Even in the decades that followed the abolition of slavery in the United States, black people were not free, safe or treated equally. Lynching is the unlawful public hanging of a person. In the United States, the majority of the victims of lynchings were black. Lynchings were carried out in front of a crowd, who often cheered in support of the act of racism and violence.
The following poem was written in 1937 by teacher Abel Meeropol. He said that he wrote it because he hates ‘injustice and the people who perpetuate it’. The poem is a protest against racial violence, in particular, the violence and terror of the lynch mob.
Listen to the poem being read aloud, then work in pairs to discuss the images that strike you most.
Strange Fruit By Abel Meeropol
Southern trees bear strange fruit, Blood on the leaves and blood at the root, Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.
Pastoral scene of the gallant south, The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth, Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh, Then the sudden smell of burning fl esh.
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck, For the rain to gather, and for the wind to suck, For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop, Here is a strange and bitter crop.
