1. Fredrickson’s article on the lynching of James Byrd brings a historical perspective to play, when he describes the reactions of the townspeople now, versus how such an incident would be viewed during the height of Jim Crow. In his writing, it is pointed out that racial hatred can still flare up, even if a town is “not an especially racist place” (pp. 136). As the article goes, James Byrd was tied to the back of a truck, and dragged for three miles, killed only when he suffered the loss of his arm and head. The town of Jasper, Texas, with its black mayor, and a government composed somewhat equally of both races, sentenced the main perpetrator, King, with death. The articles asserts that this is progress against racial segregation, as King would be “the first white to be…show more content… Both articles regarding James Byrd agree on the point that, though the men responsible for the lynching of James Byrd were brought to trial and convicted, this does not mean that racism is entirely eradicated. In fact, the ubiquitous opinion is that the end to racism and black segregation cannot only stem from a bill being passed, or a miracle incident, but, as Rushdy declares, “Supplemented by a set of measures that...makes efforts to alter the causes and conditions that breed hate crimes” (pp. 28). Fredrickson supports this, describing how simply passing bills and not taking the time to properly enforce them would result in perhaps more damage, or no change at all (pp. 137). However, while Rushdy focused his article on the fact that the overall response to the James Byrd lynching was to argue back and forth about hate-crime legislation, Fredrickson contemplated the general reaction of the townspeople at the time of the murder. His consensus was that unlike in the past where white supremacists groups gained incredible support for lynching, the particular case of James Byrd absolutely appalled Jasper, Texas. The townspeople were set upon convicting the villains, and much less on
