As we talk about civil rights and the injustices both past and present, it is important to reflect and question the use of civil rights martyrs in the movement and the media. Specifically, Brian Norman spoke of the presence of Emmett Till as a civil rights mouthpiece. Emmett Till, a fourteen year old boy, was lynched, beaten, shot, and abused after being accused of whistling at a white woman. His body was found in the Tallahatchie River.  His body was displayed in an open casket, throwing shock around the nation.

When dragging the river for his body, several other bodies were found. Which begs the question, what are all of these bodies doing in the river?

To this day, the Emmett Till narrative is used in novels, plays, and poems to posthumously change the perception of the civil rights movement.

Several examples which Brian Norman spoke on were James Baldwin’s Blues for Mister Charlie, and Randall Kenan’s Let the Dead Bury Their Dead. In these stories, Emmett Till is told as a deranged spirit, a silent ghost boy, and a corpse who comes back to life to get justice for his own death. These works, along with over 140 more, utilize Emmett Till’s story and manipulate it to draw questions from their audiences. How do the different types of narratives change the story? Did Emmett Till actually whistle at the woman? Does it matter?

Silence becomes a problem in these cases. Mamie Till, Emmett’s mother, knew this. Her famous words, “I wanted the world to see what they did to my boy”, show her inability to let the world hush her voice, her son’s voice. The open casket funeral gave her a mouthpiece to speak on the injustice she saw.

Our voices allow us to speak for those who cannot anymore. We cannot afford to be silent.