John Carter Lynching Panel

A remarkable panel discussion took place at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center in February. The topic was the lynching of John Carter in Little Rock in 1927. The panel was remarkable because it featured relatives of those directly tied to the episode. There was a relative of Floella McDonald, the white girl whose murder created a tense racial atmosphere in the city. Sitting next to her was a relative of Lonnie Dixon, the 17 year-old African American who was executed for the murder of McDonald under dubious circumstances. Then there was the grandson and great-grandson of John Carter, the man who was lynched soon after in a separate incident. Finally, there was the great-granddaughter of one of the white city sheriffs who may have been involved in the lynching of John Carter. I’m John Kirk of the UALR History Department and this has been an Arkansas moment.