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Thursday, July 31, 2008

Upholding the Rule of Law Requires Prosecution of Killers in the Moore’s Ford Bridge Lynchings

“Murder is murder. It doesn’t matter if it took place six minutes ago, six hours ago, six days ago . . . or 60 years ago. That’s why the lynchings case continues to receive attention, both locally and nationally, even after all this time."

"The best way to put an end to this tragic story is to bring those who perpetuated the crime to justice, and that’s a story I hope we will be able to tell someday."

These are quotes from Patrick Graham’s column “Vantage Point” (7-26-06). Mr. Graham is publisher of the Walton Tribune in Monroe, Georgia.

It is appropriate to use these words from the publisher of this local bi-weekly because they speak volumes in compelling and challenging us in so many ways to continue our work which cries out for upholding the Rule of Law (not just for George and Mae Murray Dorsey, and Roger and Dorothy Malcom (and the unborn infant cut out of Mrs. Malcom), who were beaten, cut, shot and lynched on the Moore’s Ford Bridge, July 25, 1946.), but for all who believe in our Constitution and this Republic, the great USA.

No doubt there are those who believe we should just forget about this massacre and let all the suspected killers get older and die and then wait for somebody to issue a report which will factually prove their involvement and complicity after they are safely dead. That’s exactly the strategy the state of Florida successfully used in the horrible KKK firebombing deaths of Harry and Harriet Moore (1951) in Mims, Florida. This is insulting and shameful. We thank God no one convinced the great Simon Wiesenthal to give up and just write a report about old Nazis responsible for the killing of innocent Jews during the Holocaust. He demanded justice for victims and the upholding of the rule of law. Therefore, many old Nazi murderers are serving life sentences in prisons.

This strategy of “forget and wait” is a serious blow to our criminal justice system and has been employed by killers and conspirators in Walton County since 1946. The killers have also been rewarded with street signs and road markers. What a gift for their heinous mob action.

One of the most frequently asked questions of us is: What would Walton County, Georgia and the United States government do if the victims were white?

We commend Mississippi and Alabama for not using this tactic to let killers go free, let them die and then issue a report. Thank God they didn’t, because we would not have witnessed prosecutions in the murders of: James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner in Philadelphia, Mississippi; Medgar Evers, Jackson, Mississippi; the four little girls at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama; Jimmie Lee Jackson, Marion, Alabama; and Emmett Till, Money, Mississippi.

Also, thank God this tactic was not used following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee.

Yes, it would be constructive for prosecutors to issue a report naming all 55 suspects listed in the original FBI investigation. But just in case you didn’t know, some are still alive and safely residing in Monroe and near the Moore’s Ford Bridge. We can never allow the status of senior citizen to deter or delay the pursuit of justice. In the words of freedom fighters, “Ain’t gonna let nobody turn us around.”

Some of us, including Bobby Howard, were introduced to this case in 1968 by the late Mr. Dan Young and will continue until justice and the rule of law prevails.

Note: Citizens can claim the $27,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and successful prosecution of the killers. For more information visit: www.gabeo.org

State Rep. Tyrone Brooks (D-Atlanta) is president of the Georgia Association of Black Elected Officials. Charles Steele is the national president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and a former Alabama state senator.

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