Summary
Emmett Louis Till was a 14-year-old, African-American boy who was brutally murdered while visiting relatives in money, Mississippi. Till's murder was caused by a simple flirtation with a white woman in a grocery store. The woman's name was Carolyn Bryant, who was the wife of Roy Bryant, the owner of the store. Four days after the incident, Roy and his half brother, John William "J.W." Milam, kidnapped, beat, and disposed of Till's body in the Tallahatchie River.
Profile
Emmett Till, an only child, was born on July 25,1941 to Louis (whom Till never knew) and Mamie Till. Louis Till was a private in the army during World War II and was executed in 1945 (three years after he and Mamie seperated) for willful misconduct while serving in Italy. According to The Biography Channel website, Mamie "defied the social constraints and discrimination she faced as an African-American woman growing up in the 1920's and 1930's and excelled both academically and professionally." Maime was the fourth black student to graduate from Argo Community Highschool and the first black student to make the A Honor Roll. While raising Emmett as a single mother, Mamie worked for the Air Force as a clerk in charge of confidential files.
When Emmett was six-years-old, he contracted Polio which left him with a stutter. Emmett was considered a happy child according to friends and family. He and his cousins often pulled pranks on one another and played baseball in their free time. According to PBS News, Emmett was "stocky and muscular, weighinging about 150 pounds, and standing at 5 fett, 4 inches tall." Many whites in Mississippi claimed he looked like an adult. Emmett's great-uncle, Mose Wright, visited Emmett and his mother during the summer and invited emmett to stay with him. Emmett agreed and his mother warned him that Chicago and Mississippi were "two different worlds and he should know how to behave in front of whites in the South."
When Emmett was six-years-old, he contracted Polio which left him with a stutter. Emmett was considered a happy child according to friends and family. He and his cousins often pulled pranks on one another and played baseball in their free time. According to PBS News, Emmett was "stocky and muscular, weighinging about 150 pounds, and standing at 5 fett, 4 inches tall." Many whites in Mississippi claimed he looked like an adult. Emmett's great-uncle, Mose Wright, visited Emmett and his mother during the summer and invited emmett to stay with him. Emmett agreed and his mother warned him that Chicago and Mississippi were "two different worlds and he should know how to behave in front of whites in the South."
Emmett's Murder
While skipping church, Emmett and some friends went down to Bryant's Grocery and Meat Market to buy candy. Roy Bryants wife, Carolyn, was working in the store that day. According to Till's friends, "Till had a photograph of an intergrated class at the school he attended in Chicago and bragged that the white children in the picture were his friends." He the pointed to a white girl stating that she was his girlfriend. He was then dared to talk to Carolyn Bryant. There are many different accounts of what really happened in the store. Emmett may have "wolf-whistled" at Carolyn, though his mother later stated that he often whistled to "alleviate his stuttering." Another story says Emmett may have grabbed Carolyn's hand and asked her for a date saying "Bye, baby" or "You needn't be afraid of me, baby, I've been with white women before," while leaving the store.
After being told what happened, Roy Bryant "aggressively" interegated any black man that entered the store. At about 2:30 in the morning on August 28, 1955, Roy and his half brother J.W. kidnapped Emmett from Mose Wrigh's house. They then put Emmett in a truck and drove to a barn at the Clint Shruden Plantaion where they pistol-whipped and placed Till on the bed of the truck. After discussing what to do with Till, they beat him and gouged out one of his eye's. They then drove to the Tallahatchie River where they shot emmett in the face with, then weighted his body down with a 70 pound cotton gin fan with barbed wire around his neck. His body was not found until three days later.
After being told what happened, Roy Bryant "aggressively" interegated any black man that entered the store. At about 2:30 in the morning on August 28, 1955, Roy and his half brother J.W. kidnapped Emmett from Mose Wrigh's house. They then put Emmett in a truck and drove to a barn at the Clint Shruden Plantaion where they pistol-whipped and placed Till on the bed of the truck. After discussing what to do with Till, they beat him and gouged out one of his eye's. They then drove to the Tallahatchie River where they shot emmett in the face with, then weighted his body down with a 70 pound cotton gin fan with barbed wire around his neck. His body was not found until three days later.
Effect on Society
Though a closed-casket funeral had been decided upon for Till, his mother insisted that it be open-casket. According to The Biography Channel website, "Till's murder brought considerations about segragation, law enforcement, relations between the North and South, the social status quo in Mississippi, the NAACP, White Citizen's council, and the Cold War."
The men accused of Till's murder were tried and acquitted by and all white, male jury. Emmett's murder and open-casket funeral "galvanized the emerging Civil Rights Movement."
The men accused of Till's murder were tried and acquitted by and all white, male jury. Emmett's murder and open-casket funeral "galvanized the emerging Civil Rights Movement."
