In 1981, one of the last recorded lynchings in the United States took place in Mobile, Alabama.
Nineteen-year-old Michael Donald was kidnapped, brutally beaten, and hanged from a tree by members of the Ku Klux Klan in a chilling act of racial terror.
But his mother, Beulah Mae Donald, refused to let her son’s murder be forgotten. Instead, she fought relentlessly for justice—securing criminal convictions for his killers and delivering a crushing legal blow to the Klan that bankrupted one of its most notorious factions.
A Mother’s Unimaginable Loss
Beulah Mae Donald was a mother of seven, living in public housing in Mobile, when her youngest son, Michael, was lynched on March 21, 1981.
His murder was orchestrated by members of the United Klans of America, the same faction responsible for the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham.
That night, Klansmen Henry Hays and James “Tiger” Knowles abducted Michael at random, brutally beat him, cut his throat, and hanged his body from a tree on Herndon Avenue. To celebrate, other Klan members burned a cross in front of the Mobile County courthouse.
Despite the brutality of the crime, local law enforcement was slow to act.
Investigators initially attempted to frame the murder as drug-related, and justice seemed like a distant hope. But Beulah Mae Donald refused to accept silence and inaction.
A Relentless Pursuit of Justice
Determined to find her son’s killers, Beulah Mae worked tirelessly, urging authorities to investigate the murder as a racially motivated hate crime. For more than two years, she met with law enforcement officials, including U.S. Attorney Thomas Figures, a Black prosecutor who played a critical role in the case. With pressure mounting from Beulah Mae and civil rights activists, the FBI reopened the case.
In 1983, Henry Hays and James Knowles were arrested and charged with capital murder. Knowles pleaded guilty and testified against Hays, who was convicted and sentenced to death.
In 1997, Hays was executed—the first time a white man had been put to death in Alabama for killing a Black person since 1913. His execution sent a powerful message, but Beulah Mae wasn’t done yet.
The Lawsuit That Bankrupted the Klan
Beulah Mae Donald knew that justice in a courtroom wasn’t enough. She wanted to ensure that no other Black family endured what she had. So, in 1984, she took the fight to the organization that enabled her son’s murder: the United Klans of America.
With the help of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), she filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Klan, arguing that its leaders bore responsibility for Michael’s death.
The lawsuit went to trial in 1987, and the jury agreed with Beulah Mae. They awarded her a $7 million verdict, effectively bankrupting the United Klans of America. The judgment forced the organization to surrender its national headquarters in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which was then sold to help pay damages.
The ruling marked one of the most significant legal defeats for the Klan in U.S. history, proving that hate groups could be held financially accountable for their acts of violence.
A Legacy That Lives On
Less than a year after her historic victory, Beulah Mae Donald passed away on September 17, 1988.
Though she did not live to see the full impact of her courage, her fight changed the course of history. Her case set a legal precedent for civil rights organizations to use civil lawsuits as a tool to dismantle white supremacist groups.
Today, Beulah Mae Donald’s legacy remains a testament to the power of perseverance and justice. Her courage ensured that her son’s killers were held accountable and helped dismantle a faction of one of the most notorious hate groups in American history.
Beulah Mae Donald didn’t just fight for her son—she fought for justice for all.
