McCain Supporter Hangs Obama Effigy From a Tree

Hat Tip to The Villager

McCain supporter Mike Lunsford recently hung an Obama Effigy from a Tree at his home in Fairfield Ohio. The image was apparently hung right above the McCain/Palin signs in his yard. And he seems to be very proud of his work. See post and image from the Blog Electronic Village.

Is this what we should look forward to for the next 4 years? What are we in for? Racial incidents and hate crimes every few weeks, aimed at the President- and by extension- aimed at all Black Americans? I hope not. But this is the kind of fire that John Lewis warned the McCain campaign not to play with. Why? Because the hate rallies encourage people like Lunsford (who McCain/Palin are aware exists within their constituency). McCain has asked Obama to repudiate comments of others who happened to be raising legitimate issues, therefore requiring no repudiation. But here you have a case.…really a hate crime, where a Presidential candidate and U.S. Senator is hung in effigy from a tree for motives that the suspect has admitted are based on race. Will John McCain repudiate the actions of one of his supporters? I won’t hold my breath waiting…and neither should anyone else.

The hate, sickness and prejudice are already in the minds of some of these diehard McCain/Palin supporters (hardcore Republicans). So it doesn’t take much encouragement to stir up the flames of their hatred. This is why McCain and Palin have been so irresponsible. If they don’t understand basic things about their own Country, about its history, and about their own people, then what else don’t they understand? It just seems so fundamental to me, so how could a Presidential candidate not understand the facts and nuances of American culture…

But I think they do have an understanding of this….if they didn’t, they wouldn’t be involved in efforts to exploit the racial divide with their hateful Republican Party Convention, hateful rallies, and with their whisper campaigns and robo calls. They understand it.… They understand it when it benefits them; their entire campaign over the last 2 months has been all about dividing the Country based on race, class, and culture. But when they are held to account for their behavior they suddenly get amnesia and forget American history. Suddenly their actions are innocent and they go right into this plausible deniability routine that I have seen so often.

A Brief Note On Lynching (as I know it)

The history of Lynching in the U.S. is one of the indelible stains on this Country. For much of the 19th and 20th Centuries, up until the 1960's, lynching was a fairly common practice in this Country. It was responsible for the deaths of thousands of men, women and children, of various races - white, native American, and Black. Often this practice took the place of judge and jury. But it was especially brutal when it was used against Blacks, many of whom weren't guilty of anything other than being Black in America.

The Lynchings of Blacks in this Country became a normal part of the American Culture....so much so that they were often seen as social gathering events, such as picnics and Barbecues. These social events were often part of lynching parties. Some of these events involved the burning or mutilation of bodies....and one really disturbing fact is that children were often in attendance. HORRIBLE!

These events were used to control Black populations. Whites used highly publicized lynchings as a way to make an example out of the victim and to scare others into remaining obedient... They were also warnings to Blacks not to cross certain social lines.

As you might imagine, local officials (government administrators, police, etc) were often involved in these brutal killings. How else could these lynchings happen in public...often in broad daylight, in front of dozens and sometimes hundreds of people? The suspects involved in these killings seldom faced justice.

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Related Links

This Isn't The First Time An Obama Effigy Has Been Symbolically Lynched

Bill O'Reilly's Inappropriate Comments About Michelle Obama

FBI Re-examines a 1946 lynching case - also see other links on the history of Lynching

Other Useful Links On The History of Lynching

Background On Lynchings

Without Sanctuary

More Background On Lynching

AmericanLynching.com

Duluth Lynchings

Lynching in Texas