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Councilmember Requested Item: Closed Session Discussions Relating to Labor <br />Negotiations <br />October 4, 2022 <br />Page 2 <br />3 <br />9 <br />8 <br />On August 20, 1892, a mob of men wearing white cloths over their heads with eye cut- <br />outs, including many “prominent citizens”, broke into the Sycamore Street Jail, dragged <br />Francisco Torres out, and lynched him by hanging him from a telegram pole on the <br />corner of Sycamore and Fourth streets. Mr. Torres’ lawyers had asked for a change of <br />venue, claiming that their client’s life was in danger. When his body was found at dawn <br />a place card was pinned to Mr. Torres’s chest, which read “Change of venue.” No one <br />was ever held accountable for the lynching of Torres. <br />This lynching has been considered the county’s darkest moment, the only lynching to <br />ever occur in Orange County and the last in California state history. This historical <br />marker will serve as a testament to Fernando Torres to condemn the vigilante justice <br />that occurred, the lack of action taken to bring Torres’ murderers to justice, and <br />education to our community about this heinous act of racism within our city. Only when <br />we acknowledge our downfalls as a whole can we move to right our wrongs and <br />deconstruct the racial and cultural barriers that led to the loss of lives. Everyone has the <br />right to due process and no one should fall victim at the hands of a mob motivated by <br />racist vigilante justice.