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The Opelousas Massacre… The Story They Tried to Erase

On September 28, 1868, the town of Opelousas, Louisiana showed the world exactly how far white supremacy was willing to go to silence Black voices. One Black newspaper editor, Emile Deslondes, challenged the violence and intimidation Black voters were facing. Instead of answering with truth, local white Democrats answered with guns. What followed wasn’t a “riot.” It was a wave. White mobs spread across Opelousas and nearby parishes, dragging Black men out of their homes, hunting down schoolteachers, community leaders, and anyone connected to the Republican Party. It became open-season on Black life. Historians estimate that 200 to 300 Black people were murdered in just a few days… and that’s only what was documented. Many families were never counted. Records vanished. Testimonies disappeared. Louisiana buried this story the same way it buried the bodies… fast, deep, and quiet. The message was loud: “Vote if you want to… but you won’t live to see the next sunrise.” That was the blueprint for voter suppression in the Deep South. Not laws… violence. Not debates… massacres. Opelousas wasn’t a moment. It was a warning. And every time we tell the truth about it, we undo one more piece of the silence they tried to build. History isn’t just dates… it’s accountability. And this one deserves to be spoken out loud. #OpelousasMassacre #LouisianaHistory #HiddenHistory #ReconstructionEra #BlackHistoryMatters #ReclaimTheRecord #HistoryTheyDidntTeachUs #TruthOverSilence #LataraSpeaksTruth

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THE VICKSBURG MASSACRE… DECEMBER 7, 1874

On December 7, 1874, Vicksburg showed the country exactly how far some people were willing to go to stop Black political power. Peter Barrow Crosby had been legally elected sheriff of Warren County. He wasn’t appointed. He wasn’t forced in. He won the vote. But the moment he tried to do the job he was elected to do, white officials decided he had to go. Black residents did what any community would do. They marched to the courthouse to support their elected official. No weapons. No violence. Just a community standing behind the person they chose. But white paramilitary groups were waiting. They opened fire on unarmed marchers and turned that day into what we now call the Vicksburg Massacre. Federal reports say at least 29 Black people were killed that day. Later research shows the number was likely far higher… maybe 75, maybe over 200. People were shot in fields, on roads, and miles outside town. White newspapers bragged about “restoring order,” and local leaders tried to pretend the violence was justified. It took U.S. troops to step in and put Crosby back in office, but the damage was already done. The massacre became part of the larger effort to tear down Reconstruction and silence Black voters across the South. This is why some dates matter. This is why context matters. December 7 isn’t just history. It’s a reminder of how easily progress can be attacked the moment it threatens the people who benefited from the old system. When we talk about events like this, it’s not to create division. It’s to tell the truth the way it actually happened and to honor the people who risked everything for their right to participate in their own government #VicksburgMassacre #ReconstructionTruth #December71874 #BlackHistoryMatters #UntoldHistory #AmericanHistory #PeterCrosby #VoterSuppressionHistory #NeverForget

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