The Noose - history, symbolism, and commentary from a white man's perspective

T

he noose, even today, still invokes powerful feelings by many in America. Some see it as a horribly offensive symbol of hate, racism and murder. Others see it as a shameful representation of America's past and, if current events are any indication, a sign of an ongoing undercurrent of predudice in this country.

I think that the history of the noose is a very important topic to discuss if we are to fully understand what's been happening recently. In fact, I believe that many of the problems occuring today are, at least, in part due to the fact that many people (white and black) simply have no point of reference in this regard.

So what role has the noose played in our history? And is it really THAT big of a deal? Let's take a brief look.

Many associate the noose with brutal lynchings that occured not only in the south but all across this country. The actual process of lynching was morbid and incredibly violent.

Lynching is a derivative term that was taken from the name of Col. Charles Lynch who was a landowner in Virginia in 1790. Lynch had a habit of holding illegal trials of local lawbreakers in his front yard. Upon conviction of the accused, which was usually the case, Lynch took to whipping the suspects while they were tied to a tree in front of his house.

Some of the most infamous murders of blacks during this time period are commonly refered to as lynchings. But lynching does not necessarily mean hanging. It often included humiliation, torture, burning, dismemberment and castration. Victims were beaten and whipped, many times in front of large crowds that sometimes numbered in the thousands. Coal tar was frequently used to douse the unfortunate victim prior to setting him afire.

Onlookers sometimes fired rifles and handguns hundreds of times into the corpse while people cheered and children played during the festivities. Pieces of the corpse were taken by onlookers as souvenirs of the event. Such was the case when James Irwin was lynched on January 31, 1930. Irwin was accused of the murder of a white girl in the town of Ocilla, Georgia. Taken into custody by a rampaging mob, his fingers and toes were cut off, his teeth pulled out by pliers and finally he was castrated. It still wasn't enough. Irwin was then burned alive in front of hundreds of onlookers. No one was ever punished for this barbaric killing. Black victims were hacked to death, dragged behind cars, burned, beaten, whipped, sometimes shot thousands of times, mutilated; the savagery was astonishing.

And perhaps just as terrifying was the long list of "punishable offenses" that were widely considered worthy of lynching. For example, things such as:

Acting suspiciously
Gambling
Quarreling
Adultery
Grave robbing
Race hatred; Race troubles
Aiding murderer
Improper with white woman
Rape
Arguing with white man
Incest
Rape-murders
Arson Inciting to riot
Resisting mob
Assassination
Inciting trouble
Robbery
Attempted murder
Indolence
Running a bordello
Banditry
Inflammatory language
Sedition
Being disreputable
Informing
Slander
Being obnoxious
Injuring livestock
Spreading disease
Boasting about riot
Insulting white man
Stealing
Burglary
Insulting white woman
Suing white man
Child abuse
Insurrection
Swindling
Conjuring
Kidnapping
Terrorism
Courting white woman
Killing livestock
Testifying against white man
Criminal assault
Living with white woman
Throwing stones
Cutting levee
Looting
Train wrecking
Defending rapist
Making threats
Trying to colonize blacks
Demanding respect
Miscegenation
Trying to vote
Disorderly conduct
Mistaken identity
Unpopularity
Eloping with white woman
Molestation
Unruly remarks
Entered white woman's room
Murder
Using obscene language
Enticement
Non-sexual assault
Vagrancy
Extortion
Peeping Tom
Violated quarantine
Fraud
Pillage
Voodooism
Plotting to kill
Voting for wrong party
Frightening white woman
Poisoning well

This long list of "offenses" effectively made anyone a target of lynching. The constant threat of being brought up on charges such as these was a real form of terrorism in and of itself. But even if someone committed an act which was questionable, vigilante justice and mob mentality still ruled the day. Lynchings were allowed to occur seperate from any legal system and, in many cases, someone arrested by police would later be abducted by mobs from a jail or courthouse and taken to be lynched before any real justice had been carried out.

An excerpt from A Festival of Violence: An Analysis of Southern Lynchings, 1882-1930 states,

The lynching era encompasses roughly the five decades between the end of Reconstruction and the beginning of the Great Depression. During these years we may estimate that there were 2,018 separate incidents of lynching in which at least 2,462 African-American men, women and children met their deaths in the grasp of southern mobs, comprised mostly of whites. Although lynchings and mob killings occurred before 1880, notably during early Reconstruction when blacks were enfranchised, radical racism and mob violence peaked during the 1890s in a surge of terrorism that did not dissipate until well into the twentieth century".

I doubt we can trust official statistics and reporting related to lynchings during this time period based on this history, but even if we did, that would mean that on the average, a black man, woman, or child was murdered nearly once a week, every week, between 1882 and 1930 by a hate-driven white mob.

So why, then, does the noose become such a powerful symbol of this period in time?

Not only were lynchings being carried out, and accepted by many, they were actually being put on display for all to see. Newspapers were publishing photos of these events, flyers were posted around town... it was almost a type of trophy on display, as one might associate with big-game hunters showing off their kill.

Imagine the horror of seeing friends or even family members in a newspaper, hanging from a tree or being beaten or shot while their murderers stand by smiling and posing for the camera. It would be burned in one's memory forever, and i can't imagine, no matter how times change, ever getting to a point where this becomes a laughing matter.

The topic of these images is discussed below, but I've linked to a few of the more common photos of the time period. Please be warned that these images are very disturbing. They are not meant to fufill some kind of morbid curiosity nor meant to be sensational. For the same reason these images used to appear in textbooks, I hope that they serve as a shocking reminder of just how horrible the imagery surrounding the noose truly is.

Click on the first photo go to see all google images

I

n recent years, the rise of racially motivated incidents involving nooses is alarming. Amazingly today, I believe I counted around 35 times I came across a noose related incident in the news in the past few hours...and it's not even 10am.

If you've taken the time to read through the history section of this page or have been able to browse through the related photos or video, it's hard for me to believe that anyone would be able to argue that this issue is being blown out of proportion.

Of course, many still will do just that. To a certain extend, I understand that the media, especially considering it's new 24 hour entertainment format, will take stories like this and try to create drama where sometimes there is none to begin with. However, I believe this issue is different.

To put this issue in perspective (at the risk of offending some readers) let's compare this issue to other terrorism related "pranks" as they are being called. Would the majority of Americans (or you yourself) react in the same fashion if Al Qaeda symbols were being flaunted in public or used to intimidate?

Many will argue that you can't compare the two, and I agree. All terrorism should be condemned, but I would argue that the lynchings and other horrible acts by whites in this country have had a much larger impact on the psyche of this country, and should be treated as such.

As a young white male from a predominately white suburban area in the midwest, I have to admit that seeing a noose alone doesn't have a deep emotional impact on me, in fact very little. In most contexts, I probably wouldn't even give it much thought. However, I definitely recognize that this symbol does carry much more weight for others. And herein lies the problem. Many people seem unable to do that.

I think these recent displays bring two very serious problems to our attention. First, I think a large section of our society (both white and black) are terribly uneducated and misinformed. Secondly, I think by allowing incidents like this to happen without sincere condemnation, we are sending the message that "it's not that big of a deal."

The topic of education is one beyond the scope of this page, but is troubling. In terms of this topic, I'm inclined to think the schools have failed pretty badly. This topic and period in history is usually just another chapter, with little importance being placed upon the seriousness of these acts and the impact it still has on country today. Textbooks are incomplete or revisional, and teachers might not even be fully in touch themselves. In terms of education at home, if you've spent even 5 minutes on YouTube, you know that something is also wrong there, too. The comments left for a simple 5 minute music video somehow always seem to turn into heated arguments, with outrageous racial and sexually discriminatory speech coming from teens and even children of all backgrounds.

In terms of free speech as it relates to the nooses, first amendment rights are important, and I defend them vigorously. Especially when something is widely cosidered distasteful, we should defend the right to say it. However, many of these incidents are done purely in an attempt to intimidate and provoke fear. This is a form of assult on our citizens that we simply cannot accept. It's terrorism, pure and simple. If someone were to intimidate in the form of fake suicide boms or something similar, I have the impression that it would only be a matter of minutes before we saw our political leaders and others step forward to publically state their disgust and condemn the act. Why is this different?

It's just a noose, but it brings up so many more issues that we have as a society.

I know it's a hot-button issue, but I would love to hear your thoughts and comments on this page. Feel free to speak openly and honestly, even if you have a much different take on things.

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