Words of Emmett Till's Cousin Set the Stage for Civil Rights March this Saturday (VIDEO)

The shocking images that tell the story of Emmett Till's torture and murder were discussed by his cousin, who remembers the night 51 years ago like it was yesterday.

Emmett Till's death rocked the nation and started the Civil Rights Movement.

(SALEM) - The story of Emmett Till, a 14-year old black boy murdered in Mississippi in 1955 should send a shiver down the spine of every American.

His brutal murder sparked the Civil Rights movement, and this week his cousin Wheeler Parker who was there the night they took Emmett away, visited Willamette University to talk about the crime that caused a nation to awake.

Wheeler Parker on Tuesday Photo by: Sterling Alexander

Parker was not the target of the racist aggression that night in August of ’55. They were after his cousin Emmett visiting Mississippi from Chicago, who had committed a crime that would cost him his life; Emmett whistled at a white woman.

In the middle of the night, the door to his grandfather's house was thrown open, and Emmett was taken by the mob of at least six white men, forced into a truck and driven away, never again to be seen alive. "It was terror," Parker said.

It was only 50 years ago that whites in the south murdered and attacked African Americans almost routinely, and lived in a system that allowed and even encouraged it.

Emmett's mother, Mamie Till, who lived until recently, wanted the world to see what she had when she saw her young son's body. "He had two of his beautiful teeth left, they were my pride and joy." Mamie said they cut off one of Emmett's ears, and used what she assumed was a meat cleaver to chop the bridge of his nose.

These students learned a great deal about the history that schoolbooks seem to breeze over. Emmett’s funeral with his mutilated, decomposed body was held open casket at the insistence of his mother.

A Civil Rights March this Saturday in Salem will pay honor and respect to the legacies of historic figures like Emmett Till, and also bring attention to the struggles of African-American citizens today.

Organized by the Salem/Keizer Chapter of the NAACP, the theme of the event is "Injustice in Oregon" The march happens from 12:00 noon until 3:00 PM this Friday, September 30th. The march will begin at Riverfront Park, and lead to the Oregon State Capital steps.

People interested in participating in the Civil Rights March will meet at Riverfront Park and depart at 12:30 PM.

For Emmett Till, there was no justice.
None of the overwhelming evidence, or witness testimony, was enough to convict white men of killing a black child in the deep south of '55.

Some members of the 12-member all-white male jury actually participated in Till's torture and execution. They said it took an hour for the jury to return the "not guilty" verdict only because they paused for a soft drink on the way to the deliberation room.

The child killers came out of the closet three months after they were found not guilty, admitting everything. One of the two brothers sold the story to a magazine for four thousand dollars.

Over 50,000 attended the service. 100 days later, an African-American woman named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus up to a white woman, and the American Civil Rights movement was born.

This video is from the brilliant documentary series "Eyes On The Prize," a chronicle of the American Civil Rights Movement from writer Steve Fayer and director Henry Hampton, courtesy of Google Video:

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WARNING! The video contains an image of Emmett Till's body during the open casket service. His face is mutilated and decomposed, and it is the image that shocked a nation into sweeping change in the summer of 1955.

Video

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It is a shame how we were once treated but racism is alive and well we should all unite as one

man the way emmett died was messed up

i dont understand how a man of black nature sleeps at night when he pratically killed a black man for a white he held someone who went through the same stuff he went through it doesnt make sense he said he didnt no what happened but it he did i cant even stand to even read the rest or watch it so many times i think i have it ba d but im far from it i think that that black who helped kill emmett is a descrace to all blacks he is to me.

Terrorism is alive and well. We still condone it when it serves us to do so. It is not isolated nor is it limited to the Old South. Emmett Till was just another innocent victim of a racist culture that has little regard for human life.

It is time for all underdogs to unite (even rich ones). White, Black, Gay, Straight, Jew, Gentile. We have been sold out by our government to the financial money changers. I say it is time for another 1776. Burn Baby, Burn.

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