In a public address, journalist and reformer Ida B. Wells-Barnett made the following observation:
"The determination to run the Afro-American out of the white man's country and to make him a hand-to-mouth laborer, with no rights which a white man is bound to respect, is the real motive of the lyncher."
Based on this statement, which of the following best describes what Wells-Barnett identified as the primary purpose of lynching?
- ATo protect Southern communities from sudden increases in violent crime
- BTo reform the Southern judicial system by speeding up criminal trials
- To keep African Americans in a state of economic subjugation and social inferiorityAnswer
- DTo force African Americans to leave the United States and emigrate to West Africa
Answer
To keep African Americans in a state of economic subjugation and social inferiority
The correct answer is correct because Wells-Barnett explicitly states that the primary motive of the lyncher is to force African Americans into dependency as 'hand-to-mouth' laborers with no recognized rights, thereby enforcing economic subjugation and white supremacy.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Ida B. Wells-Barnett analyzed racial terror and lynching as tools designed to enforce economic subordination and preserve white supremacy, refuting the false pretexts of criminal behavior widely circulated by white southerners.