Tag Archives: Equal Justice Initiative

On this day in American history, August 31, 1966 — Alabama Forbids Local School Districts From Desegregating

Posted on August 31, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

A decade after the United States Supreme Court’s 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education declaring racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, many school districts throughout the South still maintained segregated public schools. In 1964, the United States Congress passed the … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 30, 1956 — Riots Prevent School Desegregation in Mansfield, Texas

Posted on August 30, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In 1956, Mansfield, Texas, was a small farming town of 1500 people. Its schools were strictly segregated and facilities for black students were run-down and under-funded. Before the start of the 1956-1957 school year, in compliance with a federal desegregation … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 26, 1874 — Mob of 400 Lynches Sixteen Black Men Kidnapped from Tennessee Jail

Posted on August 26, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On August 26, 1874, sixteen African American men were held in the Gibson County Jail in Trenton, Tennessee, transferred from Picketsville, a neighboring town where they’d been arrested and accused of shooting at two white men. Around 2:00 a.m. that … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 24, 1923 — Black Man Lynched in Jacksonville, Florida

Posted on August 24, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On August 24, 1923, a 34-year-old black farmhand Ben Hart was killed based on suspicion that he was a “Peeping Tom” who had that morning peered into a young white girl’s bedroom window near Jacksonville, Florida. According to witnesses, approximately … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 20, 1619 — First Enslaved Africans Land in Jamestown, Virginia

Posted on August 20, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

The stage was set for slavery in the United States as early as the 14th century, when Spain and Portugal began to capture Africans for enslavement in Europe. Slavery eventually expanded to colonial America, where the first enslaved Africans arrived … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 16, 2006 — Florida Attorney General Names Suspects in 55-Year-Old Civil Rights Murders

Posted on August 16, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On the evening of December 25, 1951, a bomb exploded at the Florida home of Harry and Harriette Moore, killing the couple on their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Harry Moore’s mother and the couple’s daughter were asleep in adjoining rooms but … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 13, 1955 — Voting Rights Activist Lamar Smith Murdered in Mississippi

Posted on August 13, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On the morning of August 13, 1955, Lamar Smith, a 63-year-old African American farmer and veteran of World War I, was shot and killed in front of the Lincoln County Courthouse in Brookhaven, Mississippi, while encouraging African Americans to vote … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 4, 1964 — Bodies of Murdered Civil Rights Workers Found in Mississippi

Posted on August 4, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In 1964, Michael Schwerner, a white New Yorker working with the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), traveled to Mississippi to organize black citizens to vote. Schwerner worked extensively with James Chaney, a black CORE member from Meridian, Mississippi. The activist … Continue reading →

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On this day in American history, August 3, 1919 — Race Riots End in Chicago, Illinois, with 38 Dead

Posted on August 3, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

During the Great Migration, Chicago, Illinois, was a popular destination for many black migrants leaving the South in search of economic opportunity and escape from racial violence. The city’s black population swelled from 44,000 in 1910 to 109,000 in 1920, … Continue reading →

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On this day in history — July 31, 1919 — White Mobs Set Over 30 Fires in Chicago’s Black Communities

Posted on July 31, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Before noon on July 31, 1919, angry white mobs had started more than thirty fires in the African American residential area of Chicago. Far from an isolated incident, these instances of arson were part of an extended barrage of violence … Continue reading →

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