailhouses and seized their victims. Such victims were usually men who were waiting trial for murder, rape, or assault. Once they were in control of their victim, the mobs hung their prey and subjected him to a variety of additional punishments that might have included beating, whipping, dismembering, shooting, and burning. These events were usually public spectacles where observers wrangled over the body parts of the victim and photographs were taken to keep as souvenirs. Between 1880 and 1930 more than 3,200 African Americans were lynched in the South. At the height of the lynching crisis, 1892, 230 African Americans were lynched in a single year.
Historians who are interested in gaining more insight into the topic of lynching utilize numerous primary sources. It is the job of the historian to analyze multiple sources in an attempt to determine the truth about the past. You are assigned the task of investigating how individuals tried to change the accepted use of lynching as a method of intimidating African Americans. |
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Focus Question: How did groups of individuals try to change the accepted use of lynching as a method of intimidating African Americans?
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Conduct the Investigation
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In order to answer the question you will examine several documents independently. Analyze each document by answering the following questions on your graphic organizer:
- How do I know this information is reliable?
- When was this document written? Who wrote it? What was its purpose?
- Explain the author’s point of view.
- How can this document help me answer the focus question?
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Discussion
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Now that the documents have been analyzed, you will have the opportunity to discuss the documents and the focus question with the students in your group. As you discuss interpretations of the documents, cite evidence for your opinions. Multiple interpretations can emerge and may or may not be accepted by all. Write your group responses in the appropriate section of your graphic organizer.
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Report the Findings
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Once historians complete their research, they formulate a thesis that answers the focus question. You will do the same. Your summary should answer the focus question below and be supported with details from the documents.
Focus Question: How did groups of individuals try to change the accepted use of lynching as a method of intimidating African Americans?
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Primary Source Documents
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Download these primary source documents for filling out the group and individual analysis worksheets. Download zip file of all Social Response to Lynching Documents or View Individually.
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| | Historical Investigation — Individual/Group Analysis
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| Source Document |
How do I know this is reliable information? |
When was this document written? Who wrote it? What is its purpose? |
Explain the author’s point of view |
How can this document help me answer the focus question? |
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Download Individual Analysis Table
Download Group Analysis Table
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