A Lynching in the Heartland: Race and Memory in America

James H. Madison has provided us with a book about an incident that no one wants to know about - a bit of ugly history that we would rather not think, much less READ, about. A LYNCHING IN THE HEARTLAND: Race and Memory in America is a brilliant investigation and commentary on the heinous incident on August 7, 1930 in Marion, Indiana. On that quiet night in the quiet heartland of America, far removed from the South with its long-standing history of racial clashes, two African American men were snatched from the jail by white mob frenzy and hung from a tree for the 'dastardly deed' of murder and rape of a white couple. No trial, no conviction, just an acting out of racial hatred, an act captured in the most famous photograph of a lynching in the American context. Madison reports the events factually with a mesmerizingly accurate attention to detail. But the story does not stop there. Madison has researched the history prior to the incident and the subsequent followup that identified brilliant African American leaders and challengers, one of whom was the third man not lynched on that hideous evening in 1930 - James Cameron. Madison then reflects on the whole history of racism in this country, beginning with the equally offensive murders and tortures of the American Indians and extending down to extant incidences up to the time of the publication of this valuable, disturbing book. Madison repeatedly makes the point that if we don't study our history and vividly recall our past then we are doomed to persist in unjust racial crimes. This is a tough book to swallow, but a very important one for all of us to read. Only by exposing ourselves to the ugly events of our history can we hope to learn and prevent such madness from recurring. An eloquent, vital, and impressive contribution.

In August of 1930, a lynching took place. It would not be uncommon for one to assume that the lynching took place in the deep south, but in this instance, the assumption would be incorrect. The lynchings of Tom Shipp and Abe Smith took place in Marion, Indiana, America's Heartland. This event is responsible for one of the most famous photographs of an American lynching.The author demonstrates how stereotypes and fear contributed to the lynching. The mere suggestion that a White woman was raped and a White man was murdered by three Black men, provided enough inspiration to turn a normally cordial, if not friendly, small town into a lynch mob. Madison outlines how a community dealt with the chilling reality that such mob violence had taken place in their small town. Because of shame, guilt and even fear, this tragic event was buried in Marion, Indiana's collective memory.Flossie Bailey, a prominent African American woman in the community, as well as others, worked hard to mobilize the community in an attempt to make sure that at least some of the people involved in the murders would be held responsible for the crimes while fear kept other African Americans in the community quiet. Unfortunately, no one was held responsible for the crime. Madison also highlights the history behind what is considered by many to be the most famous lynching photograph in American history. The photograph, taken by Lawrence Beitler the night of the lynching, has been reproduced and widely circulated. During the time immediately following the lynching, some people bought copies to serve as a "trophy", while others felt it was an abomination. It is a stirring photograph that depicts two dead men hanging from a tree while crowds of White's stand around some in their Sunday best, some pointing, and some chatting and laughing. This book begins with a vivid and chilling description of the events leading up to the lynching, the lynching itself and the events that followed. The description of the scene was a result of the author's extensive research which included interviews, reviewing court documents, magazines, books and other historical archives. Although the author noted that his initial goal was to write an article about the event, he quickly learned that the story of this lynching was much bigger than what could be captured in an article. In addition to the actual description of the events surrounding the lynching, the author creates a historical context by providing a description of life for both African Americans and Whites during the era. He details the role that the NAACP and committed community leaders played in fighting for broader civil rights for African Americans. He ends the book with a story of healing. On the night of the lynching, three men were in jail awaiting trial, yet only two of them were lynched. The third man, James Cameron's life was spared, and eventually Cameron began to share his story with the world. His goal in sharing the story

I just finished James Madison's book about race and memory in Indiana and heartily recommend it. I grew up in Indiana and though I was a couple generations removed from this 1930 event, my parents were not. My childhood experiences and those noted by Dr. Madison were indeed similar. "Knowing their place" was a phrase I heard repeatedly growing up in the midwest though I never quite understood it. This book finally explained the very complex "color lines" present both then and now in Hoosierland. Aside from being right on when describing the mood and atmosphere of rural Indiana and small town America, I found Dr. Madison's description of the characters involved in this American tragedy poignant. I especially enjoyed reading about Flossie Baily, James Cameron and Oatess Archey. These are individuals whose efforts made a difference in their community and beyond.While some may feel that issues of race are not front page news since 9/11, racial profiling and curtailment of rights and freedoms in the name of security and justice are. As always the way to understand the present is by studying the past and what better way to see the error of our ways than by listening to the voices of the black and white residents of Marion, Indiana?This true story reads like fiction and the characters could easily carry this story to the big screen. It is an excellent book and should not be missed.

Little was known on this topic before I bought the book - honestly the cover caught my attention first. The author starts out by telling the gripping and true tale of the lynching of 2 black teenagers in a small Indiana town in 1930. I live near this town and never ever heard of anything ever happening like this. History we are ashamed of apparently gets swept under the rug. This book opened my eyes to race-relations in Indiana and in the northern states during the early 20th's century. It really sets the stage for the Civil Rights acts that follow - and it's is wonderful to understand it from such a local perspective. This book is not about "lynching". It is about injustice and mob-mentalities, as well as the history of race-relations in the U.S. - from the perspective of a small midwestern town. A town that many people would consider to be a typical place. The history written is non-fiction, although I wish in many ways it were fiction. I find it difficult to grasp that humans act the ways they do, and the author did a fabulous job of remaining objective and explaining the facts in a sleuth-like manner.

Emotional is an understatment in reading this non-fiction account of a lynching in Marion, Indiana. All kinds of emotions come to mind as I read through it - anger, disbelief, sadness, shame. I think that much of it can be summed up by gazing at the front cover for awhile - the cover photograph is a timeless statement on race-relations in Indiana in the early 20th century. This work reads like a gripping movie-script, a drama and detective story, where you find heroes abound by their courage to speak up against the actions of the mob who lynched 2 teen-agers on a summer night. But unfortunately this work is not fiction, it is true - from the accounts of what happened in the town the night the boys were suspected of killing a white teen and raping his girlfriend on lovers-lane, to the mob-mentality that eventually took the lives of these two boys. I live near the town where it happened, and I wish it weren't true.The author did a superb job getting this early 20th century American history to read like something from one's imagination - he is truly gifted as a historical writer - as the words jump off the page as you read, gripping you, entangling you in the tragedy, and making emotions (ones that you probably don't like to express) - flood through you.