Today would have been Emmett Till’s 79th birthday. He was born in Chicago on July 25, 1941 , the son of migrants from Mississippi. That’s him on the left.
Remembering 14-year-old Emmett Till, who was brutally murdered on this day, August 28, 1955, by white supremacists in Mississippi. Rest in peace, Emmett.
This week, we bring you A Wreath For Emmett Till, a Coretta Scott King Book Award andMichael L. Printz Award honor book published in 2005 by the Houghton Mifflin Company and written by award winning poet, author, educator, and translator, Marilyn Nelson. Nelson is the daughter of one of the last Tuskegee Airmen, and keeping with the family tradition of making history, Nelson is a three-time finalist for the National Book Award, winner of the Robert Frost medal, served as Connecticut’s poet laureate from 2001 to 2006, and recipient of many other honors and awards.
In the form of a Petrarchan sonnet, Nelson shares the harrowing story of the 1955 lynching of 14 year old Emmett Till. Nelson was nine years old when this atrocity occurred and bore witness to the international outrage stemming from the case’s lack of due-justice. This notoriety led to Emmett Till’s mother Mamie Till Mobley becoming a key civil rights activist. Meant to be used as an educational tool for young adults when covering the topics of racism and hate crimes against Black Americans, Nelson creates a lyrical masterpiece of 14 poems that make reference to many other famous poets’ works, which our copy has a full set of notes on. The ending poem is an acrostic, made up of the first letter from every individual poem’s title, spelling out “RIP EMMETT L TILL”. Each sonnet’s title can be read as a line within the individual poem and can also be read as its own poem when compiled.
This country we love has a Janus face: One mouth speaks with forked tongue, the other reads the Constitution. My country, ‘tis of both thy nightmare history and thy grand dream, thy centuries of good and evil deeds, I sing… .
A perfect selection for anyone wishing to learn more about the beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s.
I saw Emmett Till this week at the grocery store Eve L. Ewing
looking over the plums, one by one lifting each to his eyes and turning it slowly, a little earth, checking the smooth skin for pockmarks and rot, or signs of unkind days or people, then sliding them gently into the plastic. whistling softly, reaching with a slim, woolen arm into the cart, he first balanced them over the wire before realizing the danger of bruising and lifting them back out, cradling them in the crook of his elbow until something harder could take that bottom space. I knew him from his hat, one of those fine porkpie numbers they used to sell on Roosevelt Road. it had lost its feather but he had carefully folded a dollar bill and slid it between the ribbon and the felt and it stood at attention. he wore his money. upright and strong, he was already to the checkout by the time I caught up with him. I called out his name and he spun like a dancer, candy bar in hand, looked at me quizzically for a moment before remembering my face. he smiled. well hello young lady hello, so chilly today should have worn my warm coat like you yes so cool for August in Chicago how are things going for you oh he sighed and put the candy on the belt it goes, it goes.
This is for all the “New Black” crowd. It could happen to you, too!!!
Relevant.
Very important that you note when this was said. Look at what has been taking in this country. At some point, people have to assess the situations for what they truly are and have always been.
Me in front of the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture sign, with the building in the background.
It is no secret how big of a disabled blerd (black nerd) I am, and my love for anything related to Black culture and history. During my hiatus from the blog, I took a much-needed trip to Maryland, and over that week and a half, visited the new Smithsonian National Museum of…
Filmmaker Ava DuVernay created the exclusive film August 28: A Day in the Life of A People. The film revolves around six historic events within the African American experience that changed the world, all occurring on August 28th. Through poetry, narrative, and visual elements, audiences are teleported to these moments—some painful, some hopeful.
Photo: Filmmaker Ava DuVernay (center) with actor André Holland and actress Angela Bassett on set for the film “August 28th: A Day in the Life of a People.”
Abolition of Slavery in the British Empire (1833)
Photo: Gift from the Liljenquist Family Collection, Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
The Slavery Abolition Act was passed by the British Parliament in 1833, effectively freeing 800,000 enslaved people in the British Caribbean, South Africa, and Canada. At the time, most enslaved Africans in the United States were still subjected to the laws of the American government which had not abolished slavery. Still, the passage of the act increased pressure for other colonial powers to outlaw slavery and laid the foundation for the Emancipation Proclamation which would come to pass 30 years later.
The Beginning of Motown (1961)
With an $800 loan from his family, former boxer and record store owner, Barry Gordy Jr. formed Motown Records. The iconic record company that provided a soundtrack to pivotal decades in U.S. history, and produced enduring Black musical acts such as Smokey Robinson,The Jackson 5,Diana Ross,Marvin Gaye,The Temptations,The Commodores,The Four Tops, and Stevie Wonder. On August 28, 1961, Motown released its first hit, “Please Mr. Postman” by the Marvellettes.
The Murder of Emmett Till (1955)
While visiting relatives in Money, Mississippi during August 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till was murdered at the hands of two white men. Till’s offense was flirting with a white woman, an act that violated the social codes that controlled contact between Black men and white women in the South. Till’s body was brutalized beyond recognition, and his mother, Mamie Till, was adamant that the world know what happened to her son. Till’s murder exposed the inhumanity of racism and helped ignite the Civil Rights Movement.
March on Washington (1963)
Photo: Gift of Samuel Y. Edgerton, Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
TheMarch on Washington for Jobs and Freedomwas the largest demonstration the Nation’s Capital had ever seen and was organized by Bayard Rustin, an openly gay civil rights activist. The gathering of 250,000 people, all from diverse backgrounds, was the result of efforts put forth by Civil Rights leaders Roy Wilkins,Whitney Young,John Lewis, A. Philip Randolph, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., among others. The march highlighted the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation which reminded Americans of the nation’s long pursuit to fulfill its founding principles of liberty and equality for all. The March ended with Dr. Martin Luther King delivering his ‘I Have A Dream’ speech at the Lincoln Memorial.
Hurricane Katrina (2005)
In late August 2005, Hurricane Katrinastruck the United States Gulf Coast, making landfall in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The impact of Hurricane Katrina was catastrophic. In New Orleans, failed levee systems gave way to an enormous quantity of water that flooded the city in a matter of hours. In total, Katrina claimed 2,000 lives and caused about $100 billion in damage. The devastation was captured on both national and international newscasts and many Americans believed that the federal government failed to meet the needs of the most vulnerable. Today, New Orleans and other communities are still rebuilding.
Barack Obama Accepts Nomination as Democratic Candidate for US President (2008)
Photo: Pinback button from the 2008 Obama campaign, Gift of M. Denise Dennis, Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
On August 28, 2008, Illinois SenatorBarack Obama accepted the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Since he had announced his candidacy in February that year, Obama had run on a campaign of change and hope for a brighter tomorrow. By June, Obama had won enough votes to secure the Democratic party nomination—becoming the first African American major party candidate. On November 4th, Obama was elected president of the United States, a victory with profound meaning for African Americans.
OurCommunity Day commemorates these historic events, which all occurred on August 28th, and their impact on African American daily life.
