Willie McGee and the Traveling Electric Chair

About this episode

The episode explores the execution of Willie McGee and Bridgette McGee's quest to uncover the truth about her grandfather's past.

This episode includes topics and archival audio that some people will find disturbing. Seventy-five years ago, on the night of May 7th, 1951, close to a thousand people gathered around the courthouse in the small town of Laurel, Mississippi. They came to witness an execution. Willie McGee was a young Black man who had been accused of raping a white woman and sentenced to death. Six decades later, Bridgette McGee-Robinson teamed up with Radio Diaries to find the truth about what happened to her grandfather. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

People in this episode

Guest: Bridgette McGee

Topics covered

• execution
• racial injustice
• family history
• truth-seeking
• historical events

Keywords

• Willie McGee
• Bridgette McGee
• execution
• racial injustice
• Laurel Mississippi
• 1951
• family history

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Laurel, Mississippi

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