The Jackson-Madison County Community Remembrance Project is a community endeavor, in partnership with Equal Justice Initiative, to memorialize known Madison County lynching victims. Led by Dr. Cindy Boyles, the project aims to bring long, overdue justice to three African Americans who were denied due process and lynched in Madison County in the late 1800s- Eliza Woods, John Brown, and Frank Ballad.

A historical marker (pictured above) has been placed for victims Eliza Woods and John Brown at the Madison County Courthouse in the space they were lynched in 1886 and 1891, respectively. In addition to erecting historical markers, the Project is memorializing Woods, Brown, and Ballard with soil collection and a monument placement initiative.

“Other nations that have faced human tragedy and oppression serve as models for promoting reconciliation and healing. Germany has thousands of memorials recognizing the pain of the Holocaust; South Africa had a period of truth-telling and reconciliation to move beyond the racism and deep harm of apartheid. In our country, we have tried to ignore, deny, obfuscate the truth of white supremacy and racism. Until we face the truth of our history of slavery, Jim Crow, convict leasing and peonage, lynching, redlining and other forms of discrimination and hate, we will never be truly united as a nation. We believe these historical markers will promote discussion and understanding which will lead the way to healing, reconciliation and peace.” - Dr. Cindy Boyles

We support any effort to remove any indicia of honor for Nathan Bedford Forest, including but not limited to removal of the bust from the Tennessee State Capitol.

Forrest was a Confederate General and leader in the Ku Klux Klan. His bust has resided in the Capitol since 1978. Gov. Bill Lee states, “Forrest represents pain, suffering and brutal crimes committed against African Americans, and that pain is very real for our fellow Tennesseans as they walk the halls of our statehouse and evaluate how he could be one of just the nine busts elevated to a place of reverence.”

After a 25 to 1 vote, the Tennessee Historical Commission voted to relocate the Forrest bust to the Tennessee State Museum.

Along the path to justice, conciliation, and healing are many broken pieces.

It is never too late for justice. It is never too late for conciliation.

It is never too late for healing.

Tennesseans for Historical Justice is a Tennessee non-profit 501c3 corporation. Our mission is to uncover the truth about racial violence in Tennessee in order to achieve justice, conciliation and healing across our state. Victims of racial violence deserve justice and our state deserves healing. But we cannot do this alone.

We need your help. Join our team, volunteer, or make a donation- we are eager to work with you! Click the button below to find out how you can support our mission.

A mission of the Tennesseans for Historical Justice is to collect information about racial violence in Tennessee and make it available to the public. Our hope is that people will use this information to conduct further research into these cases and stories to better understand our history and learn how to more effectively and completely address current incidents of racial terror to promote transparency, justice, and conciliation.

Specifically, we are collecting cases and stories of racially-motivated beatings, hangings, bombings, and violence regardless of whether the case has been solved and the assailant prosecuted. We need to make a complete and thorough list for posterity.

We are seeking to uncover stories of individuals who were victims of violence motivated by an anti-racial bias. We know that many of these cases are documented in the state and the federal criminal justice system through police reports, grand jury transcripts, and other court records. While we are looking for these documents, we are also searching for stories that may have only been recounted in a newspaper or magazine article, or maybe not documented at all.

Through our work, we know that a good number of instances of racial violence exist only in the memories of the individuals who experienced the terror, witnessed the incident, or who heard about it through family lore. Understandably, these folks are hesitant to share these stories for fear of retaliation against them and their families. The fear of more violence, for exposing the truth of the past, is real. Without a proper investigation of these cases and stories, however, the people of Tennessee will never know their past. As the old adage goes, if we don't understand our history, we are doomed to repeat it.

Tennesseans for Historical Justice pledges to investigate all reports of racial violence with compassion, sensitivity, and with an eye towards justice and conciliation, pursuant to Chapter 966 Tennessee Public Acts 2018.

We need your help. Let's work together to understand our history and make the state a safer and more welcoming place for all.

Click “Alert THJ” below to send us information you may have on cases or stories of racial violence in Tennessee.