Lynching of William "Froggie" James

Lynching of William "Froggie" James
The lynching of James on November 11, 1909
Date	November 11, 1909 (1909-11-11)
Location	Cairo, Illinois, United States
Participants	Residents of Cairo, Illinois
Deaths	2 (William James and Henry Salzner)

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Historical background Reconstruction era Voter suppression Disfranchisement Redeemers Compromise of 1877 Jim Crow laws Segregation Anti-miscegenation laws Convict leasing
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Lynchings Andrew Richards Michael Green Nevlin Porter and Johnson Spencer Eliza Woods Amos Miller George Meadows Joe Vermillion Jim Taylor Joe Coe People's Grocery Ephraim Grizzard Alfred Blount Samuel J. Bush Stephen Williams Frazier B. Baker and Julia Baker John Henry James Sam Hose George Ward David Wyatt Marie Thompson Watkinsville Ed Johnson William Burns Walker family William James Laura and L. D. Nelson King Johnson John Evans Jesse Washington Newberry Six Anthony Crawford Ell Persons Jim McIlherron George Taylor John Hartfield 1920 Duluth James Harvey and Joe Jordan Joe Pullen
Massacres and riots Opelousas massacre Rock Springs massacre Thibodaux massacre Spring Valley Race Riot of 1895 Phoenix election riot Wilmington insurrection of 1898 Pana riot Robert Charles riots Evansville race riot Atlanta Massacre of 1906 Springfield race riot of 1908 Johnson–Jeffries riots 1912 racial conflict in Forsyth County 1917 Chester race riot East St. Louis riots Elaine massacre Red Summer Chicago race riot of 1919 Washington race riot of 1919 Ocoee massacre Tulsa race massacre Perry race riot Rosewood massacre
Reactions Anti-lynching movement Atlanta Compromise Back to Africa movement Exodusters movement Great Migration Niagara Movement NAACP Silent Parade
Related topics Black genocide Civil rights movement (1865–1896) Civil rights movement (1896–1954) Mass racial violence in the United States

William "Froggie" James, an African-American man, was lynched and mutilated on November 11, 1909, by a mob in Cairo, Illinois after he was charged with the rape and murder of 23-year-old shop clerk, Anna Pelley.

James was denied due process and killed before the police investigation had been completed. The townspeople of Cairo formed a mob and murdered him. A white prisoner, Henry Salzner, was also murdered by the mob. He was charged with the murder of his wife. The lynching of James drew crowds of thousands, and led the Illinois State Legislature to pass a series of anti-lynch and anti-mob laws that led to major reforms throughout the Midwest involving the sentencing and protections for African American people in Illinois. His lynching also mobilized advocacy groups in the state to push for more legal protections of African-American communities in smaller towns.