The purpose of this thesis is to examine the circulation of photographic postcards depicting lynching events in the United States, as well as the changing contexts and gaze. The initial mailing of the postcards to far away family and friends, some including handwriting on the versos, makes apparent the desire to spread white supremacist ideals across the country. These photographs, often depicting the victim’s suffering body amongst a crowd of people, were then placed in family photo albums, hidden in attics, or sold in flea markets. It was in these locations that collector James Allen found the photographs depicting lynching events that compose the Allen/Littlefield Collection, which toured the United States from 2000-2005 in the exhibition "Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography in America." Through the utilization of the accompanying catalog, I discuss the circulation of multiple mailed photographic postcards with handwritten texts on the versos, the reporting of lynching events in newspapers from varying regions of the United States, and the recent exhibitions of the Allen/Littlefield Collection, as well as art works reappropriating lynching photographs. It is my aim to illustrate the impact of context on the viewing of lynching images and how the gaze of the spectator changes over time.

The social purpose of American higher education is a question that has frequently surfaced. The Atlanta showing of the Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography In America Exhibit provided a unique opportunity for an institution of higher education, a government agency, and private citizens to collaborate on a reconciliatory project related to the social justice issue of lynching. The role of higher education has varied over the course of history, but the foundation for this study was laid when higher education institutions first developed an interconnectedness with the communities in which they resided, with higher education serving in a key capacity in the development and training of community leaders. This case study was designed to examine how Emory University, a private, prestigious, Southern research university, collaborated with external entities to provide educational opportunities for members of the Atlanta community to engage in discourse related to the lynchings that occurred in the United States from the 1870s to the 1960s. The case study method allowed for the exploration of complex social conditions from multidimensional perspectives. Interviews of individuals involved with the Exhibit and Emory University as well as document analysis were used to investigate the problem. The partnership was examined through a social justice framework, allowing for a full examination of the process and the outcome of the partnership in relation to the treatment of the subject matter. As a result of this study, a greater understanding of the role institutions of higher education can have in reconciliatory acts related to racial oppression and social injustice is provided.