The Duluth, Minnesota lynchings of three black men accused of raping a white woman (Elias Clayton, Elmer Jackson, and Isaac McGhie) took place on June 15, 1920 (Minnesota Historical Society, 1). Along with three other blacks working in various capacities with a traveling circus performing in Duluth at the time, these young men were arrested following an accusation of rape by Irene Tusken and her friend, James Sullivan. Though an examination of Tusken by a physician revealed no physical signs of rape or assault, the blacks were arrested and later on the same day, a white mob of somewhere between 1,000 and 10,000 people removed the men from jail, beat them, and lynched three of them (Minnesota Historical Society, 2).
Prior to reading the text and reviewing online materials regarding this incident, I knew little about this tragedy. I suspect that the crime is not better known in Minnesota because it is particularly heinous and because it represents an ugly episode in Minnesota history that many would like to simply forget. Additionally, I suspect that those individuals who either directly participated in the crime or allowed it to go forward have attempted to downplay their participation while focusing blame on the victims of the lynching.
In 1920, race relations in the United States were strained. Though technically equal, blacks were regarded by many white Americans as inferior people and as potentially dangerous. The Minnesota Historical Society (2) stated that when the mob approached the Duluth jail, the police had been ordered not to fire on the mob and this essentially allowed the mob to take control of the prisoners and to proceed with beating and then hanging them.
The Clayton Jackson McGhie Memorial Organization (1) says that a prevalent attitude at the time was that the blacks who were lynched "was just niggers," suggesting that their deaths were relatively meaningless and that they did not enjoy the ri...