Mob violence in the United States is usually associated with the southern lynch mobs that terrorized African Americans during the Jim Crow era. However, the book Forgotten Dead, uncovers a mostly unknown chapter in history, the lynching of persons of Mexican origin or descent.
Dr. William Carrigan, one of the co-authors of the book Forgotten Dead, will visit South Texas College and The University of Texas Pan-American. Carrigan will visit UTPA on March 31 at 5 p.m. and conclude his trip to the Rio Grande Valley at STC’s Pecan Campus Library on April 1 at 6 p.m. STC’s Pecan Campus Library is located at 3201 W. Pecan Blvd in McAllen. Both events are free and open to the public.
“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Carrigan to South Texas and invite our community to attend this event that is so relevant to our area,” STC History Instructor Christopher Davis said. “His presentation will definitely change the way we think of our history.”
For over eight decades lynch mobs murdered hundreds of Mexicans, mostly in the American Southwest. Racial prejudice and economic hardships helped fuel the actions of the mob, and much of the violence happened at a time of tension along the border between the U.S. and Mexico.
The book relates the numerous acts of resistance by Mexicans, including armed self-defense, crusading journalism and lobbying by diplomats who pressured the U.S. to honor its rhetorical commitment to democracy. It also contains the first-ever inventory of Mexican victims of mob violence in the U.S.
The event is part of a Created Equal: America’s Civil Rights Struggle lecture series and is sponsored by the STC History Department, STC Library, UTPA History Department and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
For more information about event at STC, please contact Esther Garcia at 956-872-6485 or via email at egarcia10@southtexascollege.edu, or visit http://library.southtexascollege.edu/blog/.
