The case into the 1955 kidnapping, torture, and murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till—whose killing helped galvanize opposition to racism in the South and fueled the Civil Rights movement—has been reopened by the U.S. Justice Department, news outlets reported Wednesday.
"The scar of injustice is deep, but we are convinced that if we can get justice and make this right for Emmett, America can begin to heal." —Deborah Watts, Emmett Till Legacy Foundation According to the Associated Press:
The Justice Department told Congress in a report in March it is reinvestigating Till’s slaying in Money, Mississippi, in 1955 after receiving “new information.” The case was closed in 2007 with authorities saying the suspects were dead; a state grand jury didn’t file any new charges.
Deborah Watts, a cousin of Till, said she was unaware the case had been reopened until contacted by The Associated Press on Wednesday.
The federal report, sent annually to lawmakers under a law that bears Till’s name, does not indicate what the new information might be.
In an op-ed earlier this month, Till's cousin Deborah Watts, founder of the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation, argued that holding those guilty of Emmett's murder—even after more than 60 years—is as essential and necessary as it ever was. Citing Timothy B. Tyson's recently-published book "The Blood of Emmett Till"—which the AP reporting speculates could be at least part of the reason the DOJ has reopened the case—Watts wrote, "Some have told us to move on, it's too late! Is it really too late for us to pursue justice?"
She concluded:
Who will now stand with us to make sure there is justice for Emmett?
There are so many other deaths that have gone unsolved. The justice system needs to right the wrongs done and work for us and other African-Americans and their families. No family should ever have to endure this pain and injustice for this long.
We are committed to continue to tell Emmett's story and our stories, educate and empower our youth, preserve the legacy of Emmett and his mother, fight for justice, remind the nation to never forget, and ask everyone to join us in pledging never again!
The scar of injustice is deep, but we are convinced that if we can get justice and make this right for Emmett, America can begin to heal.
The clock is ticking. Will you join our call for justice now?
