I Came To Bear Witness To A Lynching: Part 3: Rockville, MD. 1/2

Thirty-eight black men that we know about have been lynched in Maryland. Many of these men were murdered without any fanfare. Their bodies were disposed of in paupers' cementaries or unmarked graves.

This is the site where Mr. Randolph was lynched in Rockville, MD. All that remains is a failed gas station. Picture by the author.

There were no homegoing ceremonies. The families did not make the pilgrimage to reclaim the bodies of their loved ones. Black people’s movement was restricted even more than it is now. Their ability to communicate was restricted. These black bodies and the people who loved them meant very little to the white authorities. Minimal, if any, effort was made to connect the bodies to their loved ones.

This biggest lie perpetuated by white supremacy about lynchings is that they were one-off impulsive acts of violence committed by poor, uneducated, drunk white men. We are made to believe that lynchings were isolated events that did not reflect the collective mores of the members of the town or city where they took place. This is a falsehood

Lynchings were communal affairs. These acts of brazen racial terror were done in the open and not concealed by the cover of night. The only reason many lynchings took place at night was because participants had to finish work and then travel to the site where the victim was being held. The truth is many lynchings took place under the warmth of the sun.