It was 1868, and Black leaders had been elected to office for the first time in U.S. history. These leaders were eager to ensure our communities would prosper. Black Americans turned out in droves, supporting candidates and exercising our rights as citizens. But all was not well.
Still sour about losing the Civil War, former Confederate soldiers and Klansmen resorted to white terrorism. Terrified by the display of Black voting power, they wanted to scare and dehumanize Black citizens. But even their violence didn’t stop us, so they tried another approach.
They sent an anonymous handwritten note to Davie Jeems, a newly elected Black sheriff, demanding that he resign or face consequences from the KKK. Riddled with poor grammar and horrendous spelling errors, the document demeaned Weems and claimed to be the work of a Confederate ghost.
The back of the letter informed Jeems that similar letters were sent to other Black leaders and community members. Despite this, our power kept growing until voter suppression ate away at our progress. Poll taxes, literacy tests, and local regulations made Black civic participation harder.
The 2024 election season saw the Black community turn out in large numbers, and the racist texts are nothing more than an old trick from a raggedy playbook. And now, just as back then, we won’t stop until we achieve liberation.