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 Martinsville, Virginia, on January 8, 1949, to collect money for clothes she had sold. Despite the letter-writing campaigns, editorials, and local vigils, newly-installed Virginia Governor John S. Battle refused clemency. The seven executed were all workers. Another, from China, called the sentence a "barbaric" example of American "fascist hooliganism". "This is about righting wrongs," Northam said. Martinsville remained quiet. A physician who treated Floyd after the attack testified that she suffered a swollen lip, scratches on the back of her neck, the back of her right chest and on her buttocks. Courtesy of the D.C. Public Library Washington Star Collection Washington Post. The Martinsville 7, seven African American men sentenced to death for the rape of a white woman in Virginia are shown in a group photograph while in prison in 1950. 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. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. Try again later. She passed four men at the railroad tracks and continued into the neighborhood, where she was later assaulted by some of those four and other men. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, 41, and Brandy Washington tied the knot last week, a year after the couple got engaged. In May, Northamannounced new steps to streamline the pardon process, including increased staff and a new petition portal that allows electronic tracking submission and tracking of pardon requests, CBS affiliate WDBJ reported. Ruby Stroud Floyd accused thirteen black men of raping her while she passed through a poor black neighborhood in Martinsville, Virginia. 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. 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. "We all deserve a criminal justice system that is fair, equal, and gets it rightno matter who you are or what you look like. All admitted to being present at the crime, including Joe Hampton, although not all took part in rape. The Library of Virginia has the letter from the lawyer, Martin, asking for execution data. On January 31, a mass demonstration of over 400 took place in Richmond to demand a halt to the planned executions despite the virulent racist opposition of many white supremacists. He wept when Northam announced he would pardon the men. Martin and his uncle later testified that the uncle warned Floyd not to make the trip in the dark. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? Tony L. Millner, vice president of the Martinsville NAACP chapter, said he was a child when it happened. The shortest was little more than half an hour. Required fields are marked *. There were no black jurors because the prosecution vetoed all potential black jurors. In a news release, Northam said the pardons were not about whether the men were guilty, but it was "recognition from the Commonwealth" that the men did not receive adequate due process. Three days later, the remaining three were also electrocuted. [4] Authorities showed increased professional conduct and procedures since the controversial arrest and execution of Odell Waller during World War II (he was initially represented at trial by the Trotskyite Revolutionary Workers League and ultimately executed).[5]. In December, advocates and descendants of the men asked Northam to issue posthumous pardons. The mass executions were the largest in Virginia in modern times. Any monthly plan. We have set your language to All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. "These men were executed because they were Black, and that's not right," Northam said. 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. Judge Kennon C. Whittle of the Martinsville Circuit Court granted requests to hold individual trials. The CRC focused on producing pamphlets and publicity for outside campaigns to raise awareness about the case, including internationally, and hoped to put pressure on government officials. "[6], In December 2020, the Martinsville 7 Project asked Virginia Governor Ralph Northam to pardon the Martinsville Seven posthumously and issue an apology. Appeals to the Virginia and U.S. supreme courts followed but also failed. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. Virginia Gov. Add to your scrapbook. "The older people all know about it, and it's so hurtful that they don't really want to talk about it. All Rights Reserved. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password. Failed to report flower. Their petition does not argue that the men were innocent, but says their trials were unfair and the punishment was extreme and unjust. They were quickly tried in six separate trials (two agreed to be tried together), and each was convicted and sentenced to death. While the NAACP focused on racial equality as part of Cold War American democratic visions, CRC mobilized left-based organizations and newspapers from around the world to pressure state and national officials to intervene. First arrested for the crime was Frank Hairston, Jr. and Booker T. Millner, and soon James Luther Hairston, Howard Lee Hairston, John Clabon Taylor, Francis DeSales Grayson, then James Henry Hampton were gathered as additional suspects. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Try again later. The image is a Newspaper Enterprise Association photograph printed in a newspaper that has not been identified. Northam said some of the defendants were impaired at the time of their arrests or unable to read confessions they signed. 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. [2], Judge Kennon Whittle told the attorneys: "this case must and will be tried in such a way as not to disturb the kindly feeling now, locally, existing between the races. From 1908 when Virginia began using the electric chair to 1951, state records show that all 45 people executed for rape were Black, he said. Martin A. Martin and other NAACP attorneys defended the men on appeals, attempting to ensure fair trials, set due process precedents, and gain clemency or sentence reductions. Save to. Each man was charged with rape and aiding and abetting rape both crimes punishable by death at the time. Records unavailable at the time of the Martinsville Seven appeals show that from 1626 until 1908, at least three whites and 99 blacks were hanged for rape or attempted rape in Virginia. Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6. Before their executions, protesters picketed at the White House, and the governor's office received letters from around the world asking for mercy. The young men with spotty employment records but no real criminal history soon became known as the Martinsville Seven. The preliminary hearing occurred about a month later, and the grand jury two months after that. Share this memorial using social media sites or email. He and his older brother (below) were not related to Frank Hairston Jr. Francis DeSales Grayson, age 38 and of Richmond, Virginia, denied having sex with Floyd; only defendant without local ties. Virginia Gov. From left to right: John Clabon Taylor, Joe Henry Hampton, Francis DeSales Grayson, Booker T. Millner, James Luther Hairston, Howard Lee Hairston, and Frank Hairston. Other demonstrations were held in Washington, D.C. in an attempt to convince President Harry S. Truman to interveneagain to no avail. The victim of the rape recounted in The Martinsville Seven was Ruby Stroud Floyd, a thirty-two year old housewife who had moved to Martinsville with her husband, Glenn Floyd, a department store manager, only four years prior to the attack. 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. It was a dramatic shift for Virginia, a state that had the second-highest number of executions in the U.S. Virginia would later execute three more men for rape, the last in 1961. Northam announced the pardons after meeting with about a dozen descendants of the men and their advocates. It must be tried as though both parties were members of the same race. Though they varied somewhat in detail, the accounts of what happened that night from the perpetrators, the victim, Martin and other witnesses in large part agreed. "These men were executed because they were Black, and that's not right," Northam said. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. ", The lawyers used the figures in their clemency petition to Gov. The Seven were executed at the Virginia State Penitentiary in early February 1951. "My daddy was Hampton's uncle," she said. To use social login you have to agree with the storage and handling of your data by this website. SHELBY- Annie "Ruby" Raines Stroud, 89, of 329 Reece Road, Shelby, departed this life on April 11, 2015, at Hospice of Wendover. [15] It is the largest execution for rape charges in the United States. Please reset your password. While Ruby Stroud Floyd was being treated in hospital after the alleged rape, police arrested six suspects, and two days later a seventh. One of the pickets who identified himself as Richard O. Boyer of New York City, said most of the marchers were New Yorkers and the protest came from the New York Council of Arts, Sciences and Professions. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Governor Battle listened to their claims but was unwilling to bend on the issue of the Seven, saying: "The prisoners have not been convicted because they are Negroes and should not be released because they are Negroes." The seven were charged with the rape of Ruby Stroud Floyd in a black neighborhood of Martinsville, Virginia on January 8, 1949. After being questioned by local police officers, the defendants initially confessed to committing or witnessing the crime. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. After being held by police overnight, the first six all signed confessions, implicating themselves and each other. Thank you, Lord," he said, as he wept while being embraced by two other descendants of the men. Oh boo, fricking hoo look what they do to criminals in their Afreakan homeland. But Northam said Tuesday that the death penalty for rape was applied almost exclusively to Black people. 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. Why do libtards treat niggers better than they treat themselves? African American History: Research Guides & Websites, Global African History: Research Guides & Websites, African American Scientists and Technicians of the Manhattan Project, Envoys, Diplomatic Ministers, & Ambassadors, Foundation, Organization, and Corporate Supporters. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. Use code: FLICKR10. Cries and sobs could be heard from some of the descendants after Northam's announcement. There was an error deleting this problem. At the time, rape was a capital offense. MARTINSVILLE -- On April 19, 1949, Judge Kennon Whittle addressed prosecutors and defense lawyers gathered in his second-floor chambers of the Henry County courthouse. Switch to the light mode that's kinder on your eyes at day time. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. 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. I will not have it otherwise.". After the verdicts and sentencings, the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals later rejected a racial-prejudice claim filed on behalf of the Martinsville Seven, ruling that sentences did not, "depend upon the race of the accused, but upon the circumstances, aggravation and enormity of the crime proven in each case." New York Public Library. 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. The longest deliberations lasted less than two hours, Rise said. Their quick arrest assured the community that stability was being preserved. [9][10] An editorial in New York's Amsterdam News read, When we consider the fact that in the entire history of the Old Dominion state, no white man has ever received capital punishment for rape, then of necessity we must conclude that the death penalty for seven men for a singular crime was neither righteous, nor compassionate, nor wise. All six juries convicted the young men of rape and recommended the death penalty. She also had abrasions on her elbows, forearms, knees, lower legs and thighs. Both African American newspapers, the Richmond Afro-American and Norfolk Journal and Guide concluded the national and international crusades by the CRC hurt the defendants' chances for clemency. Ruby Stroud Floyd Obituary: In the loving memory of Ruby Stroud Floyd, we are saddened to inform you that Ruby Stroud Floyd, a beloved and loyal friend, has passed away. '", She said her grandmother, Josephine Grayson, now living in Maryland, "will not speak on that at all under (any) circumstances.". Grayson said he was fouryears old when his father was executed. ), As far as Hodge-Muse and many others are concerned, the case "was just such an evil miscarriage of justice.". During the eleven-day trials, juries 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. "[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. Your email address will not be published. Together representatives, both black and white, of the CRC and NAACP, as well as other citizens, met with Battle in June 1950 to appeal for a pardon or clemency for the defendants in the case. Footage too graphic to publish shows the man . All they are celebrating is the dismantling of White laws, laws which have held the civilised West together like glue, that once gone will herald the arrival of a new singular law, the law of the jungle the only law niggers know, and which can be perfectly summed up by Crowleys satanic epithet do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law. By the spring of 1949, all seven men were charged with rape. Archives Unbound. Please subscribe to keep reading. A system error has occurred. Two days later, on Sunday, 100 people picketed the White House in Washington, and Josephine Grayson, wife of Francis Grayson, unsuccessfully sought to see President Harry S. Truman. They should not have been executed," he added. The remaining three were electrocuted on February 5. 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. I suppose that's how the electric nigglet was found innocent too. [2] The men were executed in early February. Some of the defendants acknowledged having sexual intercourse with Floyd, but said that it was consensual, or that she did not resist or say no, either considered necessary as a condition to prove rape. By the spring of 1949, all seven men were charged with rape. Why the Crusade on the Martinsville Seven: 1950. washingtonspark.files.wordpress.com/2019/12/1950-11-08-ma Martinsville 7 They shall not die: 1950, Martinville 7, subject of death penalty protests, later executed: 1950, Demand No Execution of Martinsville 7: 1951. www.flickr.com/photos/washington_area_spark/sets/72157643 Afro Headlines Martinsville, Va. Mass Executions: 1951, Freezing pickets call for Martinsville 7 clemency: 1951. Floyd's husband, a local store manager, said she. Each were. Fired RPS employee sues school district, alleges misuse of federal funds. Ruby Stroud Floyd always brought light to every room entered. 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 . By the spring of 1949, all seven men were charged with rape. Prospective jurors in each trial included some blacks, but all 72 jurors selected to try the cases were white. But Northam said Tuesday that the death penalty for rape was applied almost exclusively to Black people. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. NAACP officials focused national attention to the case, hoping to delay or overturn the death penalty judgment. This browser does not support getting your location. Judge Kennon C. Whittle of the Martinsville Circuit Court granted requests to hold individual trials. The case attracted national newspaper coverage. But on July 24, 1950, Battle turned them down, writing: "No fair minded person can read the evidence in these cases without being convinced, beyond the shadow of a doubt, of the guilt of all the defendants.". 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. It was the largest group of people executed for a single-victim crime in Virginia's history. By using this form you agree with the storage and handling of your data by this website. Howard Lee Hairston, age 20, denied having sex with Floyd. For example, although most African Americans in Virginia had been disenfranchised since the early 20th century and were thus disqualified from serving on juries, the grand jury had included black members. In their appeals, Martin and the NAACP discussed the unfairness of the venue, the pressure on later juries to arrive at the same sentence as the earlier ones, and the historical racial disparities in application of death penalty sentences in the state. Washington and Lee University law professor David Bruck said that even if the trials were fair and the men guilty, "the idea that you could have a 45-to-nothing ratio and that does not prove anything tells you that this was simply a judicial system that was not prepared to do the right thing.". James Walter Grayson is the son of Francis DeSales Grayson, who was one of the seven. 7 Black men were executed for an alleged rape in 1951. A unique soul with a great personality has an amazing sense of humour, diligent and caring. . You can directly shop your flowers on Amazon. The seven were charged with the rape of Ruby Stroud Floyd in a black neighborhood of Martinsville, Virginia on January 8, 1949. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. The attack occurred in Cherrytown, the black section of Martinsville. "I am not excusing rape. / CBS/AP. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. There were six trials two defendants elected to be tried together held back to back, none of them lasting more than a day. 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.". This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. The campaign included picket lines, a demonstration by hundreds rallying in Richmond to try to persuade Gov. At age 37, World War II veteran Francis DeSales Grayson was the oldest of the defendants. And the real victim Ruby Stroud Floyd didnt even get a mention from those coon descendants of her rapists ! The last was Grayson, 38, who was pronounced dead at 8:15 that morning. While we can't change the past, I hope today's action brings them some small measure of peace. While we can't change the past, I hope today's action brings them some small measure of peace.". Still, preparations for the executions proceeded. James Walter Grayson is the son of Francis DeSales Grayson, who was one of the seven. 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 seven were charged with the rape of Ruby Stroud Floyd in a black neighborhood of Martinsville, Virginia on January 8, 1949. The Civil Rights Congress and the Virginia Committee to Save the Martinsville Seven publish a flyer November 8, 1950 explaining why the Virginia case of seven black men sentenced to death was important for the fight against white supremacy. Eric W. Rise, Race, Rape, and Radicalism: The Case of the Martinsville Seven, 1949-1951. The Journal of Southern History LVIII, no. Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. Resend Activation Email. Residents warned her not to stay too long, noting the time as late afternoon. The CRC in turn criticized the NAACP for its reliance on a legal strategy that had a dubious chance of success in a southern state where rigid Jim Crow was enforced. Drag images here or select from your computer for Ruby Stroud Floyd memorial. All six juries convicted the young men of rape and recommended the death penalty. In 1977, in its ruling in Coker v. Georgia, the US Supreme Court ruled that "it is repugnant to an enlightened society for the state to kill a person for a crime that does not result in death," declining to extend the death penalty to a person guilty of raping an adult woman. On January 8, 1949, a white woman named Ruby Stroud Floyd was raped in a black part of Martinsville, Virginia. Please enter valid email address to continue. [2] A relative of the Hairstons has said that their family tradition always said that Floyd had been having an affair with one of the defendants, but this was not explored at trial. [2], The trials were held back to back, each with a separate jury of twelve white men. They argued for lesser sentences, but Battle resisted their pleas. cemeteries found in Duplin County, North Carolina, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. He said, 'Well, read the book the Martinsville Seven. Ruby belonged to a predominantly black neighborhood in Martinsville,. 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