A Living Record An independent archive
What this is
A Living Record tracks the deaths of Black Americans where the law failed, is failing, or may be failing, and follows each case until it closes.
Every case in this record is sourced. Every entry is tracked until it closes. When legal proceedings develop, the record updates. When cases go quiet, the record notes the silence.
This is not a memorial. It is an accounting.
Why it exists
In 1892, Ida B. Wells began documenting lynchings in America at a time when no one else would. She understood that naming was an act of resistance, that a documented death is harder to disappear than an undocumented one. Her pamphlet Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases was not journalism in the conventional sense. It was evidence. It was pressure. It was proof that someone was watching.
A Living Record exists in that tradition. The methods of racial violence have changed. The pattern of inadequate investigation, contested rulings, and fading coverage has not.
How cases are selected
A Living Record documents the deaths of Black Americans where one or more of the following is true: the official ruling is contested by family or evidence; the legal process was inadequate, absent, or remains unresolved; or the case received insufficient public documentation relative to its circumstances.
Cases are not added to the record without sourced verification. Submissions from the public are reviewed as tips. Every entry is independently researched before publication.
How cases are categorized
Each case carries a current status that updates as proceedings develop:
Homicide— Charges Filed.The official record confirms homicide and legal proceedings are active.
Homicide — Under Investigation. Death confirmed as homicide. No arrests or charges yet.
Death — Ruling Contested.Authorities have issued a ruling, but family or documented evidence raises questions. The record does not override official rulings, it records that they are disputed, and by whom.
Case Closed — No Charges.Investigation ended without accountability.
Case Resolved. A legal outcome has been reached.
How cases are categorized
Where official rulings exist, this record states them. Where they are contested, this record states that too — and by whom, and on what basis. A Living Record does not speculate. It documents.
A Living Record is independently maintained and accepts no advertising.
A Living Record is an independent project from Forum Veritas.