The Lynching of Robert Prager,When the United States entered World War I in 1917, the country was sw

The Lynching of Robert Prager,When the United States entered World War I in 1917, the country was swept away in a bout of anti-German mass hysteria. Teaching German was banned in schools, sauerkraut was renamed “liberty cabbage”, streets were renamed, towns were renamed, German breeds of dogs were kicked while walking in the streets, German books were burned, hamburgers were called “liberty steak”, and German immigrants and their descendants were harassed by zealots.  Among the many victims of this hysteria was a German immigrant named Robert Prager.  Prager had been born in Dresden in 1888, moving to the Collinsville, Illinois and becoming a coal miner.  Prager was a very patriotic man, always flying the American flag, proudly reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, and singing the National Anthem during baseball games. When the US entered the war, he gladly signed a statement pledging loyalty to America. He even tried to enlist in the US Navy, but was turned down because he was blind in one eye. None of this was mattered to the local townspeople, who suspected him of being a German spy because he was unmarried, had an ongoing dispute with the local United Mineworkers union, and was accused of being a socialist.On April 4th, 1918 Prager was grabbed by a small mob and paraded through town.  He was rescued by a police officer and barricaded in the town jail.  In the meantime the local mayor attempted to disburse the crowd, and ordered all local saloons closed early. However, one of the cops assigned to closing down the saloons spread the word that a German spy was being held in the jail. Within moments, a mob of 300 men had surrounded the jail, easily overwhelming the guards and finding Prager hiding in the basement.  The mob allowed Prager to say his last prayers and write a letter to his parents.  The letter was simple,“Dear Parents I must on this, the 4th day of April, 1918, die. Please pray for me, my dear parents.”Prager was then strung up on a tree by the neck, and hanged until he was dead.After the lynching, 12 men were charged with murder.  All were acquitted, the jury only deliberating for 45 minutes. As the jury was dismissed one of them commented, “well, I guess nobody can say we aren’t loyal now”.The 12 acquitted men then posed for a photograph in front of the courthouse, holding American flags.Immediately after the lynching, newspaper editorials praised the actions of the people of Collinsville. The Collinsville Herald opined,“Outside a few persons who may still harbor Germanic inclinations, the whole city is glad that the eleven men indicted for the hanging of Robert P. Prager were acquitted. The community is well convinced that he was disloyal. The city does not miss him. The lesson of his death has had a wholesome effect on the Germanists of Collinsville and the rest of the nation.”The Washington Post likewise published,“In spite of excesses such as lynching, it is a healthful and wholesome awakening in the interior of the country.” -- source link

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