Emmett Till

The Emmett Till historical marker outside the Tallahatchie County Courthouse in Sumner, Mississippi, where Emmett Till’s murderers were tried by an all-white jury and acquitted. (Photo courtesy National Parks Conservation Association)

Decrying attempts to ‘bury history,’ Biden designates Emmett Till national monument

BY: - July 27, 2023

WASHINGTON — On what would have been the 82nd birthday of Emmett Till, a Black boy kidnapped and murdered by two white men in Mississippi, President Joe Biden on Tuesday designated a new national monument at sites connected to the lynching that became a catalyst for the civil rights movement. “Telling the truth and the […]

COMMENTARY

Did calling attention to the crime of lynching make a difference?

BY: - April 20, 2022

Recently, President Joseph Biden signed into law the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act. It recalls the struggle many in this country had to cut down on extrajudicial killings. As my college students and I found, calling attention to these illegal acts did make a difference in how many lynchings occurred in America, showing why recent reconciliation […]

Biden signs law named for Emmett Till that makes lynching a federal hate crime

BY: - March 31, 2022

WASHINGTON — Nearly 70 years after 14-year-old Emmett Till was kidnapped and murdered in Mississippi by two white men, President Joe Biden signed into law on Tuesday a bill to make lynching a federal hate crime. “Lynching was pure terror to enforce the lie that not everyone belongs in America,” Biden said at  the Rose […]

U.S. House votes on landmark bill to make lynching a federal hate crime

BY: - February 27, 2020

WASHINGTON — Lynching is not considered a hate crime under federal law, but that’s expected to change soon. The U.S. House voted 410-4 on Wednesday to approve a bill called the Emmett Till Antilynching Act. The bill would specifically list lynching as a hate crime, which is identified as a crime that targets people based on their race […]