The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till

The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till - A Till Freedom Come Production, A Film by Keith Beauchamp

This is not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill documentary. The Untold Story Of Emmett Louis Till is a story that any historian, student, civil rights follower, in fact citizen should see. The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till will keep a picture burned of the Country's dark past in your mind for a long time to come. The complete story unfolds with many interviews (a lot of them first time being told), you don't need to see dramatizations, the mental pictures will leave a big enough impact. The DVD is two discs, one is the full length Documentary, and the other is educational and study tools. The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till is one story that will always be remembered, the way society in the south was..... even for a young Chicago boy.

( 5.5 Stars out of 6 )

THE UNTOLD STORY OF EMMETT LOUIS TILL is a documentary investigating the murder and subsequent injustice surrounding Emmett Louis Till's death. Many consider this case to be the true catalyst for the American Civil Rights Movement.

In August 1955, Mamie Till-Mobley of Chicago sent her only child, 14-year old Emmett Louis Till, to visit relatives in the Mississippi Delta. Little did she know that 8 days later, Emmett would be abducted from his Great-Uncle's home, brutally beaten and murdered for one of the oldest Southern taboos: addressing a white woman in public. The murderers were soon arrested but later acquitted of murder by an all-white, all-male jury.

However, Emmett did not die in vain. His horrific, senseless death sparked national media attention when his mother insisted on having an open casket funeral. Her decision was controversial but her reason was simple: "I want the world to see what they did to my son."

Till's death sparked the Black Resistance of the South which later became known as the American Civil Rights Movement. Scholars and historians have studied the murder of Emmett Till ever since, and the case has even made its way through African-American folklore.

Even after five decades, people continue to be fascinated and troubled by the murder of Till. Many books have been written revealing the incongruous facts surrounding the influential case and controversial jury decision.
.................But…the true story had never been revealed.

Filmmaker Keith Beauchamp has produced a documentary unfolding a drama that has haunted society for the last 50 years. He reveals the end product of nine years of research and investigation, hoping to finally bringing justice to a family and a nation's agony. The true story is being told for the first time, redefining the way we think and feel about the American Civil Rights Movement.

Unlike any other work produced on the Till case, THE UNTOLD STORY OF EMMETT LOUIS TILL reveals unprecedented accounts by first-hand eyewitnesses, many of whom are speaking out for the first time. This documentary is an historical and investigative journey aimed to inform and educate all walks of life.

In 1955, in the sleepy Southern town of Money, Mississippi, Emmett Louis Till, a bright and friendly fourteen-year-old boy from Chicago, incurred the wrath of local racists when he allegedly whistled at an attractive white woman. To teach the impertinent young African-American a lesson, two angry bigots kidnapped him from his grandfather's house, subjected him to unimaginable tortures, murdered him, and tossed his mutilated body into the Tallahatchie river. His assailants assumed their victim would remain buried and forgotten in his watery grave, one more casualty in the South's ongoing racial conflict. But, even in death, Emmett Till would not be silenced.

Fifty years after the heinous crime, THINKFilm proudly presents THE UNTOLD STORY OF EMMETT LOUIS TILL, a powerful documentary that chronicles Till's shocking murder and celebrates his important legacy to the Civil Rights movement. The film is the culmination of a decade-long odyssey for director Keith Beauchamp, who first became aware of Till's story when he was a young boy living in Louisiana. At the age of ten, Beauchamp came across a 1955 issue of Jet magazine and saw a photograph of Till's mutilated body, an image that made a tremendous impression on him. His parents told him the story, cautioning that racism was still a pressing concern for all people of color. Outraged, Beauchamp made up his mind to study Criminal Justice one day, hoping to become a Civil Rights attorney.

Initially, Beauchamp wanted to write and film a fictionalized version of the story. As he started researching the subject, however, he realized that truth was more gripping and provocative than fiction and that Till's story could be told more effectively in a documentary. "I read the book, THE DEATH IN THE DELTA by Steven Whitfield, and a master's thesis about Emmett Louis Till, written by Steven Whitaker. Then I went on a huge hunt to locate newspaper microfilm that covered the murder," Beauchamp recalls. He was surprised that there was so little information available about Till's death: even newspaper accounts were sketchy and inconclusive. Undaunted, Beauchamp determined to learn more. His research turned into a full-blown investigation, as he set out to find family members and other eyewitnesses who were present on the night of the murder. Beauchamp had to play the role of detective as well as filmmaker.

ABOUT THE INTERVIEWS

MAMIE TILL-MOBLEY
The mother of 14 year old Emmett Louis Till who made a courageous act by having an open-casket funeral so that the world could see what happen to her son.

REV. WHEELER PARKER
Cousin of Emmett Till, who traveled with him to Money, Mississippi in 1955 to visit relatives. Rev. Parker eye witnessed the infamous "Wolf Whistle" and was present during the night of the abduction.

SIMEON WRIGHT
Mississippi cousin of Emmett Till, and son of Mose Wright to whom Emmett went to visit. Mr. Wright eye witnessed the infamous "Wolf Whistle" and sharing a bed with Emmett, the night he was abducted.

RUTHIE MAE CRAWFORD
The only female who was present the day of the infamous "Wolf Whistle." Ms. Crawford also eye witnessed the abduction of Emmett Louis Till. She identifies the men who abducted Emmett Till.

REV. AL SHARPTON
Civil Right's Activist and President of the National Action Network.

DR. RAYMOND LOCKETT
History Director, Southern University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

CHARLES EVERS
Civil Rights Activist and brother of slain Civil Rights leader, Medgar Evers.

ROOSEVELT CRAWFORD
Mississippi friend of Emmett Till, who was present the day of the infamous "Wolf Whistle."

JOHN CRAWFORD
Brother of Roosevelt Crawford and friend of Emmett Till. Mr. Crawford helped identified Till's body with Emmett's Great-uncle, Mose Wright when it was pulled from the Tallahatchie River.

WILLIE REED
Surprise Witness for the Prosecution who eye-witnessed Emmett and his abductors the night he was murdered. Mr. Reed heard screams coming from the barn where Emmett was being tortured.

MARY JOHNSON
J.W. Milam's neighbor who eye-witnessed the burning of Emmett Till's clothing the night he was murdered. Ms. Johnson was present when J. W. made a confession to her father about the murder.

DAN WAKEFIELD
Author and reporter who covered the Till trial for "The Nation" Magazine in 1955.

WILLIE NESLEY
Eye witnessed two of Till's abductors washing Emmett Till's blood from their truck.

HENRY LEE LOGGINS
One of the Black men who was involved with the kidnapping and murder of Emmett Till.

Name: ROXANA CERDA Email: CIVIL RIGHTS B1: Submit   Message WANT TO RENT THE MOVIE Name: ashely Email: emmett till B1: Submit   Message this really scared me the magnitude of what they did to the boy :( Name: ashely Email: emmett till B1: Submit   Message this really scared me the magnitude of what they did to the boy :( Name: Antonia ferguson Email: emmet till B1: Submit   Message they had no right to kill Emmet till and they were vary wrong i am 11 year old and i reccamend that they deserved the punishment that thy had Name: Max Email: EMMETT TILL B1: Submit   Message I may cryevery time i read the article in our newspaper. This is so bad and i can´t believe that man are able to do such things. Rest in Peace Emmett Till Peace