kathryn fletcher's 92-year-old sister, korea strauder, remembers what a mob in mer eval, missouri dido a black man accused of killing a white woman. >> they decided to put him, chain him on the roof of the school, and then set the school on fire. >> there was no evidence that this man was involved with her at all. but they had to pick up somebody. >> kathryn fletcher is one of over 70 elderly african-americans interviewed by the reverend angela sims for her "remembering lynching" project housed at the institute of oral history. >> if we don't capture the narratives now, they will be lost to history forever. >> angela sims, who teaches ethics and black church studies in kansas city, missouri spent two years interviewing african-americans who grew up in what theologian james cohen callsed chate the shadow of the lynching tree. they lived in fear of one. or in the case of 92-year-old willie matthew thomas, narrowly escaped being lynched. >> so one of them said, look, we going to hang him or not? and they said, sure we're going to hang him. so he made up the noose, and they put it round m