Fire in a Canebrake: The Last Mass Lynching in America [ペーパーバック]

Laura Wexler's "Fire in a Canebrake" in quite simply the best book, hands-down (fiction or non-fiction) that I've read in a decade. It's a moving, thoroughly researched, brave, and gorgeously written book that, although seemily focused on post-war rural Georgia, takes us into the heart of *today's* American South, where the secrets of the bloody past lie still and hidden in the hearts of living blacks and whites alike. Wexler's account of the lynching of four men and women in the late 40's and the aftermath of that lynching brings to light new and unilluminated facts: that a white so-called witness to the lynching couldn't have seen it at all, that the good people of Monroe, Georgia know a whole lot more than they dare say, and that even the FBI, try as they might to solve the case on a President's orders, commited in their inquiry a fatal and irrevocable sin of omission. A daring, startling piece of research; line-to-line, a stunningly written sequence of entirely footnoted scenes. Here is a new, unafraid voice, Laura Welxer's, and her book is a loud and brave addition to our current literature and knowledge about the way that race keeps us all, in the end, far too quiet.

The term, "Fire in a Canebrake", is a phrase that Walton County, Georgia residents used to describe the sounds of the fatal gunshots that commenced the last mass lynching in America; it is also the title of Laura Wexler's historical account of the Moore's Ford lynching where four blacks were murdered in late July 1946. The novel painstakingly details the "who, what, when, where and why" of the horrific crime and is supported by interviews, FBI reports, and other detailed documentation.

Wexler takes us back to the beginning when a black man, Roger Malcolm, stabs a white man, Barnett Hester, for allegedly having an affair with his common law wife, Dorothy. As Barnett lingers near death, Roger sits in jail counting his days left on earth. Eleven days later when Barnett recovers, Roger is then set free when his bail is posted by Loy Harrison, a wealthy landowner and landlord to George Dorsey (Dorothy's older brother) and his common law wife, Mae Murray. It is returning home from the jail that Roger, Dorothy, George, and Mae are dragged from Loy's car by an angry mob of white men and are murdered in cold blood. Loy claims he did not and could not recognize any of the attackers which was why his life was spared on that fateful day....and so the lying begins and never seems to end.

For years, the NAACP, FBI, Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), and local law enforcement conduct their investigations, interrogations, and examinations only to arrive at no convictions. It is only in 1991, when an "eyewitness" steps forward to tell his story that there appears to be a slither of hope for justice. However, hope fades as holes and contradictions run rampant in his testimony as well; and unfortunately by the early 1990's all of the suspected perpetrators and potential corroborating witnesses are deceased. It appears that the leads had literally died out and one wonders if justice will ever be served.

The author does an excellent job of "peeling back the layers" to set the stage for the story and expertly blends in the national and state political agendas that influenced the course of events surrounding the lynching. By doing so, the reader understands the history of the rural Georgian townships where the story plays out, the role of the key witnesses including their family and criminal backgrounds, public displays of bigotry and drunkenness. She also shares the political tactics of the day used to deny blacks of their Civil Rights and protection under Federal law, numerous contradictions in the witness's statements/alibis/affidavits, and lack of follow-up and missed opportunities by law officials. The handling of the case by the investigators from beginning to end is totally unbelievable by today's standards, but what is moreso shocking is the blatant racism, hatred, and wantonness of the townsfolk toward an atrocity such as this.

This reader ran a myriad of emotions while reading the novel -- first, frustration in that no perpetrators were ever brought to justice and nor was anyone ever held accountable for these heinous crimes -- a fact that is unfortunately recurrent in so many lynching cases. Secondly, anger and sadness when reading about the intimidation and threats against local blacks as well as the breakdown and separation of the victim's families in the aftermath of the lynching. The murders only exacerbated their wretched existence as poor, undereducated sharecroppers. The author's skill in conveying their daily living conditions and lifestyle using census statistics and first hand accounts was outstanding and heartbreaking.

This book is a page-turner! Although Oprah, Dateline, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution have covered this story, Wexler adds a twist: her words breathe life into the pages and add color to the black and white photos in the book; she presents the evidence in such a way to allow readers to draw their own conclusions. Hats off to Ms. Wexler for her perseverance and dedication to finding truth. Well done!

Phyllis
APOOO BookClub, The Nubian Circle Book Club

Laura Wexler's "Fire in a Canebrake" is a highly important work. Carefully researched and masterfully written, it will undoubtedly remain the definitive work on the Moore's Ford lynching for years to come. Wexler's vivid account has all the elements of a great novel. But, alas, this is the true story of four African-American lynching victims, shot dead in the prime of life by a mob of mad men on the Walton County bank of the Apalachee River about nine miles from the town of Monroe, Georgia, during the afternoon of 25 July 1946. Wexler never allows her reader to forget them. After more than fifty years, a veil of lies yet covered the facts of the Moore's Ford lynching and it was yet stuck fast to the face of evil. Those who knew the truth about the lynching would never tell. Nevertheless, Wexler tenaciously picked away the rotting veil of lies. Beneath it, one can now see a mourning veil stained with tears. Wexler did not find a direct link between the Ku Klux Klan and the Moore's Ford lynching; however, FBI documents confirm that Loy Harrison and his lawyer, James Willie Arnold, were working together to impede the FBI's investigation of the Moore's Ford lynching. Both men, Loy Harrison and James Willie Arnold, were in fact active members of the Ku Klux Klan, Klavern No.5 of Athens and Bogart, Georgia, where James Willie Arnold held the high Klan office of Grand Titan. Arnold was a large land owner in Oconee County, as was Loy Harrison, and he lived quite near the Moore's Ford community. As to the important question of the Klan being active in Walton and Oconee counties at the time of the lynching, Stetson Kennedy, alas, not mentioned by Wexler, was present at a meeting of Klavern No.1, 198 1/2 Whitehall Street, Atlanta, Georgia, when the Imperial Wizard reminded those present that it was "the Klan's No.1 political job" to elect Eugene Talmadge Governor of Georgia. The Imperial Wizard then reported "that our goal of an active Klavern in each of Georgia's 159 counties, to ensure a Talmadge victory at the polls, has already been realized!" Hence, there were indeed active Klaverns in Walton and Oconee counties at the time of the Moore's Ford lynching. According to Klan protocol, it would appear highly unlikely that Loy Harrison, or any other member of the Klan, could have been present at the lynching without the approval of Dr. Samuel Green, Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan. Wexler does not forsee any justice in the Moore's Ford lynching case; however, there are different forms and degrees of justice in such cases and, perhaps, the first step on the long road to final justice in this case is her own excellent work. Alas, the children of those who were present and took part in the Moore's Ford lynching must learn to live with the awful facts, just as Roger Malcolm's son, the Rev. Roger Malcolm Hayes, has had to do. And there is Divine Justice: the hateful men who murdered Roger and Dorothy Malcolm and George and Mae Dorsey in cold blood--indeed, all who hate--will never see The Beautiful City of God, which is indeed The Beautiful City of LOVE. Finally, Georgia and Walton County ought to consider the children of the Moore's Ford victims in the same light as the state of Florida did in the Rosewood lynching case. Laura Wexler's "Fire in a Canebrake" is a powerful work. This is not the last we shall hear of Laura Wexler, nor is this the last we shall hear of the Moore's Ford lynching.