August 06, 2024

Aisha Upton-Azzam, assistant professor of sociology, Susquehanna UniversityDid you know that one of the most abhorrent lynchings in U.S. history — that of 14-year-old Emmett Till in 1955 — does not actually meet the definition of lynching, as set forth by sociologist and civil rights activist Robert Zangrando in 1921?

This limited definition of lynching — which defines the act as unlawful murder carried out by three or more people — has led to a significantly undercounted inventory of lynchings in the United States, according to Aisha Upton-Azzam, assistant professor of sociology at Susquehanna University.

“The generally accepted number of documented lynchings in U.S. history stands at about 4,500, depending on the source and the methodology used for counting,” Upton-Azzam said. “These previous inventories are undercounted due to the limited definition of lynching and their data collection process, including the fact that existing inventories have only collected data that could be verified using mainstream newspapers.”

Using the Till lynching as an example, Upton-Azzam said the young man’s murder would not have been considered a lynching under the Zangrando definition because only two individuals were implicated in the crime – not three or more.

Upton-Azzam is trying to amend injustices like this by diving into the investigative files and data collections of the NAACP and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells, as well as reviewing historic Black newspapers and contemporary mainstream news sources to create a comprehensive inventory of lynching in the United States from the start of reconstruction (1863–77) to the last documented case of lynching in 1981.

Student researchers Caelie Bratcher ’25, left, and Landon “Dino” Haynes ’27, right, present their work during at the annual Summer Research Dinner.Upton-Azzam and students Caelie Bratcher ’25, a sociology major from Baldwin, Maryland, and Landon “Dino” Haynes ’27, a double major in psychology and sociology from Mount Joy, Pennsylvania, are also looking to a definition of lynching created by Wells when identifying additional lynchings that might not be included in contemporary accountings. Wells’ definition characterized lynching as a system of “anarchy and outlawry” in which Black people “have been killed in cold blood, without the formality of a judicial trial and legal execution.”

“Wells’ definition opens up space to consider cases like Till’s that would have been thrown out using previous definitions,” Upton-Azzam said.

The professor and her students have also created their own definition of lynching, which is guiding their research efforts:

The killing of a person(s) derived from prejudice(s) from civilians, with the potential aid of officers of the law; for an alleged social transgression, alleged offense, or no offense – whether that be with or without legal trial. These murders may include the congregation of individuals to witness/take part in execution, torture, and/or mutilation of individual(s). These extralegal murders include incidents of mass-murder of individuals in response to alleged social transgressions, alleged offense, or no offense.

“When contemporary mainstream newspapers were reporting on these incidents, they didn’t trust Black people to tell their own stories,” Bratcher said. “When looking at historic Black newspapers, we’re finding names of the victims and follow-up news items on lynchings that were not available in mainstream media.”

Through their preliminary research, students have already identified an additional 1,000 lynchings that are not currently included in existing inventories. And although their research technically ends in 1981, connections can be drawn between past lynchings and police brutality today, Upton-Azzam said. Modern-day cases — Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, who were victims of police brutality or were murdered by white vigilantes – fit into the research team’s more inclusive definition of the lynching and can be acknowledged as such.

“I believe that by shifting away from previous findings and focusing on Wells’ definition of lynching and now our own, as well as the grassroots findings of Black people,” Upton-Azzam said, “we will provide a more honest and accurate inventory that can be used by scholars studying this dark corner of American history.”