On Trembling Ground

In 1958, what came to be known as "The Kissing Case" thrust Monroe, North Carolina into the international spotlight. In that case, two young African American boys, aged 8 and 10, were charged with rape after reports they had kissed a local white girl. That case initiated three years of heightened racial tension in the town, culminating in the race riots of 1961, where Robert Williams was charged with kidnapping a local white couple, a charge that forced him to flee the country for Castro's Cuba.

Set against this background in the fictional town of Mason, On Trembling Ground is equal parts history, tragedy, and romance that follows the McAllister brothers, both seeking redemption in the tragic roles thrust upon them by the local circumstances.

Franklin and Harley McAllister have not spoken since Franklin stopped writing Harley letters from the front lines of WWII, having learned that on D-Day as he landed on Normandy, Harley abandoned their parents for the road and music fame. Over a decade has passed, and Franklin has quietly joined the Klan to preserve the "Christian way of life." But then, Harley returns, the prodigal son, and the growing racial tensions in Mason force the two brothers, long divided by their notions of family and country, to reckon with their pasts anew and pledge their allegiances with more at stake than ever before.

Franklin, feeling Harley has lost his mind to "colored" music and forgotten where he comes from, becomes consumed by rage at Harley's mixing with the "agitators" in town. Franklin's youngest son, Riley, starts taking guitar lessons from Harley just as Franklin is desperate to protect Riley from Harley's influence. At the naïve suggestion of their parents, Franklin takes Harley to a Klan meeting where he is asked to play in an all-white band for an upcoming rally. Harley refuses, pushing Franklin to the limit of his tolerance. Harley shuns the Klan to join an interracial band endorsed by the Robert Williams' armed resistance. With the Freedom Riders coming to Mason, it's an opportunity for Harley to be heard by a national audience, but it's the last straw for Franklin. In an act of revenge worthy of Harley's betrayal, he conspires to put a violent end to his brother's musical career.