When White Supremacists Staged the Only Successful Coup in U.S. History

“On November 10, 1898, white supremacists in Wilmington, North Carolina, massacred upwards of 60 Black people and overthrew the city’s democratically elected government, instigating the only successful coup d’état in United States history. No one was brought to justice for the horrific violence, and over the next century, the event was largely ignored, whitewashed as a “race riot” if it was mentioned at all.”

“The scars from the events of November 10 still run deep in Wilmington. Some descendants of those involved in the massacre, both as perpetrators and victims, regularly take part in Coming to the Table discussions, where they work together toward racial healing. Several appear in the “American Coup” documentary.”

To read the article at Smithsonian Magazine, Click Here.