Larry Hogan was one of the many people to attended an event honoring
Howard Cooper in Towson, Maryland. Cooper, a 15-yeard old boy, was lynched in 1885 after an all-white jury wrongfully convicted him of rapes within minutes. Unfortunately, Cooper's story is not uncommon throughout American history. Over time, thousands of Black Americans have been lynched and murdered as punishments for crimes they did not commit. In an attempt to wipe these unjust convictions from individual public records, Hogan has issued a pardoned for Cooper and 33 others that were convicted and lynched under unjust circumstances.
"My hope is that this action will at least in some way help to right these horrific wrongs and perhaps bring a measure of peace to the memories of these individuals and to their descendants and their loved ones," Cooper said.