Federal Records Released on 1955 Emmett Till Lynching Case

Marking the 70th anniversary of Emmett Till's lynching, over 6,000 pages of federal investigation records were released by the U.S. Department of Justice and National Archives, shedding light on the brutal 1955 murder of the 14-year-old in Mississippi. Many of these documents, however, are heavily redacted, prompting Till's cousin, Priscilla Till, to question why critical information remains withheld decades later and why the family was approached by the DOJ just before the release. The records include reports from the FBI, NAACP, White House, and correspondence involving FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, revealing the federal response and investigation into the case. Till's murder, after being accused of whistling at a white woman, galvanized the Civil Rights Movement, especially after his mother insisted on an open casket to expose the brutality. The case has been reopened multiple times, most recently in 2021, but no charges were filed due to insufficient evidence. Recent legislative actions honor Till's legacy, including a federal hate crime law against lynching signed by President Joe Biden and a national monument commemorating Till and his mother.