On Nov. 10, Maryland State Del. Jeffrie Long, Jr. posted a picture of a human-like figure, whose head is hunched slightly downward, bound with gray duct tape, wrapped in what appears to be a Black trash bag hanging from a tree in Dunkirk, MD (Calvert County).

The black human-like figure seems symbolic of the racist lynchings of Black men, children and women. A source close to the situation said the figure was hung in a resident’s yard near the home of Dr. Andre Townsel, the first Black Calvert County Public School Superintendent. The Intersection reached out to Townsel for comment. He did not reply to our invitation for an interview before publishing. Dr. Townsel has not posted anything on his social media about the alleged event.

Over the photo Del. Long, who represents part of Prince George’s County and Calvert County, wrote: “Dr. Townsel, I have your back. I look forward to fighting tooth and nail to support and protect you. No right wing extremist school board, complicit county commissioners or the like will take us backward. Let’s be clear, Trump may have won the Presidency, but Maryland is a blue state… and y’all are about to find out!”

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The Intersection reached out to Del. Long for a comment, but he did not reply to our invitation for an interview.

The Intersection has not confirmed the identity of the individual or individuals who hung the human-like figure from a tree in their yard. On Nov. 8, two days prior to Long’s social media post, someone notified the Calvert County Police Department about the human-like figure hanging in a tree at someone’s home. According to the department’s social media post, the officers’ went to the home to investigate the incident. “The homeowner advised that his family had decorated for Halloween and that the object in question was part of a larger display put up in the spirit of the holiday,” the police wrote on their social media posts.

Additionally, the police wrote: “Other neighbors not directly involved in the incident confirmed that they had seen the object in various locations around the yard for the past two weeks”

Sources close to the situation, who don’t want to be named due to their standing in the community, disputed parts of the investigative unit's narrative. They allege the human-like figure hanging from the tree was not a part of the original arrangement of the Halloween display. The human-like object was a part of a display that was arranged on the ground. Parts of that display were removed for the Halloween display and the only object that remained was the human-like object. Sources alleged that it wasn’t until after the election of Donald Trump that the human-like object appeared hanging from a tree.

“When the police wrote in their social media post that the human-like object hanging from a tree was a part of the homeowners’ Halloween display, that’s not right,” sources said. “It was never up.”

“I would question if the object was part of a Halloween display,” said Kassie Sherry, a resident of North Beach. “What made the homeowner then hang it from a tree, especially after Halloween?”

The residents removed the human-like figure. However, it’s not clear what motivated that person to do so. Sherry said someone hanging a human-like figure from a tree impacts the community “a great deal.”

“Though I am glad this was investigated and removed, It is offensive to Black people and their ancestors,” said Sherry. “Hanging bodies and gory Halloween decorations are not the same. Hanging bodies can and have created trauma for people. What if your non-white daughter or son sees a hanging body in their neighbors yard? Not just on Halloween night while trick or treating, but for days and weeks after? What message does that…send? Let’s really think about that. With social media being so big right now, and the way of the future, everything gets put online. So it’s not just the kids, neighbors or people who drove by that house every day who saw it. And even if it is your white son or daughter. Are we going to erase history? Or are we going to educate our future generations?”

Human-like figures strung up with a rope have happened several times around the US since around 2018. Community members around the country have rallied against other neighbors hanging up similar figures during Halloween. The human-like figure, hanging from a tree, has been used in several Halloween displays. The first display of such an artifact, according to reported articles, may have started around 2018 in Illinois. In February 2024, residents in South Carolina complained about a neighbor hanging a human-like figure from a tree. Eventually, the neighbor took it down.

What is also true is that Calvert County has a history of displaying racist signs. In 2021, five high school students vandalized Calvert High School by writing “FUCK NIGGERS” on its football field. They also broke into the school building. The five high school students were charged with a hate crime.

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White people in the United States have a history of punishing Black people with extra-judicial killings. According to the Equal Justice Initiative, white people lynched over 4,000 Black people between 1877-1950. We should note that this number is based upon newspaper reports of lynchings. It is possible that there were much more.

““I hope when I have children of my own, we can trick or treat, look at Christmas lights, drive to school, and not have to worry about seeing things like this. I hope our community continues to do better for everyone that resides here. I think people need to remember even if it doesn’t impact you directly; it does impact someone in your community, whether it be your child, your best friend, a coworker, etc.”

— Kassie Sherry, Calvert County resident

Maryland has a total of 28 recorded lynchings. On record, Calvert and St. Mary’s counties have combined 2 recorded lynchings. Lynching was and is a brutal act. Black men were often lynched due to white people’s false accusations of illegal activity. More specifically, white women accused Black men of raping them. White men – often with the aid of local law enforcement– would retaliate by publicly lynching Black men. This is what happened to Charles Whitley, who was accused of harming his slave masters’ daughter, Annie. He was incarcerated at the Prince Frederick jail. Later that night, a mob of white people came and aggressively dragged him out to the prison. The mob took him to a tree, a mile away from the prison, tied a noose around his neck and hung him. Whitley hung there all night. He was found dead while still hanging from that tree.

Such violent acts were not only used as efforts for retaliation, but also to intimidate. White people would often photograph themselves standing alongside chard Black bodies swinging from a tree. They would make postcards and even collect Black peoples’ body parts as souvenirs.

Any replica of a Black person hanging from a tree, or a noose displayed in public places are often considered signs of intimidation.

“I hope when I have children of my own, we can trick or treat, look at Christmas lights, drive to school, and not have to worry about seeing things like this,” said Sherry. “I hope our community continues to do better for everyone that resides here. I think people need to remember even if it doesn’t impact you directly; it does impact someone in your community, whether it be your child, your best friend, a coworker, etc.”