Archive of the defense of the Trenton Six, the African American men defended by Thurgood Marshall who were blamed for the murder of a white man in 1949 - Includes "Legal Lynching -- The Case of the Trenton Six"

Trenton Six, African American

Archive

[African American] [Civil Rights] DEAN, Elwood. New York: New Century Publishers, 1949. The "Trenton Six" was a group of six African Americans convicted, on questionable evidence, of murdering an elderly white shopkeeper in 1948 and sentenced to death. Small Archive of two items. Their case was taken up on appeal by the Communist Party and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which was directed by Thurgood Marshall, who played an important role in the case. The Trenton Six were defended by Emanuel Hirsch Bloch, the attorney who also defended the notorious convicted Soviet spies, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Four men were acquitted; two were sentenced to life imprisonment. Dean was educational director of the Communist Party of New Jersey. Dean closes by saying "To free the Six is to tear out a root of the poison tree of reaction, fascism and war." and exclaims "The price of liberty is never low, nor can it be too high!" A spirited pamphlet that highlights one of the important civil rights cases of the 20th century.

This archive also includes a civil rights fact sheet titled "Legal Lynching -- The Case of the Trenton Six." Los Angeles: Civil Rights Congress, 1949. Two legal-sized mimeograph pages measuring approximately 8.5 " x 14" inches. The fact sheet gives a detailed and concise recounting of events and a appeal to the reader to get involved with the case. It opens with a quote from William L Patterson that exclaims: "This attempt to railroad six innocent Negro men to the death chair is one of the most sordid, cold-blooded, fascist-like attacks upon the Negro people ever witnessed in America." The fact sheet gives a fuller view of the developments during the case than the pamphlet also included in this archive. It states that the Six were held for four days without counsel and coerced into signing confessions that they repudiated in court. They were nonetheless convicted, despite a complete lack of evidence. The fact sheet makes the case for blatant misconduct seen during the trial and the subsequent appeals. This fact sheet was distributed by the Civil Rights Congress, whch was a Communist-affiliated organization that focused its efforts on legal aid to victims of racist or political persecution. The Congress calls on readers to bombard Governor Driscoll of New Jersey with protests. This piece is stapled in one corner, and has some lightly toned areas, but is overall in very good condition.

Item #17531

Price: $550.00