Blog question #4

It is not possible to watch the video, Without Sanctuary and not have an overwhelming feeling of disgust and repulsion. How could people do this? I can not understand how lynching could have ever been tolerated.What a very dark period in our country's history that leaves me with a sense of shame. I knew lynching existed. I've read about it and seen images on televison. I did not know that it was such a spectacle which attracted crowds. That was the most shocking knowledge for me, and that pictures such as these even exist. Painter tells us in Creating Black Americans that lynchings were staged for spectators in order to not only punish, but to create intimidation. Children were also part of the crowd watching. I also was not aware that women were the victims of lynching. It had always been justified to prevent or punish black men accused of raping white women. James Allen attempts to change these pictures of African/Americans from anonymous victims to people, when he names them and imagines what they might have done while alive. His story attempts to give sanctuary after death to them.