Terrorism in Philadelphia: White Mob Attacks & Police Brutality Against Black Americans
Is this a piece on current events? No, it is not. Is this a piece that is meant to critique both misrepresentations in the media and the role of the historiography when it comes to race? Yes.
On July 26, 1918, a white mob surrounded Adella Bond's new home in a predominantly white South Philadelphia neighborhood. Fearing for her safety, after someone broke her window with a rock, she fired a pistol into the air to summon aid from the police. One of the terrorists, Joseph Kelly, was accidentally injured by the blast – sparking the beginning of what most historians have described as the 1918 "Race Riots" of Philadelphia.
The term "race riot" (intentionally) obscures the power dynamics of such events, playing up the supposedly objective historical interpretation of what was, in fact, racial terrorism. Angry white mob after angry white mob descended upon individual Black Philadelphians over the span of four days. Fueled by a superiority complex, these white attackers intimidated, falsely accused, beat, shot, restrained, and attempted to lynch Black people – all without reproach or formal prosecution.
Indeed, one man named William Box was arrested by police for acting in self-defense. Another man named Riley Bullock was beaten and shot while in police custody – after which the offenders staged a coverup that placed the blame on another Black prisoner. These same officers beat another man named Preston Lewis so badly that he had to be taken to the hospital – then continued beating him only until other officers arrived to remove them. After the "riots," sixty Black Americans and only three whites had been arrested.
During these events, false news reports of secret Black arsenals fanned the flames of white male aggression. Newspapers relied on tired tropes of Black "hoodlums" and "vicious brute[s]" to justify white supremacist ideology. These atrocities did serve as a rallying cry for the Black Philadelphian community, especially on issues like police brutality. New citizens committees were formed, such as the Colored Protective Association, while other organizations, such as the local NAACP branch, renewed their fight for racial justice.
Good perspective.
The use of the term "Race Riot" was challenged at the time by the editors of Philadelphia Tribune, the city's African-American owned newspaper:
I wonder how much more we might learn from the Tribune's purposeful choices of words and terms. Or from the many word relevant choices make by the (Caucasian) establishment newspapers.
In light of all the rioting on 29th and Federal, I'm wondering where the white residents of the Seventh Ward stood? That neighborhood was historically mixed, and their were familial relationships. Are there more recent studies beyond Du Bois' work that document this?
Thank you for sharing this wonderful primary source!
Nice post! I appreciate the strong language like racial terrorism and White terrorists. Unfortunately, these terms usually gets watered down. When you actually call it what it is, then, as you said, we see more clearly the larger power dynamics.
Indeed! Thanks a lot.
Great post and great reflection.
Thank you!
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STOPThanks!
I'm glad you openly grappled with the term "race riot." I mentioned the riots in my post as well and tried to clearly explain the white aggression and fear that started the mob, but failed to explain the futility of the term. I really like how you made it central to this story!
Thanks a bunch!