Mob violence is when a group of people become single-minded
against some person or thing (building, institution, etc.) and become violent. One
example would be a group of people who gather to protest in front of a bank,
and end up throwing rocks at the building. Another example would be fans of a
losing sports team who start throwing rock in store windows and burning cars. This
type of violence exists partially because people can become deindividuated when
they are in a large crowd. When one person in the crowd starts vandalizing property
in certain situations the rest of the crowd will follow suit.
One
news story I found about mob violence was of a riot at Iowa State University in
1953. After the university’s football team won a surprise victory at the
homecoming game, students began demanding to have classes canceled the
following Monday in celebration. The riot quickly became violent as students
started burning lawn ornaments. The mob was eventually dispersed by police, who
had to resort to using clubs and tear gas.
However, the riots began again the next night as students demanded Tuesday
off. This article views the rioting students as the offenders, and the
university and the university’s president, James Hilton, as the victims.
The
first bit of media documentation I found is a picture of riot police standing
in front of a sign that says “Stop mob
violence!” Another image I found is of a flyer, probably from the early 1920’s,
that proclaims lynching as “the shame of America”. This flyer, by the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is to gain support for the
Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill.
No comments:
Post a Comment