Greensboro massacre facts for kids

The Greensboro massacre was a violent event that happened on November 3, 1979, in Greensboro, North Carolina, in the United States. During a march called "Death to the Klan," members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and the American Nazi Party (ANP) shot and killed five people. These five people were part of the "Death to the Klan" march, which was organized by the Communist Workers Party (CWP). Four of those killed were members of the CWP. They had come to Greensboro to support workers' rights for mostly Black people working in textile factories. The Greensboro police knew that the KKK and ANP were planning violence because they had an informant in their group.

What Happened During the Confrontation?

Before the event, both sides had been saying very angry things about each other. When the two groups met at the start of the march, they began shooting. The CWP and their supporters had some handguns. Videos showed members of the KKK and ANP taking rifles from their cars. Besides the five people who died, ten marchers and one Klansman were also hurt.

After the Violence: Court Cases

After the shooting, there were two main court cases for some of the KKK and ANP members. The first trial was held by the state. Five people were accused of murder and causing a riot. However, all of them were found not guilty.

A second trial happened in 1984, this time in a federal court. Nine people were accused of violating civil rights. Again, all of them were found not guilty. The jury believed they acted in self-defense. But news reports, including from the New York Times, said that video footage of the event showed something different. Many news outlets also pointed out that the juries in both trials were made up only of white people. This made some people worry about fairness.

Seeking Justice and Truth

In 1980, the people who survived the shooting, with help from a group called the Christic Institute, started a separate civil lawsuit. They sued 87 different groups and people, asking for a lot of money for damages. The city of Greensboro, the state of North Carolina, the Justice Department, and the FBI were among those sued. The lawsuit claimed that civil rights were violated, that the police failed to protect the marchers, and that people were wrongfully killed.

Eventually, eight of the people sued were found responsible for the death of one marcher who was not a CWP member. The city of Greensboro agreed to pay the people who sued $351,000 to settle the case.

In 2004, 25 years after the event, a private group created the Greensboro Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This commission was similar to others in places like South Africa and Canada. Its goal was to investigate what really happened in 1979. However, the city's mayor and most of the City Council did not support this commission. This meant the commission could not force people to testify or punish them for lying. When the commission released its final report, it said that both sides had used angry words. But it also concluded that the KKK and ANP members had planned to hurt the marchers. The report also found that the police department had worked with the Klan by allowing the expected violence to happen.

City's Apology and Memorial

Years later, the city of Greensboro began to recognize the event more formally.

• On June 17, 2009, the City Council released a "statement of regret" about what happened in 1979.
• On May 24, 2015, the City of Greensboro officially put up a historical marker to remember the 1979 events. More than 300 people attended the ceremony. The marker says: "Greensboro Massacre – Ku Klux Klansmen and American Nazi Party members, on Nov. 3, 1979, shot and killed five Communist Workers Party members one-tenth mile north." Two city council members voted against the marker because they did not think the event should be called a "massacre."
• On August 15, 2017, and again on October 6, 2020, the Greensboro City Council formally apologized for the massacre.

In Popular Culture

The Greensboro massacre has been mentioned in different forms of popular culture:

• The band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark recorded a song called "88 Seconds in Greensboro" about the event.
• Another band, Pop Will Eat Itself, also recorded a song about it called “88 Seconds... & Still Counting” on their album Cure For Sanity.
• The TV show Saturday Night Live aired a comedy sketch the year after the event, titled "Commie Hunting Season," which specifically referred to the incident.

See also

In Spanish: Masacre de Greensboro para niños