If Emmett Till had not been lynched in Mississippi, he might have been celebrating his 80th birthday this weekend.
Till, who was a Chicago native, was tortured and killed for allegedly offending a white woman in Money, Mississippi, in 1955. He was just 14-years-old.
His mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, insisted on an open casket funeral so that people would have to confront the brutality of racism. Photos from the funeral were seen by newspaper and magazine readers across the country.
Till was honored on Saturday by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Chicago) at a ceremony at Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip. Till's 80th birthday would have been Sunday, July 25, 2021.
In March, Rush introduced bipartisan legislation to award a posthumous Congressional Gold Medal to Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley; companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
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ramathore44 on July 26th, 2021 at 02:20 UTC »
Bob Dylan- Death of Emmet Till one of the greatest contemporary ballots. Made me feel like i was watching it happen. A shame what went on in America during those times of misinformation and racism.
Born_Supermarket on July 25th, 2021 at 22:22 UTC »
The two guys who killed Emmett Till were found not guilty . They then got paid to be interviewed for an article admitting they did it .
very_excited on July 25th, 2021 at 19:18 UTC »
It's crazy that this wasn't even that long ago. The white woman he was accused of flirting with, Carolyn Bryant, is still alive today. It's a stark reminder of just how recent the civil rights movement took place.
It's absolutely heartbreaking to read about what happened to Till just because he was accused of flirting with a white woman: