DBpedia – Linked Data Fragments

Matches in DBpedia 2016-04 for { ?s ?p "The Martinsville Seven were a group of seven African-American men from Martinsville, Virginia who were convicted and executed for raping a white woman in 1949. At the time of their arrest soon after the events, all but one was between the ages of 20 and 23. They were quickly tried in six separate trials (two agreed to be tried together) and each was sentenced to death. All were executed in two days in early February 1951. It was the largest mass execution for rape that had been reported, nor had there been lynchings of so many men at once for rape. Under Virginia law, only black men were executed for rape convictions. According to historian Eric W. Rise, this case \"demonstrated the power of the southern legal system to enforce codes of racial behavior.\"The NAACP defended the men in court on appeals in an attempt to ensure fair trials, set precedent on due process, and gain a reduction in sentences. The case attracted national newspaper coverage. The Civil Rights Congress attempted to raise awareness and conduct a public campaign on behalf of clemency for the men. The NAACP appealed their convictions and sentences to the state and federal appeals courts, and to the United States Supreme Court, noting that since Virginia started use of the electric chair, only black men had been executed for rape in the state for what was a non-lethal crime. The appellate courts upheld the convictions and sentences, and the US Supreme Court refused to hear the cases. Newly elected Governor John S. Battle refused to commute the men's sentences, saying he was horrified by the rapes."@en }

• Martinsville_Seven abstract "The Martinsville Seven were a group of seven African-American men from Martinsville, Virginia who were convicted and executed for raping a white woman in 1949. At the time of their arrest soon after the events, all but one was between the ages of 20 and 23. They were quickly tried in six separate trials (two agreed to be tried together) and each was sentenced to death. All were executed in two days in early February 1951. It was the largest mass execution for rape that had been reported, nor had there been lynchings of so many men at once for rape. Under Virginia law, only black men were executed for rape convictions. According to historian Eric W. Rise, this case \"demonstrated the power of the southern legal system to enforce codes of racial behavior.\"The NAACP defended the men in court on appeals in an attempt to ensure fair trials, set precedent on due process, and gain a reduction in sentences. The case attracted national newspaper coverage. The Civil Rights Congress attempted to raise awareness and conduct a public campaign on behalf of clemency for the men. The NAACP appealed their convictions and sentences to the state and federal appeals courts, and to the United States Supreme Court, noting that since Virginia started use of the electric chair, only black men had been executed for rape in the state for what was a non-lethal crime. The appellate courts upheld the convictions and sentences, and the US Supreme Court refused to hear the cases. Newly elected Governor John S. Battle refused to commute the men's sentences, saying he was horrified by the rapes.".