Lynching of Joe Smith

Joe Smith was an African-American man who was lynched by a mob in Yazoo City, Mississippi, on July 7, 1927.^[1]

The Decatur Daily reported that Joe Smith attempted to "attack" a "young white girl" on July 6, and when discovered by the father, used the girl as a shield to protect himself from the father's gun. Smith was captured and "spirited away" by a group of men after the girl had identified him; Sheriff W. T. Shirley and his deputies attempted to find him, but said he was likely to be lynched. Soon after, the bullet-riddled body was found hanging from a tree, some 17 miles (27 km) from Yazoo City.^[2]

John R. Steelman, who wrote his PhD dissertation on "mob action in the South", listed Joe Smith as one of the cases, and phrased it thus: "Joe Smith is alleged to have 'attempted to attack a young white girl'. On July 7 his body, 'full of hot lead', was found hanging to the limb of a tree."^[3]

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32°51′23″N 90°24′27″W / 32.85639°N 90.40750°W / 32.85639; -90.40750

This page was last edited on 1 May 2023, at 15:17