Sanity, Lynching and the Story of Joe Horn

Last month, an Anglo man, Joe Horn, shot two undocumented, Afro-Colombians in their backs, killing them, as they robbed his neighbor's empty home in Pasadena, Texas. Pasadena is an industrial suburb of Houston, full of oil refineries and chemical plants, with a shrinking white population and surging Latino population. According to the census, in the last fifteen years, the town has gone from over 70% Anglo to almost 70% Latino. Well, the white folks are getting restless. Afraid, enraged.


Now we have a one man lynch mob, supported by a chorus of frightened, angry people. To hear what this one-man lynch mob sounds like in action, click here to listen the 911 call as he takes his vigilante (in)justice. I have to warn you the tapes are frightening. Turns out the police were there already when Horn decided to take matters into his own, fallible hands.


And many herald Horn as a hero, worthy of praise. Do we not have a system of justice in this country? Courts and due process? Since when is it every man for himself? Is murder really the appropriate response when no lives are at risk?


It seems pretty simple.

Strike out with rage.

This is what happens.

Violence breeds more of itself. Off-kilter. Madness. Makes sense though deeply. Time to brush up on the history of lynching in Texas. Nothing new here unfortunately.


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