It’s an important day in the history for those who condemn racism and think that evils of an unequal society are nibbling on us from within, even today. It was on this date in history, August 28, 1955 when a young, 14 year lad who committed the alleged grave crime of whistling at a white woman in a grocery store. The young lad’s dead body was found in the Tallahatchie River some three days later.
The boy had come to live with his great uncle in Tallahatchie, having travelled all the way from his home in Chicago. He was given his due warnings to ‘behave properly’ while dealing with the whites by his family, his mother in specific.
The boy, oblivious to the polarized social set-up he was living in, didn’t know he’d have to pay with his life for a rather innocuous mistake of having whistled at a white woman. The youngster was kidnapped at gunpoint by a two white men, and was found dead later, badly bashed up and shot in the head.
The accused, judged by a white panel of judges were all acquitted, and didn’t feel any hesitation in admitting their crime in front of media. They actually thought they had no choice, as the boy would not bow down and plead for mercy. They had to kill him to put those n*****s in place, apparently.
The men who killed the boy, having been acquitted were not tried again, even after having confessed publicly of the murder. The brazen disregard for humans with a dark pigment by those with a fair complexion, however, triggered national outrage in the US.
Sixty years hence, much has changed, and much has not. Till is an icon of the sufferings of the members of certain racial origin through ages. Decades after the young lad unknowingly sacrificed his life to set off public outrage against equality, he is remembered by the society, including some of its most prominent citizens. A movie namely Till is being made by Whoopie Goldberg which is expected to go on the floor early next year.
His mother, who was shocked by her son’s death turned into a civil rights activist wrote two books and a play in her son’s memory.
Let’s spare a moment at this point, to think about the evils of prejudices defined by origin and colour. Let’s, for a minute ponder what we as individuals can do to eradicate the vice from our society.
