July 2008    

Colfax Massacre: The Untold Story of Black Power, White Terror, and the Death of Reconstruction Author: LeeAnna Keith Publisher: Oxford University Press $24.95 Cloth (219 p.) ISBN: 9780195310269 B&T     MAJORS      YBP "The talk around their campfires was of genocide. Many expressed the strong conviction that the seizure of the Colfax courthouse was the first step in a war of conquest to eradicate the white race" (p. 90) The turmoil after the Civil War is a period in American history that is overlooked too often. Slavery had indeed ended, but many don't know of the social and political struggles that the North and South continued to battle for years after the war ended. The Confederacy may have been defeated but the southern states still were not supportive of the Union. The North took responsibility for the South and sent politicians to southern states in hopes of transitioning the confederate culture into one strong united America. This resulted in disputed elections, political corruption, and even violence. In The Colfax Massacre, LeeAnna Keith outlines one of the more powerful events that one community experienced during reconstruction. After one April Sunday in 1873, more than one hundred African Americans would be dead, killed by mostly white supremacists. It was a massacre perpetrated by townspeople against their own militia. Armed Klansmen fought the African American Militia occupying a courthouse. Men on each side were fighting for their own freedom and political rights with no thoughts of compromise. Keith argues that the result ended reconstruction. She begins her book by explaining the issues of reconstruction. She outlines President Grant's motives and attempts at reforming the South. The language she uses in intended for the general reader, but she goes into detail in explaining motivations. She also explores the violent and often racist responses by southerners towards African Americans and sympathizing northerners. During the 1870's, Louisiana was one of the toughest states for the plan of rehabilitating the South. Many southerners were furious that politicians from the North were imposing their political agenda onto the local way of life. African Americans were freed from slavery and tried to become truly free men and women of America. Farming land was supposed to be rented to them, but any southerner who did so was shunned or even worse, killed. Republicans from the north were intimidated and elections were rigged so the enforcement of rights could not be gained. Members of White Power groups such as the Ku Klux Klan were treated as heroes around the community. If laws were passed, white terror groups would go to any means to make sure that they were not enforced. Laws were passed that allowed African Americans the right to vote, but that doesn't mean that it would happen, especially to many in Colfax in 1873. On a Sunday morning members of the Colfax militia were occupying the courthouse in town to protest their inability to vote. Armed men surrounded the courthouse and a gun battle ensued. Many tried to run but were shot trying to escape. After two hours of fighting, the majority of militia in and around the courthouse were dead; only four of the attackers were killed. After the shooting ended, townspeople entered the courthouse to finish off the wounded or collect prisoners. One man noted that almost all of the men had three to twelve wounds. Some feared reprisals and others wanted revenge so an order was issued to execute all prisoners. The North was outraged and men were arrested. However, differing opinions on how many men should be tried, and for what crimes, led to trouble. The prosecution focused on the actual murders rather than the racial motivations and violated constitutional rights of the victims. During the trial, many of the perpetrators and townspeople intimidated witnesses, judges, and jurors by physical violence. In the end, justice was tarnished as guilty men walked free. Keith's writing is excellent and keeps the reader informed. Although the massacre only lasted one day, she explains the dramatic impact that it had on reconstruction. Her argument is compelling and her explanations of the failure of reconstruction are strong. This would be an excellent book for anyone who wanted to know about the post civil-war South and the failure of reconstruction. -- Benjamin Baker Published by YBP Library Services 999 Maple St., Contoocook, NH 03229 USA v: 800.258.3774   f: 603.746.5628 w: www.ybp.com   e: academia@ybp.com All rights reserved.