A Lynching In West Virginia - A Personal Story From Robert Jones - One Of QBliss' First Voices

Hate. Ignorance. Injustice. Sadly, they are not unique to our times. I traveled to my hometown this past Christmas. Daddy enjoys driving around the countryside where he loves to tell stories of his own childhood here in the green valleys of West Virginia. The ponds where he fished, the pastures where he raised crops, etc. At one point we drove by a wide spot on a two-lane road. The area is approximately eight miles west of town.  It is located on a hill known for its military significance.  I soon learned that it possessed a much darker, more ominous significance.

Daddy asked if he had ever told me what happened on this particular area in the mid 1930s. I replied that he had not. Then we walked across the road to a bare area. As he began to share his recollection of this seemingly unremarkable spot, daddy's eyes became clouded and his face turned hard. As a mental health professional, I can easily recognize the look of someone with memories that are painful to voice. He slowly stated:

My own daddy brought me to this spot when I was about six or seven. There wasn't much to see except a jagged tree stump sticking up out of the ground. When I asked what was special about this place, he [my granddaddy] told me that there was a preacher out in the western end of the county who used the pulpit to spread hate towards black folks. He really stirred up a hornet's nest because the blacks in the West despised him. Many people did. However, there was one individual in particular who was very vocal about the poison the preacher spouted. One day the preacher's horse was spooked and it threw him - breaking his neck. They immediately and with no cause arrested the black man who had been so vocal about his dislike of the preacher. That night a bunch of men in town forcibly dragged the man out of his jail cell, brought him here and tied him to a maple tree that grew right on this spot. Each man unscrewed a headlight in his car so they could recognize  one another. Then they got in a long row and drove by the black man; shooting him until the tree literally broke in half. I guess daddy wanted me to see early-on just what people are capable of   when they become consumed with hate.

Halfway back to the truck daddy asked me "What makes some people so damn mean?" That's a great question. Unfortunately, there has never been a shortage of reasons for people to hate each other.  As we drove away from that clearing that had long been tainted with unspeakable carnage and blind hatred; I couldn't help but to consider how this incident paralleled the hatred that is leveled at the GLBT community.

  Thankfully, lynchings in the manner I discussed are mercifully relegated to the past.  However, physical abuse and emotional  lynchings  continue to this day (a day in which we pride ourselves as being socially enlightened and more tolerant of diversity).

Consider the high school student who is questioning his sexual orientation.  How does he feel when publicly ridiculed, overtly snubbed by his classmates and even physically beaten?  What about the gay couple who choose to move to suburbia but is constantly harassed by verbal and written threats, plagued by vandalism of their personal property and lastly made the object of hatred?  Consider the gay man who, having a knack for automobile repair, finds a job working in a garage.  He is ecstatic for the opportunity to do what he does best.  Sadly, his coworkers persist in anti-gay humor geared towards the community in which he secretly wishes to belong.  However, he can't.  He doesn't dare.  Why?  Because if his coworkers had the first inkling that he was remotely unlike  them  - then he would become the object of scorn and hatred.  His own life may be placed in jeopardy.  Therefore, he feels he must deny his sexuality and endure a life of falsehood    far removed from the strength and camaraderie of the GLBT community.

I further reflected on daddy's question:  What makes some people so mean?  The most probable answer is that the hallmark of hate is the absence of "reasoning". People try to use the argument that hate is an instinctual part of human nature. I disagree. Fear is an instinct. Hatred is learned - pure and simple.

What is the antidote to this virus?  What weapon may break this cycle of ignorance and hate?  The answer is simple:  education.  Ignorance withers in the presence of education.  The education found in textbooks is far from enough.  True education is provided by the brave gay men and women who choose to live openly (risking potential adversity).  Education comes at the hands of the individual who politely informs those who tell anti-gay jokes that they are both offensive and inappropriate.  So, the opportunities to provide education are limitless. The NEED to provide education is OVERWHELMING.

Daddy's own confused memories of this dreadful slaying coupled with my own thoughts of prejudice reminded of the lyrics to a song by Billie Holiday:

"Southern trees bear strange fruit
Blood on the leaves
Blood at the root
Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees Pastoral scene of the gallant South The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth The scent of magnolia sweet and fresh Then the sudden smell of burning flesh Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck for the rain to gather for the wind to suck for the sun to rot for the tree to drop Here is a strange and bitter crop."