Local racial massacres destroyed the Black self-defense infrastructure of Reconstruction

Evidence

In Hamburg, South Carolina, the local Black militia celebrated the July 4 centennial with a parade. Area racists hated the militia for maintaining Blacks’ ability to control the majority Black town. During the parade, harsh words were exchanged when a local White farmer ordered militia members to move aside for his carriage. The farmer appealed to former Confederate general Matthew C. Butler, the area’s most powerful Democrat. On July 8, Butler and a small posse ordered the militia head, Union Army veteran Dock Adams, to disarm the Hamburg militia. Adams refused, and fighting broke out. The militiamen retreated to their armory. Butler dashed off for nearby Augusta, but returned with hundreds of reinforcements and cannon. Butler’s contingent executed five militiamen and looted and destroyed the undefended homes and shops of Hamburg. — Ibram X. Kendi, Stamped from the Beginning, 684