(C) Verite News New Orleans This story was originally published by Verite News New Orleans and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Remembering the New Orleans Massacre of 1866 [1] ['Tammy C. Barney', 'More Tammy C. Barney', 'Verite News'] Date: 2024-02-27 The Mechanics Institute in New Orleans was supposed to be the site where a new state constitution was drafted giving Black men the right to vote. Instead, a white mob attacked and killed Louisiana Republicans and their Black supporters on the site where the Roosevelt Hotel New Orleans currently sits. Sketch of “The Riot in New Orleans” by Theodore R. Davis in Aug. 25, 1866 issue of Harper’s Weekly. Credit: Library of Congress Known as the New Orleans Massacre or the New Orleans Riot, the violence occurred on July 30, 1866. According to the History website, the 1864 Louisiana Constitutional Convention reconvened to give freed Black men voting rights, to eliminate the Black Codes and to disenfranchise former Confederates. New Orleans Mayor John T. Monroe, a Confederate sympathizer, and New Orleans Sheriff Harry T. Hays, a former Confederate general, had other thoughts. Hays recruited white officers, mostly ex-Confederates, to disrupt the convention. White protestors harassed 200 unarmed Black men who came out to support the convention. When Hays and his men arrived, according to a 64 Parishes article, they murdered convention supporters and Black bystanders before killing and wounding those inside the institute. The violence continued until the military arrived that evening and declared martial law. The National Park Service says 34 Black supporters and three white delegates were killed, 136 were wounded and about 200 were arrested. Black Past, on the other hand, says at least 200 Black Union war veterans and 40 convention delegates were killed, and 46 were wounded. In his report, Gen. Phil Sheridan said peaceful delegates and supporters were attacked “with fire-arms, clubs, and knives, in a manner so unnecessary and atrocious as to compel me to say that it was murder… It was a murder which the Mayor and police of the city perpetrated…” The violent efforts failed to stop progress, however. After the massacre, policies were enacted to give Black men the right to vote – at least for a while. Related Stories Republish This Story Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. [END] --- [1] Url: https://veritenews.org/2024/02/27/remembering-the-new-orleans-massacre-of-1866/ Published and (C) by Verite News New Orleans Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 US. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/veritenews/