What do you think?
Rate this book
Centennial Series of the Association of Former Students
The First Waco Horror: The Lynching of Jesse Washington and the Rise of the NAACP
In 1916, in front of a crowd of ten to fifteen thousand cheering spectators watched as seventeen-year-old Jesse Washington, a retarded black boy, was publicly tortured, lynched, and burned on the town square of Waco, Texas. He had been accused and convicted in a kangaroo court for the rape and murder of a white woman. The city’s mayor and police chief watched Washington’s torture and murder and did nothing. Nearby, a professional photographer took pictures to sell as mementos of that day.
The stark story and gory pictures were soon printed in The Crisis, the monthly magazine of the fledgling NAACP, as part of that organization’s campaign for antilynching legislation. Even in the vast bloodbath of lynchings that washed across the South and Midwest during the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Waco lynching stood out. The NAACP assigned a young white woman, Elisabeth Freeman, to travel to Waco to investigate, and report back. The evidence she gathered and gave to W. E. B. Du Bois provided grist for the efforts of the NAACP to raise national consciousness of the atrocities being committed and to raise funds to lobby antilynching legislation as well.
In the summer of 1916, three disparate forces - a vibrant, growing city bursting with optimism on the blackland prairie of Central Texas, a young woman already tempered in the frontline battles for woman’s suffrage, and a very small organization of grimly determined “progressives” in New York City - collided with each other, with consequences no one could have foreseen. They were brought together irrevocably by the prolonged torture and public murder of Jesse Washington - the atrocity that became known as the Waco Horror.
Drawing on extensive research in the national files of the NAACP, local newspapers and archives, and interviews with the descendants of participants in the events of that day, Patricia Bernstein has reconstructed the details of not only the crime but also its aftermath. She has charted the ways the story affected the development of the NAACP and especially the eventual success of its antilynching campaign. She searches for answers to the questions of how participating in such violence affected the lives of the mob leaders, the city officials who stood by passively, and the community that found itself capable of such abject behavior.
The stark story and gory pictures were soon printed in The Crisis, the monthly magazine of the fledgling NAACP, as part of that organization’s campaign for antilynching legislation. Even in the vast bloodbath of lynchings that washed across the South and Midwest during the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Waco lynching stood out. The NAACP assigned a young white woman, Elisabeth Freeman, to travel to Waco to investigate, and report back. The evidence she gathered and gave to W. E. B. Du Bois provided grist for the efforts of the NAACP to raise national consciousness of the atrocities being committed and to raise funds to lobby antilynching legislation as well.
In the summer of 1916, three disparate forces - a vibrant, growing city bursting with optimism on the blackland prairie of Central Texas, a young woman already tempered in the frontline battles for woman’s suffrage, and a very small organization of grimly determined “progressives” in New York City - collided with each other, with consequences no one could have foreseen. They were brought together irrevocably by the prolonged torture and public murder of Jesse Washington - the atrocity that became known as the Waco Horror.
Drawing on extensive research in the national files of the NAACP, local newspapers and archives, and interviews with the descendants of participants in the events of that day, Patricia Bernstein has reconstructed the details of not only the crime but also its aftermath. She has charted the ways the story affected the development of the NAACP and especially the eventual success of its antilynching campaign. She searches for answers to the questions of how participating in such violence affected the lives of the mob leaders, the city officials who stood by passively, and the community that found itself capable of such abject behavior.
- GenresHistoryNonfictionCrime
264 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2005
8 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Patricia Bernstein
4 books78 followers After earning a Degree of Distinction in American Studies from Smith College, Patricia Bernstein founded her public relations agency in Houston.
In 2018, her third book was named a Finalist for an award from the Texas Institute of Letters. The Austin American Statesman named the book to a list of 53 of the best books ever written about Texas. Patricia's nonfiction is previously published by Simon & Schuster and Texas A&M University Press.
A Noble Cunning is her debut novel and was the winner in the American Book Fest category of Religious Fiction and a finalist in the categories of Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction and Inspirational Fiction.
Today Patricia lives in Houston with her husband, journalist Alan Bernstein, where she pursues another great artistic love, singing with Opera in the Heights and other organizations. She also basks in the glory of her three amazing daughters.
In 2018, her third book was named a Finalist for an award from the Texas Institute of Letters. The Austin American Statesman named the book to a list of 53 of the best books ever written about Texas. Patricia's nonfiction is previously published by Simon & Schuster and Texas A&M University Press.
A Noble Cunning is her debut novel and was the winner in the American Book Fest category of Religious Fiction and a finalist in the categories of Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction and Inspirational Fiction.
Today Patricia lives in Houston with her husband, journalist Alan Bernstein, where she pursues another great artistic love, singing with Opera in the Heights and other organizations. She also basks in the glory of her three amazing daughters.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 23, 2016
A good example of how you can make something good come out of something bad. The lynching of Jesse Washington gave the newborn NAACP, then one of dozens of struggling equal-rights organizations around the country, enough traction to become a major force for good in the country. But it sure didn't bring back poor Jesse. There are some grisly photos in here; the book is not for readers with weak stomachs.
June 4, 2021
This is a disturbing book of a horror that occurred in Waco, Texas. The first 1/3 of the book provides a lot of background that I found a bit hard to pay attention to. But the account that happened and a few other examples was horrifying.
Despite the horror, I feel that it's written without emotion. It's a bit dry despite the context. I feel like if I read this story by someone else, I would experience a different feel of the story.
Despite the horror, I feel that it's written without emotion. It's a bit dry despite the context. I feel like if I read this story by someone else, I would experience a different feel of the story.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews