Emmett Till Essay Thesis

The brutal abduction and murder of fourteen year old Emmett Till on August 28, 1955 galvanised the emerging Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s. Emmett Louis Till was an African American teen whose savage murder in the late 1950’s sparked a fire in the hearts of others, inspiring them to join the fight for civil rights. Despite the fact that his childhood was cut short, he had a very tough but enjoyable childhood. Emmett Till was an only child of Louis and Mamie Till, however his father who served in the military was executed while serving in Italy for “Misconduct.” He grew up in an all black neighborhood on the southside of Chicago. He was described by those who knew him well as, “responsible, funny and optimistic.”For example, at age five

Mississippi was a highly segregated area and Chicago however was not as segregated. For example, African Americans were not allowed to look at or talk to white women or men. Emmett was not accustomed to this. After working all day in the sweltering heat picking cotton, Emmett and his cousins entered Bryant’s Grocery and Meat Markets to buy refreshments. Emmett bought some bubble gum, however he was accused of flirting with or touching the hand of a white female clerk, named, Carolyn Bryant. Carolyn was the owner's wife. Emmett and his cousins quickly left, refraining to inform his uncle about the incident. Several days went by and they forgot about the incident, however Carolyn did not. She told her husband and on August 28 at approximately 2:30 am, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam kidnapped Emmett. They beat him brutally, and dragged him to the bank of the Tallahatchie river. They continued to beat him to a pulp. They then tied him to a metal fan and barbed wire, shot him in the head, and shoved his mutilated body into the river. Moses Wright reported Emmett missing to the authorities. Three days later, his corpse was pulled from the river. His corpse was so mutilated that the only way they identified the body as Emmett's was due to a ring he always wore that as given to him by his father that was engraved with his father's initials, L.T. His body was full of water and defaced, his eyes