Coercion and Resistance: What the Vicksburg Hearings Reveal About American Power

From voter suppression to political erasure, how the Vicksburg hearings mirror the battles we still face

In my last post, I introduced you to the Congressional investigation into the Vicksburg Massacre of 1874 — a little-known but deeply revealing chapter in American history.

Now, we go deeper.

The section known as the Statement of Facts was Congress’s official account after investigating what happened in Vicksburg. It is dry, clinical in tone — but devastating in content.

These were not isolated outbursts. The committee found evidence of a planned political takeover — where white citizens of Warren County conspired to dismantle a legally elected government, expel Black officeholders, and reassert control through violence, intimidation, and fear.

In this deep dive, I’ll walk you through the original text with screengrabs from the record, alongside my own reflections on what it meant then — and what it still means now.

Before we begin, I just want to remind you of who were on the committee.