“C” is for Charleston Riot (1876). As the crucial local, state, and national elections of 1876 approached, tensions between the races in South Carolina reached a boiling point. On September 6 at a political meeting a Black Democrat angered Republicans with a verbal assault that impugned the intelligence of Black women. A group of Black Republicans pursued Black and White Democrats to the Citadel Green where a White man shot a pistol in the air to frighten the Republicans. Instead, it drew hundreds of angry Black men. As the night progressed more and more Black men roamed the city’s streets. A full scale riot ensued with Blacks beating any White men they encountered. One Black and one White died in the Charleston Riot, while six policemen, a handful of Blacks, and at least fifty Whites were injured.
“C” is for Charleston Riot (1876)
