# data[].attributes.body
Inside of both articles it can clearly be seen that there is no reference of a trial for the African American man named "Slick". I have found multiple sources of evidence that during the time of this riot the county courthouse of Lawrenceville, Illinois, was being built. The construction had been finished in late 1889 but was again refurbished in 1910. Knowing this information, the conviction of "Slick" seems to be quite unfair. There was no detailed explanation as to why the African American man would have been acting out so aggressively, so how could they have found him guilty?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
courthousehistory.com | a historical look at out nation's county courthouses through postcards

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
EXTERNAL USE OF IMAGERY All images are property of courthousehistory.com unless otherwise stated. If you desire to use one of my images for web or print publication OR if you wish to link to images on this site, please contact me with your request at Keith@courthousehistory.com.

# data[].attributes.body
This article was published by a different newspaper, and because of this, the information is slightly different. The location is Bridgeport, Illinois while the date is September 15. This article is important because it includes more names and gives slight more detail. It seems to be written with neutral favor, neither for the blacks and the whites. The article also does not seem to have a biased point of view towards Judge Barnes. I have included this article to show further detail on this riot.

# data[].attributes.body
This article was posted in the New York Times on September 17, 1889 about an African American riot that went out of control in Illinois. The riot itself took place in Lawrenceville, Illinois on September 16, 1889. Like most states Illinois had much trouble with discrimination against African Americans, there was always a form of racial tension in the air.

Around the time when the race riot was taking place, many political events were happening inside and outside of the state. In 1865, Illinois repealed the Black Code laws after the Civil War had ended. In this same year congress had passed the 13th amendment, ending the legal institution of slavery. In 1868, the 14th amendment was passed, giving African Americans equal protection under the law and allowed congress to enforce the amendment by any means necessary. In 1870, African American men were given the right to vote through the 15th amendment. In 1874, a law was passed that forbid segregation against blacks. Illinois also passed the Illinois Civil Rights Act of 1885 to forbid discrimination in public facilities and places such as hotels, rail roads, theaters, and restaurants. Looking at all the congressional laws that were passed, it can be assumed that there was a great amount of tension between the two races. The whites believed that all of this freedom was given too suddenly, while the African Americans are thinking that nothing is happening fast enough.

On Saturday September 16, an African American man by the name of Slick attacked a white man on the street with a knife. It was said in the article that they were both in the middle of a quarrel, yet the topic of discussion was not released publicly. Slick began to slash at everyone on the street with this knife out of anger. Coincidentally, Slick had run into Judge Barnes who was able to disarm and arrest him. The African Americans of the community heard of this arrest and took matters into their own hands by trying to rescue them. A fight had broken out between the determined blacks and Judge Barnes. A few white men had pitched in to defend the Judge and had successfully won the fight. The article does not specify where this fight had broken out or when. It also does not give any names other than Judge Barnes, who is of a higher stature. Four of the black leaders were taken to the county jail as prisoners. Another group of African Americans formed to rescue the five prisoners. They stormed the prison, and a white guard who refused to use his weapon gave the African Americans access to the prison. Judge Barnes then formed a band of whites to attack the blacks. The Africans had lost the battle and were imprisoned again.

Throughout this whole article, Judge Barnes was the only name mentioned. He is of a distinguished power throughout the county which makes all other characters seem unimportant compared to him. He is displayed as a hero to this riot because of his involvement in the violence pertained. But the African Americans who were looking for justice were shown as evil.