article_snippet.sent: That comparison drew swift and sharp criticism, given the history of lynchings of African-Americans in the United States.
article_snippet.sent: Rooted in the racial ire of the Civil War, the extrajudicial mob killings of blacks, other minorities and people opposed to oppression of minorities were common in the segregated South.
article_snippet.sent: More than 4,000 people were murdered between 1877 and 1950 in 12 Southern states, according to a recent report.
article_snippet.sent: But lynchings weren't restricted to the segregated South, and lynchings have deeply scarred race relations in the United States.