1. Mississippi: This state had the highest number of lynchings, with an estimated 581 victims, 93% of whom were Black¹.

2. Georgia: Georgia saw the second most lynchings, with 531 victims, also 93% of whom were Black¹.

3. Florida: Florida had the highest rate of lynchings per capita, with 0.594 Black residents being lynched annually per 100,000².

4. Louisiana: Louisiana recorded 540 lynchings².

These states were part of the former Confederacy, where racial violence was used as a tool of oppression against Black people during and after the Reconstruction era.

— "Strange Fruit," written by Abel Meeropol and recorded in 1939 by Billie Holiday