*Emmett Till’s relatives are seeking justice against the white woman whose accusations against the 14-year-old led to his lynching in 1955.
Till was visiting family in Mississippi when he was accused by a white woman named Carolyn Bryant Donham of whistling at her inside a grocery store. Till was kidnapped and viciously beaten for the alleged act, and his body was dumped in the Tallahatchie River.
Bryant’s then-husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother J.W. Milam were charged with Till’s murder and an all-white jury acquitted them of the crime. The two men later confessed to the killing in a paid magazine interview.
READ MORE: Senate Passes Emmett Till Anti-lynching Act of 2022 – Goes to Biden for Signing
Donham, who is alive despite popular belief that she died years ago, was named in the original arrest warrant 67 years ago but was never arrested or brought to trial following the lynching of Till. As reported by NPR, there is no evidence that the kidnapping warrant was ever dismissed.
President Joe Biden signed the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act less than a month ago and now Till’s family is calling for authorities to launch a kidnapping prosecution against Donham. Her wild accusations against the Black Chicago teenager prompted the lynching.
Till’s mother, Mamie Till, allowed Jet Magazine to publish pictures of his mangled body in an effort to show the world what racists in Mississippi had done to her only child.
“This warrant is a stepping stone toward that,” Jaribu Hill, a lawyer representing the family told ABC News. “Because warrants do not expire, we want to see that warrant served on her.”
“If we’re saying we are a country of truth and justice, we must get truth and justice … no matter the age or gender of the person involved,’” said Keith Beauchamp, creator of the documentary “The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till.”
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