Ocasio-Cortez and Pressley Urge Federal Probe into Recent Hangings of Black Individuals

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., have called for a federal investigation into what they describe as a "national crisis" involving the hangings of Black individuals across the United States. The lawmakers sent a letter Tuesday to Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel, urging a "thorough, transparent, and comprehensive federal investigation into every hanging death of a Black individual across the United States."

The letter cited "10 reported hangings of Black people" in 2026 and expressed alarm, stating that "the series of deaths raise significant suspicion of foul play given the role of lynching in our nation’s history." Both Ocasio-Cortez and Pressley shared the letter on social media platform X. Fact-checks on the platform noted that most of the cited fatalities have been ruled suicides by medical examiners or law enforcement.

Ocasio-Cortez's office stated that investigations should include independent autopsies where families permit, audits of local and state law enforcement probes, reviews of evidence, and a final report to Congress. The lawmakers also requested "robust data collection" to track such deaths systematically and transparently.

According to reports, only one of the 10 cited deaths, involving Tasia Fortune, 29, in Mississippi, is being investigated as a homicide. Terence Anderson is reportedly a person of interest in that case. Another death, of a father of nine in North Carolina, has been deemed suspicious and remains open. The remaining victims, from states including Georgia and North Carolina, have been ruled suicides by local authorities, with no indication of foul play.

The lawmakers, members of the progressive "Squad" caucus, referenced the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, passed in 2022, which designates lynching as a federal hate crime. Nearly 60 Democratic members of Congress, including Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., signed the letter. The Department of Justice and the FBI did not immediately respond to requests for comment.