Mamie: To answer any questions that my, that the attorneys might ask me to answer. Years later, both men would return to Mississippi. Ernest Withers:One of the attorneys asked, "Do you know the man that came to your house that night to get Emmett Till out of your house? The Center for Documentary Studies, Duke University ", Narrator:J.W. I just in my mind I kept sayin', "I'll see him again," you know. Emmett was a Black boy visiting family in Mississippi. Robert E. Luckett, Jr. But I saw enough that I knew he was intact. Narrator:As Emmett packed his bags, Mississippi was set to explode. The men later admitted to the killing in a 1956 interview with Look magazine. We went to grammar school together. Milam and Roy Bryant never faced additional charges connected with the murder. Gode Davis Narrator:Mamie Till testified that the body she'd examined and buried was indeed her son. Brandon Teena's story: Background, what happened, and documentaries. It was summer, and it was a good time to become a young man. And it said, "This is Mr. He would never again live in Mississippi. Narrator:Among African Americans, there was outright fear. Moyosore Pau Pau And we've got four seats over here for you colored boys. Timeline The Murder of Emmett Till Emmett Till's body is taken to Chicago's Roberts. And he pulled away from me. And I wondered was it necessary to shoot him? However, Roy repeated the crime and served eight months in prison. I mean it's -- I mean someone come and stand over you with a pistol in one hand and a flashlight and you're 16 years old it's a terrifying experience, very terrifying. Take this." Roy Bryant, a 24 year-old ex-soldier and his wife Carolyn owned the grocery and not much else. In 1955, Mamie Till was unwillingly thrust into American history by her son's murder. Although his killers were arrested and charged with murder, they were both acquitted quickly by an all-white, all-male jury. And it made an awful lot of people realize that they themselves had to get involved and do something. Her then-husband Roy Bryant and his half-brother J.W. And he looked at me and he said, "Aw, Mama." Interviewer: And Mrs. Bryant? According to her, she was scared to death. Milam, and perhaps several other people, barged into the Leflore County home of a black sharecropper named Moses Wright. The Commercial Appeal In just over an hour, the jury returned. The murder trial of Roy Bryant and his half-brother J.W. July 18, 2022 at 2:27 p.m. EDT. Interview was given in 2007 and has only now come to light in a book published today . Milam was at a store in nearby Minter City when the Leflore County sheriff caught up with him. Milam Bryant Scratch:We took him and we was just gonna whip him, scare some sense into him. Corbis Images Narrator:Reed spoke in a voice barely louder than a whisper. Bryant died on September 1, 1994 about 14 years after Milam. (Laughs) It was somethin'. Narrator:Two days into the trial, reporters got a lead on a young sharecropper named Willie Reed who might be willing to talk. Milam were acquitted of murder charges, but eventually confessed in an interview with a magazine. which is solely responsible for its content. Of her accusation that Till had physically and verbally harassed her, she told Tyson, according to Vanity Fair:. Florence Mars By Bernice Johnson-Reagon, Songtalk Publishing Co. Wheeler Parker:Nobody talked to anybody. Donham's husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother, J.W. They brought their children, picnic baskets and ice cream cones. Hailing from Indianola, Mississippi, Carolyn Bryant was a high school drop out who married Roy Bryant, an ex-soldier. Other customers were sitting outside, talking and playing checkers in the cool of the shade. Mamie Till:They summed up by saying, "Isn't it true that you and the NAACP got your heads together and you came down here and with their help, you all dug up a body and you have claimed that body to be your son? Roy Bryant was married to Carolyn Bryant Donham until his death. Too Tight Collins, who worked for J.W. When Bryant and Milam could not afford a legal defense, five local lawyers stepped up to represent the two suspectspro bono. Are Roy Bryant and J.W. So, what is the singer's story, and where does he live today? Roy Bryant was one of the people indicted for murder in 1955. In this Sept. 23, 1955, file photo, J.W. Milam, Corbis, Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market, Chicago Defender, Sign up for the American Experience newsletter! Betty Pearson, Mississippi resident Trudy Williams This situation has brought problems, it has created challenges, but most important of all, it has inspired a social system to meet the challenge. (Enter your ZIP code for information on American Experience events and screening in your area.). Nancy Farrell In 1955, Carolyn Bryant Donham (then just Carolyn Bryant), a 21-year-old white woman, accused Emmett Till, a 14-year-old Black boy, of making an unwelcome advance at her. Did Roy and Milam confess to the murder of Emmett Till? The murder and the trial horrified the nation and the world. He was born on January 24, 1931, and died in September 1994 of cancer. His father's name was Henry Ezra Bryant. According to witnesses, on his way out of the store, Emmett turned to Carolyn Bryant and whistled. Said, "She's going to the car to get a pistol." The three defendants in the case, Roy Bryant, Carolyn Bryant, and J.W. Hailing from Indianola, Mississippi, Carolyn Bryant was a high school drop out who married Roy Bryant, an ex-soldier. Donham's husband, Roy Bryant, and brother-in-law, J W Milam, kidnapped and brutally murdered Till on August 28, 1955, and dumped his body in the Tallahatchie River. Milam, who were found not guilty in a trial for the 1955 murder of black teenager Emmett Till, confess in an article in Look magazine published Jan. 24, 1956. Narrator:Hundreds of thousands of black people fled Mississippi for Chicago in the years between the World Wars. Frightened, Emmett and his group left. It was just it just -- oh, it -- it was a mess. Whites looking at you. Carolyn also stated that she couldnt utter the unprintable word he had used. Narrator:Tallahatchie county sheriff and plantation owner Clarence Strider was responsible for locating witnesses and gathering evidence against Bryant and Milam. Fred Grabbe's story: Background, what happened, and where is he today? However, he still claimed that he did not murder Emmett Till. White Man: Well sir, I'll tell ya' right now, if he gets justice they'll turn him a loose. You just didn't do that. Their acquittal created massive outrage and was the spark in the upsurge of activism and resistance that was later referred to as the Civil Rights movement. Description. They knew that there were strange things going on in places like Sumner, but they did not know it would be quite like that. Rev. Aborted babies do not have names, but they have stories. The stores soon went out of business. One of Roy Bryants defence lawyers told National Public Radios Soundprint program in 1994 that he regretted defending the case. A childhood case of polio left him with a stutter, but by the time he was a teenager, Emmett Till had grown into a cocky, self-assured boy who loved to be the center of attention. They thought that they, you know, could just take over, but they didn't. For three hours that morning we had a big old fire in the yard. Ben Hampton Emmett Till's body is taken to Chicago's Roberts Temple Church of God for viewing and funeral services. Mrs. Joyce Grant in starched white shirts while their wives donned cotton dresses. Roy Bryant was reported to have passed away on 1st September 1994, in Ruleville, Sunflower County, Mississippi. The killing would inspire both Bob Dylan and the Civil Rights movement. Neighborhoods and schools were segregated, but the city offered the kind of freedom black Mississippians could only dream about. Robin Kelley And we don't intend to. He laughed. Milam, received notoriety for the alleged murder of a 14-year-old Black youth named Emmett Louis Till. Narrator:In the 75 years before Emmett Till set foot in Mississippi, more than 500 black people had been lynched in the state. The store was located at one end of the main street in the tiny town of Money, the heart of the cotton-growing Mississippi Delta. Milam prided himself on knowing how to "handle" blacks. Roy and his wife migrated to Indianola, Mississippi, where Bryant got a job as a mechanic. Filmed interview with William Bradford Huie conducted for America, They Loved You Madly, a precursor to Eyes on the Prize. And, Beau if you see a white woman coming down the street, you get off the sidewalk and drop your head. After their acquittal in the Emmett Till trial, defendant Roy Bryant (right), smokes a cigar as his wife happily embraces him and his half brother, J.W. He gained popularity because of the brutal murder of Emmett Till. We tied the gin fan to his neck with barbed wire and rolled his body into 20 feet of muddy water. Carolyn Bryant testified under oath that Emmett said ugly remarks to her before whistling. "The . Enduring Legacy: The Emmett Till murder shaped the . He could not have that, you know physical show of affection, of sharing grief, or whatever. Carolyn testified under oath, but outside the presence of the jury, that Emmett said "ugly remarks" to her before whistling. In the early morning hours of August 28, 1955, Roy Bryant, his half-brother, J.W. You couldn't see. Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam. William Winter:When one drives through the lowest hills and looks out at the sweep of those fields below, flat as a pancake as far as the eye could see, it's breath taking. Her family ran a small grocery, Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market, that sold provisions to black sharecroppers and their kids. Ernest Withers, Photographer:The man had laid it out that "We got 22 seats over here for you white boys. In. Milam, will always be considered in history as the trio that got away with murder. The boy laughed. During the 1950s, the couple ran a small grocery, Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market, that sold provisions to black sharecroppers and their children. Get the news that matters from one of the leading news sites in Kenya, Money, Mississippi, the United States of America, Lamborghini Urus: Kenyans Stunned as KSh 40 Million SUV Is Spotted in Mombasa, Jury hears Elon Musk told 'lies' that cost Tesla investors millions, Trump presses Facebook to restore his account, Video of Interracial Couple Married for 45 Years Warms Hearts: "Nothing Gonna Stop Us", Champagne celebrates record sales in 2022. You couldn't seeand when they left, I was still afraid and so I'm waitin' for them to come back. ", Oudie Brown, Mississippi Resident:I was coming through there that mornin'. Unfortunately, Vera passed away on May 2, 2012, at 79. She stormed out. I said, "What about your ring?" Wheeler Parker:It was like a nightmare. William Winter:Many white Southerners, perhaps most Deep South Southerners had convinced themselves that black people were relatively happy in their -- in their segregated relationships with white people. Mrs. Bryant: I feel fine. . Betty Pearson:I remember looking at the -- at that jury and even though I knew a good many of the men who were on the jury and, and they looked mean to me. They both admitted to the murder but felt justified. His badly disfigured body was found in the Tallahatchie River three days later. Card:After the trial, black customers boycotted Bryant's store, forcing it out of business. Mamie Till:I thought that pretty soon the crowd would die down. Moses Newson:That was a dramatic moment. So, what happened to Roy Bryant, one of the accused in the murder of Emmett Till? I saw him he had khaki pants on, had a green nylon shirt, and a .45 on his side. Narrator:Mainstream newspapers and magazines spread the story of the 14-year-old black boy who'd been brutally killed for whistling at a white woman. Then you look at all these white folks and everybody lookin' at you and they've got they frowns on their face and everything. Plater Robinson The photos of Emmett Till's mutilated body stunned the nation. Mamie Till:Those words were like arrows sticking all over my body. William Pearson, THANKS TO He said, "There's a shoe here. Milam, of the 1955 kidnapping and murder of Till. Recorded at Bias Studios, Fairfax, Virginia And I just said, "Hell, I'm fixing to die. Greg Smith, PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS Till's cousins later testified that they heard him . During the trial, the families arrived with their sons dressed in their Sunday best,Roy and J.W. We forgot about it. Carolyn and Roy Bryant had two children, Lamar and Roy Bryant Jr. And when push came to shove the -- the white community rallied in support of them against a, a, a young black person for whom they had even greater disdain. I'm gonna carry you dead or alive. Tony Czech He was the one that everybody kind of looked to. Narrator:Emmett's family lived on the outskirts of Money, a whistle-stop town in the heart of Delta cotton country. Milam, had barely been acquitted of the. Who was Roys wife? Police can now seek her arrest. Roy Bryant's Death. A few months after the trial, Look Magazine published The Shocking Story of Approved Killing in Mississippi by William Huie. A Supreme Court decision had struck down school segregation the year before. Moses Newson, Journalist:A lot of leadership was going around making outrageous threats and claiming they weren't going to obey the law and that sort of thing. White Woman: I'm almost convinced that the very beginning of this was by a communistic front. Moses Wright could identify the body only by an initialed ring, which had belonged to Emmett's father, Louis Till. The Associated Press fielded queries from Paris, Copenhagen, Tokyo. I said, "It's time for us to go." Consequences was that almost anything could happen to anybody at anytime down there. It looked like all of Chicago was there. Some reporters talked about Roy and Carolyn's "handsome looks" and J. W.'s tall stature and big cigars. JW Milam (left) and Roy Bryant (right) confessed to Emmett Till's killing in 1956 after being found not guilty. I noticed that the right eye was lying on midway his cheek, I noticed that his nose had been broken like somebody took a meat chopper and chopped his nose in several places. Every lawyer in the county joined their defense team. Back of the house is a tool shed. Other sources claim that he had spoken disrespectfully to her. Elaine Owens In 1955, over a year after Brown had overturned separate but equal and just two months before Rosa Parks would change civil rights forever on a Montgomery bus, Huie sat in the law office of J.J. Breland and John Whitten, two of the five defense counsel for two of Till's killersJ.W. He throwed his head up there, just like that. Jan. 13 2022, Published 9:58 p.m. . He was an expert platoon leader, expert street fighter, expert in night patrol, expert with the "grease gun," with every device for close range killing. That's the way I said it. Here's everything we know, Words of appreciation for teachers from a principal. Mamie Till:And I decided then that I would start at his feet and work my way up, maybe gathering strength as I went. I was just willing to bear it all. They confessed how they killed the young man. One-way train fare of $11.10 took them to a different world. During the 1950s, the couple ran a small grocery, Bryant's Grocery &. Clarence Strider Jr., Son of Mississippi Sheriff:My dad called me and asked me did I have a boat in the river. Donham has stayed out of the public eye in the nearly 15 years since her interview with Tyson. Le Monde "The life of a Negro in Mississippi," one European paper observed, "is not worth a whistle." Historian, public speaker and author Danielle McGuire PhD and journalism professor and author Allissa Richardson speak with the Gen-Z historian Kahlil Greene about the role of the media in shaping public perception around the murders of Black Americans. Investigations from civil-rights leader Dr. T.R.M. I said, "I didn't hear anything," I said, "anything. Wheeler Parker:The concern for Emmett was that he could be, with his fun-loving, free-spirited way of living, he could get in trouble, could have a lot of problems. Leon Finney Jr. They had two sons and lived in two small rooms in the back of the store. I said, "What all that blood come from?" Interviewer: What do you mean you don't know? 24-year-old at the time of Emmett's death, Bryant confronted his wife Carolyn when he came to know that she was "approached" by an African American boy. 60 Years Later: The Murder of Emmett Till Then we carried him to the, up to the other landin' and put him in the hearse. J. Fred MacDonald & Associates We knew what we was going to do. ", Mamie Till:As the jury retired, the black people who were standing around the walls began to ease out of the door. You know how hard they are to burn? Mamie Till:They said that about one in every five had to be assisted out of the building. It was from this shack the state alleges Emmett Till was taken by Roy Bryant & J.W. Contributors to Civil Rights groups soared. . Ernest Withers, Photographer:I had a cousin that was living in Mississippi and was walking down the sidewalk down near downtown in Tunica and didn't get off the sidewalk and the man slapped him and knocked him off the sidewalk. But after the acquittal, in the magazine article, Bryant and Milam described the killing. And we didn't tell him what had taken place. Discover short videos related to roy bryant interview on TikTok. The local theater is segregated. She said, "Mr. Rayner, I want to see my son.". Library of Congress So I told 'em what I saw. January 24 Emmett Till murderers make magazine confession On January 24, 1956, Look magazine publishes the confessions of J.W. Reference Center for Marxist Studies, New York City The boys wore polyester pants, crepe soled shoes. As I kept looking, I saw a hole, which I presumed was a bullet hole and I could look through that hole and see daylight on the other side. (Enter your ZIP code for information on American Experience events and screening in your area.). Rose Jourdain:It stunned white America. Just one, one street. Interviewer: And how about you Mrs. Milam? We were just all good friends. Doham, who was 21 at the time of Till's murder and is now 87, was not arrested or charged in Till's lynching in 1955, but her former husband, Roy Bryant, and brother-in-law, J.W.
