The Elaine Massacre

In 1919, Elaine, Arkansas, became the site of one of the deadliest racial massacres in U.S. history. Black sharecroppers, fed up with exploitation, gathered to unionize for fair pay. Their meeting was met with violence, leading to days of terror where white mobs and federal troops killed an estimated 100 to 800 Black residents. The aftermath saw over 100 Black individuals arrested, with 12 sentenced to death in sham trials. The NAACP’s intervention eventually overturned these convictions, marking a pivotal moment in civil rights legal history. This isn’t just a story of past horrors—it’s a stark reminder of how justice has been systematically denied to Black communities.