This Day in History

Dec. 29, 1923: Terror Attack on African Americans in Catcher, Arkansas

Time Periods: 1920
Themes: African American, Economics, Racism & Racial Identity
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Charles Spurgeon Rucks

On Dec. 29, 1923, the Catcher “Race Riot”” began, leading to the creation of another sundown town in Arkansas.

Within the span of a few days, an African American man was murdered, 11 African Americans were charged with night riding, and after serious threats to their safety, there was an exodus from Catcher of every African American family.

Two African-American men were executed (including Charles Spurgeon Rucks, 1893–1924, in the photo) while a third was given life in prison, following speedy trials that included dubious “evidence” offered by the prosecution.

The defendants were represented by Scipio Africanus Jones, a prominent attorney in Little Rock.

Learn more about this story at the Encyclopedia of Arkansas.

Teach about the legacy of these “race riots” with the lesson “Burned Out of Homes and History: Unearthing the Silenced Voices of the Tulsa Race Riot” by Linda Christensen from Rethinking Schools.

Find a list of other events that are called “race riots” in mainstream texts, but are better described as massacres in U.S. history.

Learn more about sundown towns in the book by James Loewen.

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Teaching Activities (Free)

Whose “Terrorism”?

Teaching Activity. By Bill Bigelow. Rethinking Schools. 11 pages.
Using scenarios based on real situations, this lesson helps middle and high school students examine the definition of terrorism and the use of the term terrorism in the media and U.S. foreign policy.

"Running the Negro out of Tulsa" | Zinn Education Project
Teaching Activities (Free)

Burned Out of Homes and History: Unearthing the Silenced Voices of the Tulsa Massacre

Teaching Activity. By Linda Christensen. Rethinking Schools. 20 pages.
Teaching about racist patterns of murder, theft, displacement, and wealth inequality through the 1921 Tulsa Massacre.

Articles

Burning Tulsa: The Legacy of Black Dispossession

Article. By Linda Christensen. If We Knew Our History Series.
Students need to learn the hidden history of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre and how this links to racial wealth inequality today.

Books: Non-Fiction

Race Against Time: The Untold Story of Scipio Jones and the Battle to Save Twelve Innocent Men

Book — Non-fiction. By Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace. 2021. 144 pages.
Scipio Africanus Jones — a self-taught attorney who was born enslaved — leads a momentous series of court cases to save twelve Black men who’d been unjustly sentenced to death.

Books: Non-Fiction

Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism

Book — Non-fiction. By James Loewen. 2018. 592 pages.
Documents the history of towns across the United States that exclude African Americans (and other racial/ethnic groups) after sundown.

News

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One of our most read “This Day in History” posts is about the July 29, 1910, Slocum Massacre—the racially charged murders by whites on the Black population of Slocum, Texas, and the subsequent cover-up of a community’s violent history.

Elaine Massacre Defendants | Zinn Education Project
This Day in History

Sept. 30, 1919: Elaine Massacre

Black farmers were massacred in Elaine, Arkansas for their efforts to fight for better pay and higher cotton prices. A white mob shot at them, and the farmers returned fire in self-defense. Estimates range from 100-800 killed, and 67 survivors were indicted for inciting violence.

This Day in History

Nov. 2, 1920: The Ocoee Massacre

More than fifty African Americans killed in the Ocoee Massacre after going to vote in Florida.

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May 31, 1921: Tulsa Massacre

In one of countless white supremacist massacres in U.S. history, white supremacists destroyed a thriving Black community in Oklahoma, known today as the Tulsa Massacre.

This Day in History

Jan. 1, 1923: Rosewood Massacre

White supremacists destroyed the Black town of Rosewood, Florida, and murdered many of its residents. Descendants have fought for reparations and recognition of the history.