Talk:James Cameron (civil-rights activist)
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[edit] "falsely accused of participating in (a) murder"?
According to some sources, it does not seem so clear that Cameron was falsely accused. Indeed, at least based on this Washington Post article (which is in fact quite sympathetic to Cameron), it seems that Cameron did in fact participate in the attempted robbery of Claude Deeter, who was shot by one of Cameron's companion during the incident--a fact that would make him equally liable for Deeter's homicide under the felony murder provisions of most U.S. jurisdictions, regardless of whether or not Cameron realized that his associate had a gun:
Cameron was 16 years old on Aug. 7, 1930, when he and two buddies, Thomas Shipp, 18, and Abram Smith, 19, happened onto a lover's lane in Marion. According to Cameron, one of the others decided to rob a white couple as they sat in a car. Unknown to him, one of the friends had brought a gun, he said.
One of the young men opened the car door, Cameron recognized the white man, Claude Deeter, 23, and decided to leave. As he ran away, he heard a shot. Deeter was killed. Hours after the slaying, a mob came for Cameron and dragged him to jail.
While even murder does not justify vigilante justice or lynching, of course; and while Mr. Cameron may well have later accomplished positive works; that does not make his involvement in the Deeter murder any less factual (if indeed it is factual).
So, in view of possibly conflicting sources on this issue, I think what would be needed here is an authoritative source that clearly states that Cameron was not involved in Deeter's homicide, before an assertion is made in the article that he was not involved or was falsely accused.
- Addendum:
This article from the Atlanta Daily World also appears to clearly state that Cameron did in fact participate in the homicide of Deeter:
According to Cameron, he was 16 when he survived an attempted lynching in Marion, Wis., almost 75 years ago. He had been with two friends that decided to rob a man in a parked car.
One of his friends gave him the gun, but when Cameron saw that the White man, Claude Deeter, was a friend that he knew and even had shined his shoes, he gave the gun back and bolted. Cameron said he heard shots as he fled. Only later did he find out what had happened; police arrested him and charged him with killing Deeter. They also said that Deeter's girlfriend had been raped.
Also, this USA Today article recounts Cameron's own admission to having held the gun in an agreement to commit a robbery (while claiming to have later fled):
Cameron, who has often told his lynching story, has always maintained his innocence. He says two older black friends gave him a gun to use in a robbery of a white man. When Cameron recognized Claude Deeter as a regular shoeshine customer, he dropped the gun and ran.
--Ryanaxp 15:18, 13 June 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Should Be Main James Cameron?
More famous than the movie director? Probably not, but wanted to make sure. Does it matter than he's more "important"? No, right?
- Well, I don't know if he's more famous than the movie director (whom I personally had never heard of until today), but I think you should request that this should be the main James Cameron article, what do you think? TamYum 20:45, 11 June 2006 (UTC)
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- The film director is a three-time Academy Award winner and the director of the highest-grossing film of all time... I believe that's a bit more notable. BoojiBoy 03:57, 12 June 2006 (UTC)
[edit] AP Article Says...
That a man professed his innocence and that is why he survived. Is that true? Add to article?
- Yes, I think it should be added, because I, too, read that in more than one article. TamYum 20:46, 11 June 2006 (UTC)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060611/ap_on_re_us/obit_cameron
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This article is part of WikiProject Wisconsin, a WikiProject related to the U.S. state of Wisconsin. |
Native of La Crosse, Wisconsin
[edit] Museum title
The museum is called "America's Black Holocaust Museum" -- so shouldn't the title of this article have the full title in the parentheses?
- Not necessarily. Title is just to distinguish him from James Cameron the film director.
[edit] plagiarized?
Much of this article seems to have been copied word-for-word from his biography on the Black Holocaust Museum website.
== I don't about that. I just looked at the link up above and while I don't have the article in front of me, I don't feel that the article was copied word for word from this website. (I was not the original author, incidentally). The biography on the Black Holocaust Museum website does not mention his life after 1993 or anything about his family. There is no mention of his death but I imagine that should be included soon.
I remember that I did edits for grammar and cut out a lot redundant sentences and words. I also added the information about his wife and children, as well as the documentary that aired on PBS, which is where I first saw his story. I also identified the two friends that were lynched and added the cite, which included the photo of the two. I also created sub headings for the article.
If the article in fact was deemed to have been plagiarized, then I hope that someone will replace it with one that does not violate the policy. Ladydayelle 19:09, 21 June 2006 (UTC)
