Lucent Library of Black History

In 1931, nine African American teens were accused of raping two white women on a train traveling between Chattanooga and Memphis. During the first trial in Scottsboro, all of the defendants were tried, convicted, and sentenced to death despite medical evidence supporting their innocence. Subsequent appeals of this verdict turned the Scottsboro case into a high-profile example of the injustices that the African American community experienced at the hands of the American judicial system. This informative edition takes a critical look at the story of the Scottsboro Boys and the controversial train ride that sparked outrage across the nation.