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Letter to the Editor, The story of the killing of Emmett Till

The story of the killing of Emmett Till is quite shocking, more so when heard first hand from J.W Milam, who actually confesses to the crime. To think that the crime actually went unpunished is testament to the racial situation at the time. Not only is the crime for which Till was murdered atrocious, but the manner with which society did nothing for close to 5 hours prior to his murder, is also appalling. According to Milam, there was no way that a Negro could be considered his equal. Bobo’s crime judging by Milam’s confessions, was thinking that they could ever be equal, more so even thinking that they could have relationships with the same type of women (white women). It seems as the saga progressed, it ceased to be about what Bobo Till had done the previous day to carolyn, and become more about what his actions signified. To Milam, Till’s actions symbolized the feelings of entitlement that were brewing amongst the African Americans, leading to a situation where instead of knowing their place, they were pushing for equal voting rights an end to open segregation which would allow for sharing of amenities as well as an end to discrimination of multiracial relationships. To Milam and probably to a huge majority of whites this was poison that was unfathomable. The final decision to murder Emett Till was arrived at by Milam due to the fact that during the few exchanges they had, Till made it clear that he did not know his place, and in order to make an example out of him, they decided they would murder him, not because of his wolf calls to Carolyn, or the fact that he sexually harassed Carolyn, but because he signified all that Milam felt was and could be wrong with African Americans.

On the other hand, the strained nature of the relationship between African Americans and whites, as well as the effects of the Civil Rights Movement, had instilled a sense of entitlement and courage amongst African Americans at the time. The fact that despite repeated abuse and beating from Milam and Roy Bryant, he felt in order to prove a point he had to stand firm in his belief that he and Milam were equal, proves the strong conviction with which African Americans held their beliefs. Even when faced with the last opportunity to beg for his life Emmett Till opted to remain defiant. It could also be argued that the lack of fear shown by Elizabeth Wright and Emmett Till showed that the efforts of the Civil Rights Movement at the time, were bearing fruit.

Sadly, the reasons provided by the courts for not convicting the two brothers, as well as the lack of action by other whites to help close the case and bring to murderers to justice, show exactly how deep the racial divide was at the time, to the extent that condoning murder is considered the lesser evil when compared with siding with Negroes. On the other hand, it could also be argued that their inaction showed that they agreed with the actions of Milam and Roy Bryant, a suggestion that might not seem far fetched, considering that it is plausible to argue that the mindset of other whites at the time might not have been so different to that of J.W Milam.

Work Cited

Huie, William. “The Shocking Story of Approved Killing in Mississippi”. Web.