Emmett Louis Till Thesis

The 1950s were full of important achievements for African Americans. The United States Supreme Court had recently declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional in the Brown v. Board of Education case. However, segregation, and racial acts still took place every day. One of the most predominant events that took place in the 1950’s was the murder of fourteen-year-old Emmett Till. Emmett Till’s murder took place before the Civil Rights Movement had fully skyrocketed, his death invigorated the Civil Rights Movement and motivated people like Martin Luther King Jr., and Rosa Parks. Emmett Till was murdered because of false accusations and for being a black boy in the 1950’s.

African Americans were freed from slavery in 1865 and were granted civil rights in 1875. However, In the 1950s and 60s African Americans were restricted under Jim Crow laws, these laws segregated African Americans into “Separate but Equal” facilities and prohibited them from doing things we do normally today. On August 28th, 1955 a young African American boy was kidnapped, tortured and murdered for allegedly whistling at a Caucasian store owner. This young boy was known as Emmett Louis “Bobo” Till. Emmett Till’s murder outraged the African American community and aided the push for desegregation and equality amongst all Americans regardless of race on a national level. As tragic as his murder was, Emmett Till became an important symbol during the Civil Rights Movement.

Emmett Till’s deformed body lead to a new idea. The new idea was like a spark to tinder. In 1955 in Leslie Millhams barn Emmett Till was dragged from a ford truck and the next thing a whip sound pierces the starry night. And a strangled cry from Till rings out from the barn. The men drag Till back to the truck and throws him into the bed of the truck and blood starts to trickle out of the bed of the truck. Emmett Till 's death impudent the civil rights movement by showing the world how cruel people were to African americans. Which caused people to fight for a change.

The unfortunate events leading up to Emmett Louis Till’s death and unfair trial were for one reason only- he was black. “The word is some nigra boy from Chicago made ugly remarks and then whistled to Miz Bryant.’ The deputy chuckled. ‘Fool boy forgot where he was, and it’s a fact somebody’s sure to give that boy a talking to. It’ll do him damn good to learn how things work here in the Delta”(107). Emmetts actions were of course inappropriate, but a reasonable punishment would’ve been something along the lines of what Mr. Chatham stated in his final argument, “if they had any idea in their minds that this boy did anything wrong- was to take a razor strap, turn him over the barrel, and whip him… A man deals with a child accordingly as a child,

In this PBS documentary, The murder of Emmett Till, Stan Nelson illustrates a racial hardship and crime against the African-American community. Lynching is a mob of Caucasian people that hang in African-American in a public place to show white supremacy. Emmett Tills murder trial was completely tried in a completely biased courtroom and there was even circumstantial evidence which places JW Millam and Roy Bryant kidnapping young Emmett Till, whose body was later found.I believe that in this murder and trial we see truly how far hatred and racism can rise by just one simple act. The murder of Emmett Till caused an uprise in the civil rights movement. Working Americans now knew that if there was going to change there would have to be a fight.

“Eyes on the Prize” focused on the civil rights movement in the United States. Some events that took place are: the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, the 1955-56 Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the 1957 Little Rock Nine. The prize was freedom, peace, and equality. The prize was obtained.

Many real world events inspired authors, like Rod Serling, to write stories and make TV shows. Emmett Till’s story was definitely a huge event that Serling was eventually able to write about. Rod Serling was an author that would write about important topics to always tell us or warn us about something if we aren't careful. Like many authors, Rod Serling was influenced by bird and important real world events and by some experiences he had gone through. At first, he struggled with being censored, but turned to science fiction to tell meaningful stories about events, such as Emmett Till’s death, and also many controversial themes like paranoia in “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street.”

Emmett Till murder trial changed the world the world by making people realizes that they have to stand and make a change. Emmett Till helped people realizes they have to stand up .Emmett Till helped black and white people join together. Emmett Till death inspired American People to demand justice for black people through his background, murder and trial and world wide impact.

Ch. 6: Discuss the main event of the plot for chapter 6. What significance do you think Emmett's and Hiram's interaction will play in future chapters?

Emmett Till was a loving, fun fourteen year old boy who grew up on the Southside of Chicago. During 1955, classrooms were segregated yet Till found a way to cope with the changes that was happening in the world. Looking forward to a visit with his cousins, Emmett was ecstatic and was not prepared for the level of segregation that would occur in Money, Mississippi when he arrived. Emmett was a big prankster, but his mother reminded him of his race and the differences that it caused. When Till arrived in Money, he joined in with his family and visited a local neighborhood store for a quick beverage. Upon arrival Emmett began to brag about how he had a Caucasian girlfriend back in Chicago. Knowing this was forbidden Emmett’s cousin listened in

“Emmett Till and I were about the same age. A week after he was murdered . . . I stood on the corner with a gang of boys, looking at pictures of him in the black newspapers and magazines. In one, he was laughing and happy. In the other, his head was swollen and bashed in, his eyes bulging out of their sockets and his mouth twisted and broken. His mother had done a bold thing. She refused to let him be buried until hundreds of thousands marched past his open casket in Chicago and looked down at his mutilated body. [I] felt a deep kinship to him when I learned he was born the same year and day I was. My father talked about it at night and dramatized the crime. I couldn’t get Emmett out of my mind”.—Muhammed Ali, boxer 13

hroughout the mid-nineteenth century in the United States, the reform movements that swept through the nation led to a great expansion of democratic ideas through increased rights and the betterment of the quality of life. Since the birth of the US through the early nineteenth century, the primary goal of all citizens and governmental leaders was to establish a solidified nation and to secure the laws and rights outlined in the Declaration of Independence and later, the US Constitution. Jumping forward to the 1820s, the young country faced numerous challenges to the prosperity of its citizens, bringing forth a slew of reform movements to do just that.

In the last paragraph on pg. 220 of Anne Moody’s Coming of Age in Mississippi, she talks about her fears that she has encountered throughout her life. I chose this passage because I felt that it was relevant to the story, because she discussed some of her fears throughout the story and how she might have overcame them. Coming of Age in Mississippi is about the author’s own personal experiences and encounters as an African American girl growing up during the time of segregation and the pre Civil Rights movement. She has faced many hardships as a young child because she was African American, but the one that sort of lead her to fight for her rights, in my opinion, was the death of Emmett Till. “Emmett Till was a young African American boy, fourteen to be exact, and some white men murdered him.

As a class requirement, we were obligated to watch a documentary about Emmett Till. The documentary, titled “The Murder of Emmett Till” was a tell-all about a tragic story of a fourteen-year-old boy from Chicago. Emmett Till was sent to Money, Mississippi to spend the summer with some relatives. In the 1950s, life in Chicago was different than life in Mississippi. Racism was stronger in the south than in the north and Emmett Till was walking into an environment he had never encountered before.

With the ability to transform ordinary mediums, artists create a new perspective. Bob Dylan uses his music to express a message in each of his songs. Bob Dylan is not only a musician, but also an author and a painter. He utilizes these different art mediums to spread awareness of the social and political injustices of the United States. Dylan began to write songs after his mentor,Woody, encouraged him to do so. He “began writing songs at an astonishing pace, including ‘Song to Woody,’ a tribute to his ailing hero”(Bob Dylan Biography). Woody inspired Dylan to create music to connect with others. “The Death of Emmett till ”, which depicts the story of a young boy who was beaten to death by white men, was Dylan's first ever protest song.