A third of those lynched during the lynch law era were white. This means, of course, that two-thirds of the victims were black, which is way out of proportion, but its not just a Southern thing. During the Civil War, hundreds of free blacks were lynched during the draft riots in New York City. Today, most of the copycat noose hanging incidents are taking place outside the South. Still, the hangman noose in itself is not exclusively a racist symbol, as is a burning cross or the initials, KKK. Throughout the West, hangman nooses and lynchings are connected with cattle rustlers. Coroners ruled that the victims died of such things as respiratory failure, neck disorders and hemp fever.

Also, nice post.

“The three white students who hung the two nooses at Jena High School say they were unaware that hangman nooses were considered racist symbols. The hangman noose’s emergence as a racist symbol is relatively recent. It began with articles, published mostly in scholarly journals, about Billie Holiday’s song, “Strange Fruit.” Most Americans don’t read these publications. Hollywood has conditioned them to equate hangman nooses with Old West cattle rustlers and outlaws. This explains the sudden rash of copycat noose hangings. No one every thought of it before. It also explains the sudden rush to remove hangman nooses from Halloween displays; no one regarded them as racist before. Until the Jena Six incident, people equated burning crosses, not hangman nooses, with racial injustice.”

because it’s not really making it as parody. and nobody can seriously be so ignorant as to be offering it as believable! tell me it aint so, say its a joke, please.

The three white students who hung the two nooses at Jena High School say they were unaware that hangman nooses were considered racist symbols. The hangman noose’s emergence as a racist symbol is relatively recent. It began with articles, published mostly in scholarly journals, about Billie Holiday’s song, “Strange Fruit.” Most Americans don’t read these publications. Hollywood has conditioned them to equate hangman nooses with Old West cattle rustlers and outlaws. This explains the sudden rash of copycat noose hangings. No one every thought of it before. It also explains the sudden rush to remove hangman nooses from Halloween displays; no one regarded them as racist before. Until the Jena Six incident, people equated burning crosses, not hangman nooses, with racial injustice.

We should ingnore people who hang nooses or burn crosses in their own yards. People who hang nooses in workplaces should be fired or prosecuted if the nooses are meant as a threat to specific individuals.