Mamie Mobley Till, was born as Mamie Elizabeth Carthan on 11/23/1921 in Webb, Mississippi. She passed away 1/6/2003 in Chicago, Illinois. Mamiep was known for her son, Emmett Louis Till, who was brutally murdered. Mamie contributed to the community, she was also a teacher, and a well know speaker and activist. Mamie was an activist for over forty years. Her activism extended beyond, what she did in regards to her son’s death. Her son death became symbolic for many lynchings in the south during the mid-50s. Following her son’s death she continued being an activist.
A large portion of her job centered around education. She worked throughout her life helping children living in poverty. For twenty-three years she worked in Chicago Public Schools Systems. She also established a group called the The Emmett Till player, which worked with children outside the classroom. The members learned and performed famous speeches by famous civil rights leaders,and the group still performs till this day. She was frequently interviewed for books and documentaries, which was shown and published later after she died.
Mamie wrote The Death Innocence; The story of the hate crime that changed america” and the “The face of Emmett Till, and the documentaries she was in is The untold story of Emmett Louis Till and Free at last: Civil rights Heroes. Why did she interviews and wrote those books is to show her point of view of what happened to her son which sparked movements around the country. Such as johnnie L. Cochran. Johnnie Cochran, has shared his memory of Till’s death stating “I was a senior at los Angeles High school in California.
His death had aprofound ffect on me because I understood that it could’ve happened to any of us. It shook my confidence. It was as though terrorist had struck but it was terrorists from our own country it made me want to do everything I could to make sore this event would not happen ever again. ” Mamie began holding speaking engagements soon after her son died. The NAACP (National Association for Advancement of Colored People). Hired her to go on a speaking tour around the country, and explain what had happened to her son, to a overflowing crowds. Making it the most successful fundraising tours in NAACP history.
Despite the tour being a huge success Mamie and the NAACP had to quickly end of the tour due to business dispute with executive secretary Roy Wilkins of the NAACP. Overpayment for her being on tour. Even without support of the NAACP, she still continued being an influential speaker throughout her enter life. During the trail for her sons murder by Roy Bryant and J. W Milam. Mamie flew to Sumner Mississippi on 1955 Of september. Mamie till gave a testimony on behalf of her son. At this time the case was prominent news, and she utilized that to speak about violence of lynchings.
After the murder of her son mamie developed a close relationship with african-american media outlets. Multiple media outlets were relatively new at the time of Emmett murder, she was still able to enlist their support. Mamie Till was a deeply religious human being. She drew connections between what happened to christ and what happened to her son. Which paved the way for Emmett Till as a martyr figure. With Mamie religious being she had no idea when she made the decision to send her son to Money, mississippi to spend time with her uncle mose wright, and would never realize that she will never see her son alive again.
Emmett till was born on 7/25/41 died 8/28/1955. He was inside of Bryant’s Grocery store meat market after skipping church with his cousin curtis jones. It was said that emmett interacted inappropriately with a white woman by the name of carolyn bryant. There are multiple accounts that state he may have or may have not actually interacted with carolyn bryant inappropriate. However emmett till was kidnapped by carolyn husband roy bryant and his half brother J. W milam. From his uncle’s house in the middle of the night at 2:30 am 3 am.
Roy and his half brother abducted emmett then beat and weight his his body with an oversized fan then threw his body in the Tallahatchie River. It took 3 days before his body was found by two boys fishing. Do to the brutal murder of her son mamie insisted on having an open casket the exact words she said was “I want them to see what they did to my boy”. Thousands of people viewed his body. Mose wright’s point of view when till was abducted from his home. Sunday morning about 2:30am. Knock at the door “I said who is it”. “Mr. Bryant I want to talk with you and the boy”.
I opened the door a man standing there with a pistol and a flashlight in the other”. he asked me if i had 2 boys here from chicago I told him I have”. since wright has broke language he said things the wrong way. “I want the boy the boy had done all that talkin”. “They took him and marched him to the truck and drove towards Money Mississippi”. Mamie Mobley-9:37am “l found out I got up and called my mother cause every time i got into something she got me out of Mother told me to come right over and she would start making calls.
Mamie Mobley “I believe the whole united States are morning with me and if the death of my sons can mean something tithe other unfortunate all over the world then for him to die a hero would mean more to me and for him just as him to die”. Recently Tim Tyson wrote a book called “The Blood of Emmett Till”. In this particular book Tim Tyson examines racial relations in Chicago and Mississippi Delta in the 20th century and how this case became an international story. Using oral histories from people like Mamie Mobley Till, and the only interview with
Carolyn Bryant a witness in the case, Tyson demonstrates the importance of Emmett Till’s story today. Roy Bryant and his half brother J. W Milam was paid by look magazine to say they killed till which they did once they admitted to that anything else the said had to be true because they just admitted that they killed a 14 year old. They thought til was some dumb he admitted he had sexual encounters with white woman and ima keep on doing it, and I’m good as you your grandfather. Mouthing off to them endlessly. She lied in Court.
Till apparently walked in the store and asked Carolyn for a date ,grabbed her hand, followed her around the counter grabbed her by the waist with both hands spoke with filth to her he told her that he had many sexual encounters with white woman before. She got away from him with great difficulty. She explained assault would be legally she left the store went out the front door got a pistol from under the seat above her sisterin-law’s car he whistled at her some of that true most of that is not. The story she was telling was true some of that was not.
The story she was telling was a very familiar narrative. Created at the turn of the 20th century to justify turn of lynchings to justify any length of violence against black people. Disfranchisement from voting. The story of “The Black Beast Rapist and The Southern white Ferris flower of womanhood, it was an old narrative already in the heads of everybody. They didn’t have to tell the jury this because it’s a well known story to white people. View days after the incident her husband Roy Bryant was arrested as to his half brother.
Carolyn was interviewed by the family attorney he took very careful and clear notes about the story. What she described was a boy who assaulted her,a boy that was rude,a boy who was annoying infuriating. Violated her racial sense ability, but there was no mention of physical or sexual assault. In her account to her private attorney. Couple weeks later she tells the story of the black beast rapist Carolyn Bryant:”Well that part is not true about the sexual harassment she also said “Nothing that boy did would justify what happened to him”.
