The Horrors Of Having The Wrong Colored Skin During The 1940s

The horrors of having the “wrong” colored skin during the 1940s showed an injustice that led to bloodshed across a country that was meant to be free. A fourteen-year-old Emmett Till was killed due to the lies of a racist woman and the insane acts of her husband. The devastating beating and brutal murder of Emmett Till fueled people to take action for the Civil Rights Movement and shed light on the need for societal reforms.

Emmett Till entered an environment completely different from the one he had once experienced in Chicago. The southern state of Mississippi held a standard Emmett Till did not care to meet. Many recalled that, “He did not hang his head or add the customary “sir” when speaking with white storekeepers” (“Emmett Till”). After

As Bryant’s husband, who had been out of town, heard about the incident, he and his brother, Milam, drove to Till’s home armed with .45- caliber pistols (“Emmett Till”). Mr. Bryant had every intent to scare Emmett Till. However, Till remained resistant toward them, and this infuriated Mr. Bryant (“Emmett Till”). Mr. Bryant and Milam then brought Till to the Progressive Ginning Company where they tied a large gin mill fan to his throat. They ordered him to remove his clothing then they shot him in the right ear. After shooting him, they rolled his body into the river, hoping no one would ever hear or find out. The same morning of the crime, Milam and Bryant were arrested under suspicion of Till’s murder. Three days later, the body of Till was seen floating in the Tallahatchie River. The mother of Emmett Till, Mrs. Mobley, was then informed of his death, and she insisted his body be sent to Chicago with a funeral that would leave the world in complete

Fifty years after the death of Till, the Emmett Till Memorial Commission formed to acknowledge the role of injustice by installing several signs throughout the area where Till’s body may have been removed along the Tallahatchie River. Not only this, but the Emmett Till & Mami Till- Mobley Institute, the Emmett Till Interpretive Center, the Till family, and the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis have created a museum that will honor the tragic story of racism between Black Americans past and present. The last living witness to Till’s kidnapping, Reverend Wheeler Parker, applauded the companies by saying, “I applaud the Children’s Museum and the Emmett Till Interpretive Center for their outstanding achievements and their commitment to preserving the legacy of my cousin, Emmett Till” (“Traveling Exhibit Honoring Emmett Till). Sixty-seven years after the death of Till, there is still hope to see a charge of kidnapping that led to the murder of Carolyn Bryant even as she ages close to ninety years old. (“Why the Family of Emmett Till Want Authorities to Serve a 67-year-old Arrest Warrant”). A box labeled 1955 was found in the basement of a Mississippi courthouse with everything that was needed- the affidavit, warrant, and the capias. Jaribu Hill, the attorney for the family of Emmett Till, recalled, “We considered it to be somewhat miraculous since all of the officials had been