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German-American farmer John Meints of Luverne, Minnesota, was tarred and feathered during World War I for allegedly not supporting war bond drives.
German-American farmer John Meints of Luverne, Minnesota, was tarred and feathered during World War I for allegedly not supporting war bond drives. Tarring and feathering is a form of public humiliation punishment where the victim would be stripped naked, or stripped to the waist. Wood tar (sometimes hot) was then either poured or painted onto the person while they were immobilized. The victim then either had feathers thrown on them or was rolled around on a pile of feathers so that they stuck to the tar. It has been used as a form of vigilante justice, political retribution, or a means of enforcing social norms in various parts of the world. The practice is considered cruel and degrading and is widely condemned These photographs record the plight of German-American farmer John Meints, who was tarred and feathered on the night of August 19, 1918 in Luverne, Minn., under suspicion of being insufficiently loyal to the United States. Like some other German-Americans threatened during the ...