Abstract
The racial domination that is showcased in the spectacle of lynching leads to an intersection of discourse, critique, and reflection on identity. Utilizing visual methodologies along with a critical theory focus, the documented history in photographic images and textual accounts provides a window to human leisure behavior as it is situated in a setting through displays of power. Tortured black bodies are situated in a reversed position of authority with those in power that have condemned them through a Foucault perspective, and the role of the ‘king’ or figure of authority that places judgment withi these leisure festivals of racial violence. The discussion of lynchings as violent acts of leisure in various settings creates a vehicle for the field of leisure studies to contribute to dialogues on meaning(s) of place and the significance of race, more specifically.