The Transformative Capacity of Commemorating Violent Pasts: Exploring Local Commemoration of the “Mississippi Burning” Murders By Claire E. Whitlinger A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Sociology) in the University of Michigan 2015 Doctoral Committee: Professor Margaret R. Somers, Chair Assistant Professor Stephen A. Berrey Assistant Professor Robert S. Jansen Associate Professor Kiyoteru Tsutsui Professor Alford A. Young Jr. For Baba ii Acknowledgements As I reflect on the many people who made this dissertation possible, I am in awe. During the years I have worked on this dissertation, my life—and this project—has been touched by so many generous, kind-spirited individuals. I can only hope to honor you by paying it forward. The fifty-three men and women I interviewed for this study related their experience to me with incredible candor and, sometimes, painful pauses. I admire your openness and your willingness to share your stories with a curious academic youngster from the North. Countless others welcomed me into their community and their homes, especially the parishioners at Holy Cross and the Payne family. You have made Mississippi a home away from home. For those amazing, thoughtful, brilliant scholars who generously agreed to serve on my dissertation committee, I am filled with gratitude. Peggy Somers spent many, many hours working with me on this project from its early conceptualization to its final chapters. She has read countless drafts of articles, fellowship proposals, and dissertation chapters, always providing feedback that is supportive, thorough, direct, and constructive. It was on a long walk with Peggy in Palo Alto that this project was first conceived. As we rounded the Stanford foothills, Peggy helped direct me through one of those challenging moments in graduate school where there are more questions than answers. She reminded me why I came to graduate school and redirected me on a path that would lead to a deeply fulfilling dissertation project. Peggy consistently challenged me to be a better researcher, a better writer, and a better scholar. Thank you, Peggy, for your mentorship and for your friendship. Kiyo Tsutsui has provided me with an amazing example of professional citizenship. Between organizing international conferences, presenting his work across the globe, and collaborating with researchers at foreign universities, Kiyo has shown me that one can be both rooted and expansive. He continuously challenged me to be more precise in my research methods and my theorization, and provided me with invaluable opportunities to grow as a scholar by inviting me to collaborate with him. Al Young’s interest in this dissertation project was an unexpected gift. He has offered keen insight on race and racial difference in the United States that encouraged me to think in new ways. I am most grateful for his calming words in the midst of the academic job market. “Do less, not more,” he said. Al, you were right. iii Rob Jansen’s keen insights and practical disposition made him an incredible asset to this dissertation and my graduate experience more broadly. Whether I was pained by a deeply analytical question or befuddled by professional norms, Rob provide thoughtful guidance. I admire his always-sharp analysis of theoretical and empirical issues, even when outside his direct area of expertise. Stephen Berrey was an invaluable resource regarding Mississippi history and introduced me to authors and arguments I might have otherwise overlooked. He coached me through my first presentation at a history conference (never had I felt more like a sociologist!) and offered frequent words of encouragement in the final stages of this project. Your confidence that I would complete this dissertation helped keep me going. My family has remained a source of unwavering support. From early on, they nurtured my sociological imagination by allowing me to explore people, places, and cultures, even when it took me far away from them. They were my biggest cheerleaders even though there were no sidelines to sit on and academic “victories” sounded like jibberish (e.g. “That’s fantastic! But what’s an R&R?”). Mom, thanks for all the after-work calls and for being my most dependable editor. Dad, thank you for driving me to “City Teens” in East Menlo Park all those years ago and for never questioning how long this degree was taking. J.J., Kat. Trey, and Rhys, I can’t wait to see you in Greenville! None of this would have been possible without fantastic teachers and mentors at George Washington University. Ivy Ken, Daina Stukuls Eglitis, Andrew Zimmerman, Mike Wenger, and Samantha Friedman, thank you. You introduced me to a discipline and a career that continues to bring me more joy than I could have hoped for. As I begin my career as a professor, I draw great inspiration from my interactions with you. Other friends, family, and colleagues played key supporting roles in this journey. Thanks to Barbara Anderson, John Romani, Sandra Levitsky, Karyn Lacy, Pam Brandwein, Howard Kimeldorf, Sarah Burgard, Jim Campbell, David Cunningham, and Raj Ghoshal. Special thanks to my “family of friends” who made Ann Arbor home: Kerri Nicoll, Chris Leyda, Emily Bosk, Ethan Schoolman, Alex Jakle, Alex Von Hagen Jamar, Betsy Bringewatt, John Bringewatt, Tova Walsh, Allison Dale-Riddle, Molly Reynolds, Joel Rhuter, and Ariana Orozco. And lastly, to my crazy love Jean-Baptiste….What forces of the universe brought this blues- loving, soul food-appreciating, French/German auteur into my life, I will never know—but am forever grateful. In Mississippi, you challenged me to take risks I might not have on my own; in Germany, you nursed me back to health; in Ann Arbor, you made our home a refuge. When my turn comes to support you through an all-consuming, multi-year project (and it will soon, I expect) I look forward to showering you with the same love, respect, comfort, and enthusiasm. This research was enabled by the generous financial support of the Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies; the Rackham Graduate School at the University of Michigan (One- Term Dissertation Fellowship, Conference Travel Grants); the Sociology Department at the iv University of Michigan (Pre-Dissertation Fellowship, Dissertation Fellowship, Small Grants); and a research grant from the Norm Bodine Fellowship Fund. The second chapter of this dissertation (Countermemory to Collective Memory) is a revised version of an article that will appear in Sociological Forum this June (2015). The third chapter of this dissertation is a revised version of a published article: Whitlinger, Claire. 2015. “Commemoration to Conviction: Prosecuting Edgar Ray Killen.” Race and Justice 5(2):144-167. v Table of Contents Dedication…………………………………………………………………………ii Acknowledgments………………………………………………………………..iii List of Tables……………………………………………………………………..ix List of Figures………………………………………………………………….….x List of Appendices………………………………………………………………..xi Abbreviations…………………………………………………………………….xii Abstract……………………………………………………………………….…xiii Chapters 1. Philadelphia, Mississippi, and the Consequences of Commemorating Difficult Pasts I. Introduction…………………………………………………………………...1 II. The Case: A Philadelphia (Mississippi) Story………………………………...4 III. Literature Review……………………………………………………………13 IV. Commemoration: Cause and Consequence…………………………………..17 V. Approaching Commemorations as “Events”: A Theoretical Orientation…………………………………………………...23 VI. Methodology: Counterfactual Analysis and Systematic Comparison…………………...….25 VII. Data Collection………………………………………………………………30 VIII. Overview of the Dissertation…………………………………..…………….31 2. From Countermemory to Collective Memory I. Introduction………………………………………………………………….35 II. Acknowledging Silenced Pasts………………………………………...…….37 III. Comparing the 25th and 40th Anniversary Commemorations………………41 IV. Theorizing Silence-breaking Commemorations……………………….……59 V. Conclusion…………………………….…………………………………...…63 vi 3. From Commemoration to Conviction: Prosecuting Edgar Ray Killen I. Introduction…………………………………………………………………..66 II. Previous Efforts to Prosecute the “Mississippi Burning” Case…………...…67 III. Pursuing Legal Justice for Crimes Long Past……………………………….71 IV. Event Structure Analysis: The Killen Trial ……………………...………….67 V. Theorizing Contingencies: Cold Case Trials……………………………...…95 VI. Conclusion…………………………………………………………….…...….97 4. Legal Justice to Social Justice: The Civil Rights Education Bill I. Introduction……………………………………………………………….......99 II. Background: Race and Education in Mississippi………………………....…100 III. Mandating Civil and Human Rights Education in Mississippi…………….104 IV. Event Structure Analysis: Senate Bill 2718……………………………..….109 V. Theorizing Contingencies: Legislating Curricula………………………….120 VI. Conclusion…………………………………………………………...………123 5. Legal Justice to Social Justice: The Mississippi Truth Commission I. Introduction…………………………………………………………...…….124 II. When and How Truth Commissions Emerge………………………...…….127 III. Truth Commissions in the United States……………………………...……129 IV. Mississippi Truth Commission v. Mississippi Truth Project: Defining the Scope of Inquiry…………………………………………...…..131 V. Event Structure Analysis: The Mississippi Truth Commission……...…….133 VI. Theorizing Contingencies: Civil Society-Based truth Commissions………144 VII. Conclusion………………………………………………………………...…147 6. The Transformative Capacity of Commemorating Violent Pasts: Comparing the 1989 and 2004 Commemorations I. Introduction………………………………………………………………....148