Jim Crow laws

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Army Aims to Rectify 'Largest Mass Execution' in Its History

More than a century later, soldier convictions related to the 1917 Houston riots are overturned

(Newser) - It was, as the Washington Post reports, "the largest mass execution carried out in the history of the US Army." On Dec. 11, 1917, 13 Buffalo Soldiers were hanged in a military camp near Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. The African American cavalry soldiers of the...

After 72 Years, Groveland Four Are Cleared

Partial amends made in one of Florida's greatest miscarriages of justice

(Newser) - The four Black men convicted of rape in a case now seen as a blight on Florida's history have been effectively exonerated, 72 years after the Jim Crow-era incident. The "Groveland Four," as they became known, were accused of abducting and raping a white teen girl at...

Woman Denied Wedding Gown 70 Years Ago Finally Dons One

Martha Tucker of Alabama fulfills decades-old dream, with a little help

(Newser) - When Martha Tucker got married in 1952, it was without the traditional white wedding gown she really wanted. A Black woman living under Jim Crow laws in Birmingham, Ala., Tucker wasn't allowed to try on clothes in white-owned stores—and there were no Black-owned bridal stores in the city,...

As Kemp Signed Bill She Knocked on His Door, Got Arrested

Rep. Park Cannon was protesting election legislation

(Newser) - A Black Democratic state lawmaker was arrested in Atlanta as she tried to witness Georgia's governor sign into law new voting restrictions in the state. Per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution , Rep. Park Cannon was at the state Capitol on Thursday, right outside the office where Gov. Brian Kemp was putting...

New Texas Texts: Slavery Was 'Side Issue' of Civil War

It was mainly states' rights that was war's impetus, per state education standards

(Newser) - About 5 million Texas schoolchildren will get their hands on brand-new social studies textbooks when school starts up again, the Houston Chronicle reports—textbooks that USA Today says are "misleading, racially prejudiced, and, at times, flat-out false." The beef with the new primers: They're in keeping with...

DNC Chair to GOP: Uh, Sorry About 'Jim Crow' Charge

Said Republicans wanted to 'literally' return to racist laws

(Newser) - DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Shultz has backed off just a bit from her statement that Republicans “want to literally drag us all the way back to Jim Crow laws.” She was referring to Republican-backed proposals to reduce voter fraud, like requiring voters to show a photo ID. “...

Senate Apologizes for Slavery
 Senate Apologizes for Slavery 
Jun 18, 2009 1:45 PM CDT

Senate Apologizes for Slavery

(Newser) - The Senate today apologized for slavery and civil rights abuses against African-Americans, CNN reports. The unanimous gesture—it comes on the eve of Juneteenth, which marks the end of the Civil War—carries a disclaimer that it's not meant to authorize reparations, notes the Chicago Tribune. The House will vote...

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