The 1970 Augusta Riot Observance Committee wants to publicize an exciting new door that opened last summer: the Department of Justice is actively investigating the killings of Charles Oatman and the Augusta Six . Sponsored by the late Rep. John Lewis and fueled by the conviction that it is never too late to seek justice, the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act established the Cold Case Initiative to investigate unsolved killings from the Civil Rights era. Now, the focus of investigation is shifting to the late 1960s-early 1970s, seeking justice for Black victims of White violence at South Carolina State (1968), at Jackson State (1970), and in Augusta.

In the workings of the White-controlled legal system of 1970, all-White juries convicted two Black teenagers in Charles Oatman’s death and acquitted the one White police officer tried in the killings of the Augusta Six. The 1970 Riot Committee’s extensive research corroborates what the Black community of 1970 believed: that the real perpetrators were never held to account, that the judicial system failed to render justice. The DOJ’s new investigation offers the possibility that even at this late hour, some measure of justice can be done. We urge anyone with information on the killings of Charles Oatman and the Augusta Six to share what they know with the Department of Justice: Department of Justice; Civil Rights Division; 202-514-3847

The 1970 Augusta Riot Observance Committee strives to cultivate awareness, recovery, and justice for the community through education, conversation, and creative experiences.

Source: Black Panther Party/Gary Yanker, Prop Art (New York: Darien House, 1972):54

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