Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights, and Murder in the Jazz Age

This is a comprehensive study of an event that occured in 1925 in Detriot, Michigan. During this incident, a black couple purchased a home in and attempted to reside in white neighborhood. Upon learning of this, the members of the neighborhood attempted to keep the couple from moving in and once the family had moved in tried to get them out. During the two days that the couple attempted to reside in the home, the home was beseiged by the neighbors and violence broke out. During this violence, a man in the neighborhood was killed. Following the incident, all eleven people that had been in the house were arrested and tried for murder. A trial began with Clarence Darrow leading the defense. Ultimately, all the members of the home were exonerated and let go. Most interesting to me in this book, were the ways in which this trial affected the community and the individuals involved from tremendous success to ultimately suicide. Though long winded, this was an interesting read.