The Fight Against Lynching Summary Sheet
- Was the effort to stop lynching widespread? Explain your answer.
- To what degree was it successful?
- Who participated in this effort, primarily? Among ordinary citizens did both blacks and whites participate? Both men and women? Both Northerners and Southerners? Provide examples.
- What organizations sponsored actions against lynchings? How effective were their efforts?
- What American leaders (black and white) took a leading role? In what ways did American citizens exercise their Constitutional rights in the fight against lynching (e.g. right to vote, petition)?
- Were remedies sought at the local, state and federal level? At which level was action most effective?
- Were remedies sought from all three branches of government: the judiciary, executive and legislative?
- Of all the methods listed to fight lynch law on the timeline, which do you believe was most effective?
Why was lynching such a difficult crime to eradicate?
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Return to lesson Billie Holiday's Song "Strange Fruit"
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