The glass panels of the Lynching Victims Monolith are simple, etched with the names of more than 600 victims of documented racial killings in Mississippi, along with the attackers’ motives.

One man, Malcolm Wright, was beaten to death in front of his family in 1949. His offense? “Hogging the road.” Further research revealed that his mule-drawn wagon was, to his killers, moving too slowly.

The panels are among thousands of exhibits and artifacts inside the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the adjoining Museum of Mississippi History. Called the Two Mississippi Museums, the massive complex in sight of the state Capitol is a central part of the state’s America 250 celebration.