What Are The Key Events That Lead To Emmett Till's Death

Rosa Parks once said, “I thought about Emmett Till, and I could not go back,” (“Rosa Parks”). Many people know of Rosa Parks, but not of Emmett Till. Emmett Till was a truly inspirational individual who was integral in the development of the Civil Rights, but who was he? What were the key events that lead to further protests, refusing of Rosa Parks to give up her seat, and the speech of Martin Luther King Jr.? Emmett Till was one of many racism cases that existed in the United States throughout the 1930s. After being kidnapped and brutally murdered, it was mandatory for a trial to be held. The case of Emmett Till was a terrifying occurrence which contained a large sum of treachery in the act, an unusual trial, and a long-term effect on the

Emmett was born in 1941 in Chicago. Growing up, it was said, “He [Emmett Till] was growing up to be a happy, responsible boy who loved to make people laugh,” and that, “Emmett was born to be a leader” ("Emmett Louis Till”). At the age of 14, Emmett traveled to Mississippi with his uncle. At a local store, many believe that Till walked in, asked a woman by the name of Carolyn Bryant for a date and later whistled at her. This appeared offensive to the Bryant family, but Emmett Till’s cousin believes when he whistled, “I think he wanted us to laugh. It wasn’t sexual or anything like that. He just wanted to see our reaction” (“Emmett Till's Cousin Describes His Final Moments”). In short time, Carolyn Bryant’s husband, Roy Bryant, was said to have, “Abducted Till, pistol-whipped him, and murdered him. [Till’s body] was tied to a cotton gin fan [in the Tallahatchie River] to weigh it down” (Mayer, Michael S). The murder of Till was quite gruesome and caused strong disfiguration of his face. The body was later found. When Emmett’s mother examined the body, she decided to have an open casket in order to show to the world the terror of what actually happened. There, newspapers took photos and showed them to the world. Till’s mother later decides to take the case to court, even though it could have been potentially

While there were many other incidences of horror to the African-American population, Till’s brutality, open casket, and the racism of the jury led to larger protests and people from all over the states observed what truly happened. Eventually, the government finally stepped in and interfered with the conflict. There was a cabinet meeting held in 1955 where, “Brownell mentioned the mounting pressure on the Justice Department to investigate racial violence in the South, particularly the Till case” (Mayer, Michael S). After this, bills began to be introduced and freedom to African-American men and women came. Leading up to current time, figures of higher popularity speak of Emmett Till’s case and overall racism. In a recent interview, LeBron James, a well-known NBA basketball player, spoke of racism and Emmett Till by telling reporters, “I think back to Emmett Till’s mom… and the reason she had an open casket was that she wanted to show the world what her son went through as far as a hate crime and being black in America. No matter how much money you have, no matter how famous you are, no matter how many people admire you, being black in America is just tough” (“LeBron James: Racism Is Hidden but Alive”). Still, in current society, racism exists even in the wealthiest people. LeBron flat out states being an African American in the United States is hard. Those may not exist