Hundreds of African-American men were lynched in the South in the late 1800s and early 1900s. By the 1930s, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was pushing for a federal anti-lynching law. They hoped to gain the support of the President and First Lady. In the letter to NAACP executive secretary Walter Francis White, Eleanor Roosevelt describes a conversation she had with the President about the law. What reasons did the President give for not supporting the law? Do you think Mrs. Roosevelt agreed with him? Why or why not?

Read additional background on Mrs. Roosevelt's letter from Words and Deeds in American History. Use your browser's Back Button to return to this point.

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Read additional background on Mrs. Roosevelt's letter from Words and Deeds in American History. Use your browser's Back Button to return to this point.