Question

The murder of Emmett Till was one of the primary catalysts for the Civil Rights Movement and his murder changed the nation and really the world. After reviewing the timeline of the case, discuss your reactions to the case. Dominique's poem is both historical and personal through her ability to be creative. How doe she make the historical creative and how does she make the personal creative? Use 1-2 specific lines in your response.

Answer 1

In September 1955, an all-white jury found Bryant and Milam not guilty of Till's kidnapping and murder. Protected against double jeopardy, the two men publicly admitted in a 1956 interview with Look magazine that they had killed Till. Till's murder was seen as a catalyst for the next phase of the civil rights movement.In August, it will be 65 years since the battered and bloated body of the 14-year-old Till was fished from the muddy waters of the Tallahatchie River in Mississippi. His kidnapping, torture and murder on 28 August 1955 for having whistled at a white woman was a defining moment of postwar American history.