Mississippi, with its large black population, was a state that the Republicans should have been able to retain in fair elections, but since 1870 “White Men’s Clubs” had dedicated themselves to the restoration of white supremacy. They believed black suffrage was “wrong in principle and disastrous in effect.” Members vowed not to hire any black man who voted Republican, but their most effective tactic was violence. Whites created “dead books” that contained the names of black Republicans. By 1875 the murder of black people, particularly political leaders, had become routine. White militia
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