Today in 1925, Dr. Ossian Sweet and his family were attacked by a white mob in Detroit after moving to a neighborhood considered beyond the color line. In self-defense, shots were fired, resulting in the death of a mob member. The Sweet family was arrested and tried, with Clarence Darrow ultimately securing their acquittal. It took over three years before Dr. Sweet reclaimed his home, which still stands today.
TRANSCRIPT
After studying medicine in Paris, including some lectures by Marie Curie, in 1924 African-American Doctor Ossian Sweet and his family returned to America and specifically Garland Street in Detroit in 1925. Which was considered at the time across the color line. Today in 1925, Dr Sweet and family were attacked by a white mob set on destroying their home. Out of self-defense, shots were fired and a white mob member was killed. The entire Sweet family was arrested and put on trial. After an initial mistrial, the then-newly revived Detroit chapter of the NAACP hired famous defense attorney Clarance Darrow who successfully defended their use of self-defense from the racist attacks. However, after the incident today in 1925, it took three more years before Dr. Sweet was granted a repossession of his original house on Garland Street, which still stands today.