He is now in his 70s and lives just outside the city of Martinsville. ), As far as Hodge-Muse and many others are concerned, the case "was just such an evil miscarriage of justice.". [14], After exhausting the appeals process, with the US Supreme Court twice declining to hear the case, the NAACP and CRC began to appeal to executive offices. ", Hodge-Muse says, "This community does not have a hateful attitude that would lend itself to violence that's not our culture, and I think it speaks well of the black and white community that we have never had that type of meanness.". Virginia had historically convicted and executed numerous black men accused of raping white women; for most of its history, only blacks were sentenced to death for rape. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. Now, They Have Been Pardoned", A Year of History: Martinsville Seven executions remain 'a raw wound' for many, "Seeking Justice For The Martinsville Seven", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Martinsville_Seven&oldid=1137887829, Frank Hairston Jr., age 20, confessed to rape, Booker T. Millner, age 22, said he was present, but did not take part. For a PDF of this 8 x 11, one-sided, flyer, see washingtonspark.files.wordpress.com/2019/12/1950-11-08-ma For more information and related images, see flic.kr/s/aHsjWUExj5. Four of the seven testified at their own trials. Martinsville remained quiet. But, none was selected for any of the seven juries, as the prosecutors rejected all of them on various grounds. August (1992): 461-490; Eric W. Rise, The Martinsville Seven: Race Rape and Capital Punishment (Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1995). A better quality image can be found in the Fight for Racial Justice: the Civil Rights Congress (Gale) that can be accessed online through the D.C. Public Library databases, among other methods. Rudolph McCollum Jr., a former Richmond mayor who is the great-nephew of Francis DeSales Grayson and the nephew of another one of the executed men, Booker T. Millner, told Northam the executions represent "a wound that continues to mar Virginia's history and the efforts to move beyond its dubious past." The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. Each were. Each were tried and sentenced to death within an eight-day period by all-white juries. The trial lasted for eleven days, during which the jury heard testimonies from both sides, including medical evidence of Floyds physical injuries and accounts from black witnesses whom Floyd appealed to for help after the assault. We encourage you all to respect the dead and accord the family heartbroken with the loss of a cherished one, some privacy as you leave a message in the comment session. Suggest Edits Toggle Dropdown. You have permission to edit this article. "The older people all know about it, and it's so hurtful that they don't really want to talk about it. Share. By Tamantha / 08.31.2021 Photo: AFP via Getty Images According to historian Eric W. Rise, this case "demonstrated the power of the southern legal system to enforce codes of racial behavior."[2]. Do you find this information helpful? He sobbed loudly when Northam told the family members he would grant the pardons after meeting with them Tuesday. Eric W. Rise, author of "The Martinsville Seven, Race, Rape and Capital Punishment" and a professor of criminal justice at the University of Delaware, said prospective black jurors were excused for expressing reservations about the death penalty or struck by prosecutors. After a long legal battle led by the NAACP and a grassroots campaign led by the Civil Rights Congress, the seven were executed in 1951 on February 2nd and February 5th. State And Regional Martinsville Film To Be Produced By Charlottesville Activist And Uvas Center For Politics. At the time, all 45 men executed for rape in Virginia since the state began using the electric chair in 1908 were blacks convicted of attacking white women. Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s). Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. After a long legal battle led by the NAACP and a grassroots campaign led by the Civil Rights Congress, the seven were executed in 1951 on February 2nd and February 5th. Hundreds stayed in Richmond for a prayer vigil until the executions took place. "[2] The prosecution did not explicitly discuss race; it argued the case based on the "preservation of community stability, not the protection of southern womanly virtues,"[2] as had formerly been common. The seven men, ranging in age from 18-37 years old, were arrested in 1949 for the reported rape of 32-year-old Ruby Stroud Floyd, a white woman who lived in Martinsville. The young men with spotty employment records but no real criminal history soon became known as the Martinsville Seven. "This is about righting wrongs," Northam said. At age 37, World War II veteran Francis DeSales Grayson was the oldest of the defendants. Here you'll find all collections you've created before. Niggers are HARDWIRED TO SELF-DESTRUCT . Virginias court system repeatedly rejected the NAACPs arguments and the US Supreme Court rejected the case twice without review. She also had abrasions on her elbows, forearms, knees, lower legs and thighs. Martin and the NAACP also agreed to represent the men in an appeal for the Seven with the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. On the evening of January 8, 1949, Ruby Stroud Floyd accused 13 black men of raping her while she passed through a poor African American neighborhood in Martinsville, Virginia. The Civil Rights Congress defended the men originally, and later conducted two marches and other attempts to raise awareness and conduct a public campaign on behalf of their agenda. [8] The day before the youngest of the seven was executed, he said, "God knows I didn't touch that woman and I'll see y'all on the other side. Our deepest condolences and heartfelt prayers are with the family and friends. Why do libtards treat niggers better than they treat themselves? As the final execution dates of Feb. 2 and Feb. 5, 1951, approached the governor's office was flooded with thousands of telegrams, including one from Moscow, asking that the men not be executed. She said that she had been raped at least 13 times. The pardons do not address the guilt or innocence of the men, but Northam said the pardons are an acknowledgement that they did not receive due process and received a "racially-biased death sentence not similarly applied to white defendants.". Fired RPS employee sues school district, alleges misuse of federal funds. He was pronounced dead at 8:12 a.m. Three more executions quickly followed. Include gps location with grave photos where possible. In addition, each of the jury pools for the six separate trials contained some African Americans. All of them were tried by all-white juries. Execution of black teen in 1944 shouldn't have occurred, U.S. judge rules, Man freed from prison, over racial bias in jury selection, will not face 7th murder trial, CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices. The police first arrested Frank Hairston, Jr. and Booker T. Millner, and soon picked up James Luther Hairston, Howard Lee Hairston, John Clabon Taylor, Francis DeSales Grayson, then James Henry Hampton as additional suspects. The Civil Rights Congress pickets the White House January 30, 1951 demanding President Harry Truman stop the execution of the Martinsville 7 seven African American men sentenced to death for the rape of a white woman in Virginia. In some cases, they said that the police had written the confessions, that the formal account varied from a handwritten version, and that they had not fully read the police version when signing and did not recognize that their own accounts had been changed. New York, Today: On January 8, 1949, from the dingy negro slums of Martinville, Virginia, staggered attractive, dark-haired Mrs. Ruby Stroud Floyd (32), shouting that she . [2] The men were executed in early February. On the evening of January 8, 1949, a 32-year-old White woman, Ruby Stroud Floyd accused 13 Black men of raping her while she had gone to a predominantly Black neighborhood in Martinsville . Other demonstrations were held in Washington, D.C. in an attempt to convince President Harry S. Truman to interveneagain to no avail. Efforts by the defense team to change the trial's venue from the Martinsville Circuit Courton the grounds that sensationalist press about the events made a fair trial impossiblewere unsuccessful. Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again. After being questioned by local police officers, the defendants initially confessed to committing or witnessing the crime. Drag images here or select from your computer for Ruby Stroud Floyd memorial. She said her father, her uncle and Hampton's brother visited Hampton at the jail while he was awaiting trial and that Hampton told them they were making him sleep on the cement floor without clothes. Within hours . While Ruby Stroud Floyd was being treated in hospital after the alleged rape, police arrested six suspects, and two days later a seventh. Defense lawyers claimed that the initial confessions were forced by the local sheriff. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. Only one of the accused had a prior criminal record, and most of the men were employed. New York Public Library. All seven men were convicted and sentenced to death within eight days. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. Cause of death Details of the circumstance surrounding our beloved, Ruby Stroud Floyddeath is not public yet, we will share more as we learn. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. Here's everything to know about the Martinsville Seven case: By early 1951, legal strategies to save the Martinsville Seven were exhausted and the NAACP, joined by the Civil Rights Congress (CRC), turned towards a public relations campaign aimed at commuting the mens death sentences. Your donation is fully tax-deductible. After a long legal battle led by the NAACP and a grassroots campaign led by the Civil Rights Congress, the seven were executed in 1951 on February 2nd and February 5th. John S. Battle to grant clemency to no avail. All seven men signed statements admitting they were present during the attack, but they had no access to their parents or attorneys at the time, Rise said. Failed to delete memorial. One telegram from Moscow was signed by "workers in science, literature, the arts," including composers Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev. The mass executions were the largest in Virginia in modern times. In their first appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in 1950, the lawyers argued among other things that the death sentence for rape in Virginia was reserved for blacks. The photographer is unknown. In 1977 the Supreme Court referred to those arguments with respect to rulings in other cases. "Booker T. gave the little colored boy a quarter and told him to go (away)," Hampton told police. Now they've been pardoned | CNN, Shocking moment thief is burned to death by villagers who say he led a violent gang. The preliminary hearing occurred about a month later, and the grand jury two months after that. "I think I touched a nerve. NAACP lawyers argued on appeal that Virginias legal code was hardly race neutral, since whites convicted of rape seldom, if ever received the death penalty. What happened to the white American Ruby Stroud Floyd more than 70 years ago in a black neighborhood in the small town of Martinsville, Virginia, will probably remain unexplained forever. Northam has now granted a total of 604 pardons since taking office in 2018, more than the previous nine governors combined, his administration announced Tuesday. By the next morning, all the men in custody had signed confessions. "We all deserve a criminal justice system that is fair, equal, and gets it rightno matter who you are or what you look like. Tony L. Millner, vice president of the Martinsville NAACP chapter, said he was a child when it happened. [2], The trials were held back to back, each with a separate jury of twelve white men. They should not have been executed," he added. The image is an auction find. Rarely. [2], The NAACP thought that involvement by the CRC in appeals could endanger the defendants both because of their inflammatory tactics and its communist affiliation. 69-year-old suffers stroke in his N.C. home; Realtor showing house leaves him there. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Most of the men were between 18 and 20 years old and worked as laborers in small-scale furniture factories and warehouses. Please if you have any form of concern, suggestions, or query as regards this publication, kindly contact us. The remaining three were electrocuted on February 5. He said none of the men had attorneys present while they were interrogated. I suppose that's how the electric nigglet was found innocent too. Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you. Ralph Northam, left, looks over the. Ruby Stroud Floyd accused thirteen black men of raping her while she passed through a poor black neighborhood in Martinsville, Virginia. Virginia Gov. Rise said that after Battle's clemency rejection, Martin filed a writ of habeas corpus a civil challenge to the death sentences arguing that the seven were denied equal protection under the law guaranteed by the 14th Amendment. "Most of the time, the families, the people who were of age in that era, they talked about it in private homes, in churches and other places and always felt as though it was really a serious injustice. NAACP officials focused national attention to the case, hoping to delay or overturn the death penalty judgment. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. They argued for lesser sentences, but Battle resisted their pleas. / CBS/AP. "The Martinsville Seven were not given adequate due process 'simply for being black,' they were sentenced to death for a crime that a white person would not have been executed for 'simply for being black,' and they were killed, by the Commonwealth, 'simply for being black,'" the advocates wrote in their letter to Northam. The February 10, 1951 national edition of the Afro American headlines the mass execution of the Martinsville 7 in Virginia. The judge ruled that there was no evidence that discrimination was involved in imposing the Martinsville death sentences. Though Governor William Tuck initially agreed to a stay during appellate litigation, by late July 1950, newly elected Governor John S. Battle refused to commute the men's sentences, saying he was horrified by the rapes. 7 Black men were executed for an alleged rape in 1951. [11], The case of the Martinsville Seven was taken up by outside groups, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Civil Rights Congress (CRC). The "Martinsville Seven," as the men became known, were all convicted of raping 32-year-old Ruby Stroud Floyd, a White woman who had gone to a predominantly Black neighborhood in. At the time, rape was a capital offence. The Martinsville 7, seven African American men sentenced to death for the rape of a white woman in Virginia are shown on a flyer published by the Civil Rights Congress in 1950. For more information and other images, see www.flickr.com/photos/washington_area_spark/sets/72157643 Photo by Washington Daily News. In denying appeals to commute the Martinsville 7 death sentences, Virginias Governor John S. Battle said, that the wave of messages that flooded his desks was cosponsored by the Civil Rights Congress and the Communist Party. Year should not be greater than current year. "The Martinsville Seven were not given adequate due process 'simply for being black,' they were sentenced to death for a crime that a white person would not have been executed for 'simply for being black,' and they were killed, by the Commonwealth, 'simply for being black,' " the advocates wrote in their letter to Northam. Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters. While we can't change the past, I hope today's action brings them some small measure of peace. Their petition does not argue that the men were innocent, but says their trials were unfair and the punishment was extreme and unjust. Howard Lee Hairston, age 20, denied having sex with Floyd. You must log in or register to reply here. Try again later. 20072023 Blackpast.org. The sentences were carried out in February 1951, the largest group of executions for crimes against a single victim in state history and one of the largest in U.S. history. Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered on CBC Gem. Floyd identified Grayson and Hampton as her rapists but struggled to identify the others because the attack happened at night. [2], The officials separated the men. Their petition does not argue that the men were innocent, but says their trials were unfair and the punishment was extreme and unjust. Other demonstrations were held in Washington, D.C., New York and elsewhere in an attempt to convince President Harry S. Truman to interveneagain to no avail. 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