IN THE PINES by Grace Elizabeth Hale

This gutsy project examines the author’s family lore that her beloved grandfather held off a mob from lynching Versie Johnson, a black man accused of raping a white woman in post-WW2 rural Mississippi. Deep research probes the alleged crime and lynching circumstances, poking holes in contemporary media accounts of the accused man’s death. The historical record is exhaustively searched to give some humanity to the dead man, Versie Johnson. Factors that resulted in structural white racism and created the conditions for mob rule are examined. In far too many cases, white mobs took justice into their own hands in the form of lynchings, crimes in and of themselves that went unpunished. The author’s search leads her to the conclusion that her grandfather participated in a mob-driven killing, bowing to white supremacist mores of the time. Helpful insights into societal behaviors that institutionalized white dominated culture and governance in the 19th century are plentiful. In particular, white efforts to subvert black voting in the rural South are explored in detail. Drawing on these cultural behaviors and expectations at the time of Versie Johnson’s death, the author seeks to understand, but certainly not condone, her grandfather’s actions. This project feels like a sorely needed telling of the truth that is long overdue – and well worth everyone learning.