Biden designates the site of 1908 Springfield, Ill., race riot as a national monument

By Alana Wise, Juliana Kim, NPR

President Biden on Friday designated a national monument at the site of the deadly 1908 race riot in Springfield, Ill., a tragedy that led to the creation of the NAACP.

“Over a hundred years ago this week, a mob — not far from Lincoln’s home — unleashed a race riot in Springfield that literally shocked the conscience of the nation,” Biden said at the Oval Office signing of a proclamation to designate the monument.

The riot — which killed several Black residents and destroyed dozens of Black homes and businesses — exemplified the ongoing racial tensions across the United States, including in Northern states, which were stereotyped as being more welcoming to Black residents than the Jim Crow South.

“You listen to some of our colleagues and think ‘Oh no, no, no. We’ve never had this problem.’ You know, you’re going to continue to have these problems unless we talk about the problems we had before and making sure we solved them,” Biden said.

“It could happen again if we don’t take care of ourselves and fight for this democracy,” he said.

NPR explains what sparked the riot.

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