W.E.B. DuBois was an African American rights activist, historian, and author. He helped to co-found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), an African-American civil rights organization, in 1909. He was also the editor of The Crisis, the NAACP’s monthly magazine.

In August of 1919, the Secretary of the NAACP, John R. Shillady, traveled to Austin, Texas in connection with the organization’s anti-lynching campaign. He was attacked and brutally beaten by a mob that included a judge and a constable and forced to leave the state. DuBois wrote to Ferdinand Q. Morton, an African American political leader in Harlem and a lawyer at the New York County District Attorney's Office, to ask for his help in getting justice for Mr. Shillady. Specifically, he asked for Morton's help in requesting that Governor Al Smith of New York write to Governor William Hobby of Texas to investigate the matter.

Identifier
NYSA_13682-53A_260_167_1

Date Original
August 29 1919

Contributor
Du Bois, W. E. B. (William Edward Burghardt), 1868-1963 (author)

Language
English

Source
New York State Archives, New York (State). Governor (1923-1928 : Smith). Central subject and correspondence files, 1919-1920, 1923-1928. Series 13682-53A, 260-167.

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