Virginia lawmakers are expressing profound regret for lynching, the brutal murders of black men and women by white mobs in the decades after the Civil War.
The joint resolution passed by the General Assembly comes amidst a messy and public debate about racism in Virginia.
According to research by Gianluca De Fazio at James Madison University, more than a hundred people were lynched in Virginia from 1877 to 1927. Victims - mostly African-American - were hung, beaten and shot by mobs.
“It spoke to a time in America where some individuals had rights and some did not,” says Democratic Delegate Delores McQuinn. “Some were actually considered humans and some were not.”
A resolution sponsored by McQuinn directs state agencies to place historical markers around the state, documenting where lynchings occured. They’ll also create an online database memorializing the victims.
“To make their lives relevant. Grant them dignity. And then the families who are here, giving them a chance to participate in something that will honor those who were lynched,” McQuinn explains.
She says the resolution will help bring balance to our history, and spur the telling of stories that have long been ignored.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
