"East St.Louis Illinois" ( July 2,1917)

The city was the scene of one of the bloodiest race riots in the 20 century.Racial tensions began to increase in February 1917 when 470 African American workers were hired to replace white workers who had gone on strike against the Alumininum Ore Company.
The violence started on May 28th,1917,shortly after a city council was called.Angry white workers lodged formal complaints against African American migrations to the Mayor of East St.Louis.After the meeting had ended,news of an attempted robbery of a white man by armed African American man began to circulate through the city.
As a result of the news,white mobs formed and rampaged through downtown,beating all African Americans who were found.The mobs also stopped trolleys and streetcars,pulling African Americans passengers out and beating them on the streets and sidewalks.Illinois Governor Frank O.Lowden eventually called the National Guard to quell the violence,and the mobs slowly dispersed.The May 28th disturbances were only a prelude to the violence that erupted on July 2,1917,the violence resumed.Men,Women,and  children were beaten and shot to death.Around six that evening,white mobs began to set fire to the homes of African American residents.Residents had to choose between had to choose between burning alive in their homes,or run out of the burning houses,only to  be met by gunfire.In other parts of the city,
white mobs began to lynch African Americans against the backdrop of burning buildings.As darkness came and the National Guard returned,the violence began to wane,it did not come to a complete stop.
In response to the rioting,the NAACP sent W.E.B.DuBois and Martha Gruening to investigate the incident.They compiled a report entitled "Massacre at East St.Louis,"which was published  in the NAACP'S The Crisis.The NAACP also staged a silent protest march in New York in response to the violence.Thousands of well-dressed African Americans marched down the street Fifth Avenue,showing their concern about the events in East St.Louis.
The University Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) also responded to the violence.
On July 8th,1917,UNIA's President Marcus Garvey said "This is a crime against the laws of humanity;is a crime against the laws of the nation is a crime against Nature,and a crime against the God of  all mankind.He also believed that the entire riot was part of a larger conspiracy against African Americans who migrated North in search of a better life;"The whole thing,my friends,is a bloody farce,and that the police and soldiers did nothing to stem the murder thrist of the mob is a conspiracy on the part of the civil authorities to condone the facts of the white mob against Negroes."
A year after the riot,a Special Committee formed by the United States House of Representatives launched an investigation into police actions during the East St.Louis Riots,revealing often fled from the scenes of murder and arson.Some even fled from stationhouses and refused to answer calls for help.The investigation resulted in the indictment of several members of the East St.Louis police force.