Congress Refuses Federal Anti-Lynching Legislation Through the 1890s

Despite Ida B. Wells' campaigns and documented evidence of hundreds of lynchings, Congress takes no action on federal anti-lynching legislation throughout the 1890s. The Lodge Federal Elections Bill of 1890 — which would have protected Black voting rights — is filibustered to death in the Senate. Southern Democrats argue states' rights; Northern Republicans prioritize economic legislation. Black Americans are explicitly told their lives are a local, not federal, matter.