About forty men, described as "respectable and wealthy gentlemen," broke into the building housing Birney's abolitionist press in Cincinnati and destroyed it, shredding newspapers and dragging the broken press through the streets.

The evidence

• “a "large concourse of our citizens" who made no effort to extinguish the flames. [ 3 ] July riots [ edit ] On 5 July, a race riot began when African Americans observed an Independence Day celebration. Although this had long been the custom of the blacks, some whites considered it as a demonstration that the blacks wanted full integration. James Birney attended the event, which helped stir up passions as he was a noted abolitionist. [ 7 ] On 12 July 1836, about forty men broke into the building housing Birney's press and destroyed it. [ 3 ] The men were described as "respectable and wealthy gentlemen". They shredded newspapers, broke the press in pieces, and dragged the damaged parts through the streets. Birney lost an estimated $1,500 in damage. He agreed to continue producing the paper only when his property was guaranteed to the value of $2,000 by the Ohio Anti-Slavery Society. [ 7 ] Following the press smashing, placards appeared saying "The Citizens of Cincinnati ..”

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cincinnati_riots_of_1836

  en.wikipedia.org, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cincinnati_riots_of_1836

  Grade B: Found on an institutional web page