A KEY WEST STORY THAT SHOWS THE NEED FOR A BLACK LIVES MATTER

Basically a Key West day. I need a day off from Trump. Sure you do also.

What I am about to share also appears in my Key West Lou blog of 4/25/2017. You may want to check it out there.

Much of the information has been drawn from New York Times articles of August 1897. Front page news each time.

Sylvanus Johnson a black Key West resident. From this point forward, I shall use the word “negro” because the story made reference to the term many times. It fits what occurred back then.

Johnson was accused of raping a white woman. Mrs. Margaret Atwell. She was reported to be dying from the attack.

Johnson arrested and jailed. Key West’s white population not happy campers. They were committed to lynching Johnson. Some 40 negroes surrounded the jail to protect Johnson, threatening to shoot if any white man approached further.

Local authorities feared a riot. Called upon the Governor to send in the National Guard. The Secretary of War in Washington was also contacted and requested to send in federal troops.

President McKinley refused. Whether the Governor did, I could not ascertain.

Key West was completely at the mercy of the infuriated negro mob.

Johnson always maintained his innocence.

A prominent local white man William Gardner was shot by the negroes. He was one of the leaders of the move to lynch Johnson.

The trial was a kangaroo court. The judge and jury white. Witnesses white. Johnson’s attorney was forbidden to cross examine the witnesses.

Johnson was convicted in less than 2 hours. He walked out of the court house continuing to declare his innocence.

Johnson was hung a few days later.

White man’s justice for negroes in the summer of 1897 in Key West.

Shades of Africa in Florida. Another I live and learn item.

I was unaware that panthers and bobcats roam certain areas of Florida.

Florida’s wildcat population has recently been afflicted with leukomyelopathy, a neurological disorder. Eight panthers and 2 bobcats so far.

The Florida panther is the only subspecies of mountain lion remaining in eastern U.S. Panthers have been recognized as an endangered species since 1973.

Makes me smile. I have been worrying only about pythons and crocodiles for years!

Mosquitoes should be on my to fear list. Don’t worry about them, however. We have a Monroe County Mosquito Board. They do a good job of keeping Keys’ residents protected.

The fear is the dengue fever a certain type mosquito can inflict. Death possible. Between spraying and inspecting properties, the Board keeps a handle on the mosquitoes and therefore the dengue fever.

As a result, dengue fever is now rare. It does rear its ugly head every few years, however. This is one of those years.

The second case of dengue fever this year was recently reported. In Key Largo. The first case arose in Key Largo also.

The concern is multiplied by what has occurred recently in South Creek Village at Mile Marker 103. Eleven persons have been reported to possibly be sick with dengue fever. The 11 have all the symptoms. The doctors are not certain yet, however.

For a small island at the tip of nowhere, Key West has had a number of “heroes” over the years.

Colonel Floyd Thompson is one.

On this day in 1988, he received the Prisoner of War Medal from President Ronald Reagan. Thompson was the U.S.’s longest held prisoner of war. He spent 9 years in captivity.

My blog talk radio show last night. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. I spoke of nothing but Donald Trump. Contributed to my desire to get back to Key West itself.

One deviation to Key West today. Trump’s Phoenix Rally yesterday.

Trump preceded the rally to commemorate 200 miles of “new” wall in Yuma, Arizona.

Oh, how the man stretches the truth. Only 3 of the 200 miles were “new.” The rest renovated portions of the old wall.

Amazing. three years and only 3 miles of new wall!

Trump made a representation I doubt he can/will fulfill. He said that by the end of 2020, there would be 450-500 miles of wall.

Then it was off to Phoenix for a rally.

The rally was at a church that held 3,000. All seats were filled. College students. Closely sitting together. I doubt there were more than a dozen wearing masks.

Donald was protected however. He was seated in the middle of a stage as he spoke. A man seated to each side of him. Fifteen to twenty feet away on each side.

Typical Trump selfishness. Protect me, but to hell with the 3,000 teenagers who came to see and honor him with their presence.

The rally was a complete no protection event. No temperature taking, no masks, and no social distancing.

Enjoy your day!

 

10 comments on “A KEY WEST STORY THAT SHOWS THE NEED FOR A BLACK LIVES MATTER

  1. This morning I read that the pastor of that megachurch said they had just installed a new filtration system that kills 99 percent of the Covid-19 virus/bacteria within 10 minutes. According to the manufacturer, that is not true. It supposedly kills “a” type of coronavirus, but not the Covid-19 or nuevo coronavirus. Guess they sold that kool-aide to the 3000 unprotected attendees. Sad, very sad.

  2. As the panther herd gets smaller there probably is more close interbreeding, not a good thing for any species genetically speaking.

    • Ignore them Lou, they are the ones who spend their time trolling your blog just to try and start arguments so they can complain about not being allowed to spread garbage.

  3. Colonel Floyd Thompson—

    Trump wouldn’t give him the time of day, he only likes servicemen who weren’t captured.

    This ends in November.

  4. Maybe Trump will hold his next rally in a phonebooth somewhere so he will have a better chance of filling it up.

  5. The president of the United States held a large and official political rally event this past Tuesday in a Church.

    Any of you constitution people out there willing to comment?

    Further more he (America’s chief law enforcement officer) started and led a chant among the mostly students, of “Lock them up!”

    Any og you religious people out there willing to comment?

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