History isn't always a neat line of progress. Sometimes, it’s a jagged, ugly scar on a landscape that looks peaceful today. If you drive through Clarke County, Mississippi, you might cross the Chickasawhay River and see nothing but water and trees. But for many, that riverbank is haunted. Specifically, the "Hanging Bridge" in Shubuta remains a site of profound trauma because of what happened there on October 12, 1942.
That was the day two Black men lynched in Mississippi—Charlie Lang and Ernest Green—became symbols of a justice system that had completely collapsed. They were teenagers. Barely out of childhood, really. Charlie was only 14, and Ernest was 15. The sheer weight of that fact is hard to stomach.
People often talk about the 1940s as a time of national unity during World War II. But while American soldiers were fighting for "freedom" abroad, a different kind of war was being waged at home.
The Accusation That Started It All
It’s the same story you’ve heard a dozen times if you study the Jim Crow South. A white girl, 13 years old, claimed she had been harassed. In this specific case, the accusation was that the boys had chased her. There was no physical evidence of an assault. There was no trial. There wasn't even a formal investigation that would meet any modern standard of law.
They were just kids.
Charlie and Ernest were arrested and held in the local jail, but they never made it to a courtroom. A mob of white men showed up. They didn't have masks; they didn't feel the need to hide. In 1942 Mississippi, you didn't have to hide if you were "protecting" the social order.
The mob took them from the jail. They drove them to the Shubuta Bridge. And then, they hung them.
Why the Shubuta Bridge Became Infamous
The bridge itself is a character in this tragedy. It had already been used for a double lynching in 1918, where two brothers and two sisters (the young, pregnant Maggie Howze and Alma Howze) were killed by a mob. By the time 1942 rolled around, the bridge was basically a designated execution site for those the white community deemed "out of line."
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Honestly, it’s gut-wrenching.
The local authorities did almost nothing. The sheriff at the time, someone who was supposed to uphold the law, basically stepped aside. When the NAACP and other organizations tried to push for a federal investigation, they hit a brick wall. The local narrative was set: the boys were "guilty," and the mob had "dealt with it."
You have to realize how calculated this was. This wasn't just a random outburst of anger. It was a message. It was a way to tell every Black family in Clarke County that their children were never safe.
The National Reaction and the NAACP
Unlike many earlier lynchings that went unnoticed by the national press, the deaths of Charlie Lang and Ernest Green caught the attention of Walter White and the NAACP. They were desperate to get the Department of Justice involved.
They failed.
The FBI did a preliminary look, but the "lack of evidence" was a convenient excuse used to keep the peace with Southern politicians. At the time, the federal government was terrified of alienating Southern Democrats who held the keys to the war effort. Basically, the lives of two teenage boys were traded for political stability in Washington.
It’s a bitter pill to swallow.
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Seeing the Patterns Today
When we look back at the two Black men lynched in Mississippi in 1942, we aren't just looking at a "sad thing that happened a long time ago." We're looking at the blueprint for systemic inequality.
- The lack of due process: No lawyers, no judges, just an angry crowd.
- The age of the victims: This is a recurring theme where Black children are seen as adults when it comes to punishment.
- The location: Using a public bridge ensured that everyone saw the bodies. It was theater.
We often think of lynching as something from the 1800s. But 1942? That’s within living memory for some. My grandfather was a young man in 1942. This isn't ancient history. It’s the foundations of the world we live in now.
The Shubuta Bridge was finally closed to traffic in the 2000s, and it’s largely fallen into disrepair. Some people want it torn down. They want to forget the wood and the iron that held those ropes. Others think it should stay as a memorial. There’s a tension there—between wanting to heal and needing to remember.
The Reality of the "New" South
Mississippi has the highest number of recorded lynchings in the United States. That’s a heavy title to carry. Organizations like the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) in Montgomery, Alabama, have done incredible work documenting these cases, including Lang and Green.
They’ve found that these killings weren't "fringe" events. They were often supported by the local economic elite. The people who owned the stores and the banks were often the ones standing on the riverbank.
It’s easy to blame "rednecks" in hoods. It’s much harder to acknowledge that the entire social structure of the town was built on this violence.
Actionable Steps for Understanding and Justice
If you’re looking to actually do something with this information rather than just feeling bad about it, there are concrete ways to engage with this history.
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Support Memorialization Efforts
Check out the Equal Justice Initiative. They help local communities install historical markers at lynching sites. These markers force people to acknowledge the truth of what happened on their own soil.
Educational Advocacy
Look at your local school district’s history curriculum. Is the Jim Crow era taught as a series of "unfortunate events," or is the structural nature of lynching explained? Demand that local history—even the ugly parts—be included in the classroom.
Visit the Sites
If you are in the South, go to these places. Stand by the Chickasawhay River. There is a weight to the air there that no textbook can replicate. Witnessing the geography of where these atrocities happened is a form of respect.
Read the Primary Sources
Don't just take a summary for granted. Look up the NAACP’s archives on the Shubuta lynchings. Read the letters sent to the Department of Justice in 1942. Seeing the desperation of the families in their own words changes how you view the "Greatest Generation" era.
Charlie Lang and Ernest Green didn't get to grow up. They didn't get to have families or jobs or lives. They were stolen. The very least we can do now is ensure that their names aren't just footnotes in a dusty ledger, but are recognized as part of the ongoing struggle for a version of America that actually keeps its promises.
The "Hanging Bridge" might be rusting away, but the story of those two boys is still very much alive. It’s in the way we talk about policing, the way we view the rural South, and the way we decide whose lives are worth protecting. Understanding Shubuta is understanding the real America. It's messy, it's painful, and it’s absolutely necessary if we ever want to move forward.