Transcript
Lindsey Graham (0:00)
There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad free. Listen with Wondry plus in the Wondery app as a member of Noiser plus at noiser.com or in Apple Podcasts. Or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history podcasts@intohristory.com It's June 15, 1963, in the city of Jackson, Mississippi. John Doar, a 41 year old lawyer, is one of the few white faces in a predominantly black procession of 5,000 mourners. They're accompanying a hearse through the quiet streets carrying the casket of civil rights leader Medgar Evers who was assassinated in Jackson three days ago. The marchers are all silent except for the occasional sob of grief, but as they near a predominantly white part of town, the number of police officers lining the route increases and the somber procession comes to a sudden stop. John pushes forward through the crowd until he reaches the front and sees why the mourners have halted. The road is blocked by police officers, dogs strain at their leashes and a fire truck idles behind the barricade, ready to turn its hose on the mourners. As the procession edges closer to the police line, one of the officers swings his baton and catches a mourner in the head. This assault sparks the rest of the officers to jump in, and a black man screams as he's hit by the butt of a rifle and is dragged behind the police line. Fearing for their safety, other mourners near the front try to get away from the police, but they're pressed forward by the crowd behind and there's nowhere for them to go. Some of the mourners fling bottles and rocks at the police as the melee grows, but this only enrages the cops and makes them swing harder. John Doar realizes that the clash could lead to deaths and cause a race riot. Hoping that the officers won't attack a white man like him, John steps between the police and the mourners. Holding his hands up high, he pleads with the crowd to stop, yelling that Medgar Evers wouldn't want it this way. The crowd steps back and a space begins to open up between the mourners and the police. John breathes a sigh of relief as the procession retreats, but the line of officers and their dogs and batons seems impenetrable. The mourners will have to find a different route to their final destination. A few days after Medgar Evers funeral, FBI agents investigating his murder identified a prime suspect, but justice will only be served after three trials and 30 years have passed when Byron Della Beckwith will finally be convicted for the brutal killing of Medgar Evers on February 5, 1994.
Unnamed Voice Actor (2:50)
This is a Reese's Peanut Butter cup sound experiment. We're looking to find the perfect way to hear Reese's so you'll buy more of them. Here we go. Reese's, Reese's, Reese's. Reese's. Reese's. Hey, get out of here, you little stinker. Reese's, Reese's, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. That breathy one sounded very creepy. Am I right?
