2025/03/14 by Joshua Byun, Hyunku Kwon · 1 voice · 1 citation
Social Sciences · #Political Conflict and Governance #Politics and Society in Latin America #Race, History, and American Society
paper · pdf · doi:10.1017/s0003055424001187
openalex publication_date 2025/03/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
How can governments in racially divided societies protect vulnerable populations from political violence after large-scale internal conflict? When the dominant majority is bent on perpetuating its power and privileges in the racial hierarchy, benevolence by government interveners is unlikely to curb oppressive violence against subordinate groups. There is thus no alternative to using military coercion to crush insurgents and their civilian supporters. However, failing to maintain this coercive apparatus can exacerbate violence over the long term by triggering racialized revenge dynamics, particularly in communities that were occupied by troops of the subordinate minority. To substantiate these claims, we show that different parts of the postbellum American South experienced uneven spikes in white supremacist violence following the end of federal military occupation in the 1870s: counties that had previously been occupied by Black troops witnessed higher incidences of anti-Black violence than other areas. This effect persisted for many decades, contributing to the dismal climate of violence that prevailed during the nadir of American race relations.