Emmett Till Case Study

The quote, “The more things change, the more they stay the same” can apply to many controversial topics, especially to the case of Emmett Till. In this case, two white men mercilessly tortured and murdered a young African American, Emmett Till. The result of this case ended up letting the two murderers free without any charges. Many people have found this as an act of injustice. According to Lester Banks,”The world will regard America’s sense of justice as a hollow mockery if the white men who brutally lynched young Emmett Till in Mississippi are not punished”(PBS). Emmett Till was not just murdered, he was tortured, beat up, strangled, and drowned in a lake. This was beyond the level of murder. It was a heartless act committed by people without

One of the comments was written by Mrs. Clara Sawyer stating,”If...a white boy kidnapped and brutally murdered under similar circumstances, there would probably have been a wholesale beatings and lynchings of the negro populace but inasmuch as the crime was only perpetrated by the ‘superior race’ they can literally ‘get away with murder’”(PBS). There were many more comments relating to the same idea that was expressed by both Lester Banks and Mrs. Clara Sawyer. It has been decades since the murder of Emmett Till and the days of lynchings have passed, or have they? Although decades have passed, racism and lynchings are still existent. There is still the sickly belief that white skin complexion automatically ranks you higher than those with a darker skin color. In everyday news, you hear of white men shooting and murdering people with a darker skin color. For example, the Laquan McDonald case proves racism and lynchings are still present in today’s society. Teenage Laquan McDonald was walking away when suddenly Officer Jason Van Dyke (a white man) started firing multiple shots at him. Laquan McDonald had no reason to be