President Joe Biden signing the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument, ABC News screenshot
In a ceremony held at the White House, President Joe Biden honored the legacy of Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, by signing a proclamation to establish the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument. The event took place on July 25 on what would have been Emmett Till’s 82nd birthday.
Despite the gesture, Black Twitter didn’t seem to be impressed with the establishment of the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument. Instead, Black America said Biden should have signed an executive order issuing reparations to Black people.
Till’s horrific murder is said to have ignited the civil rights movement.
Till, a 14-year-old Black teenager from Chicago, was brutally murdered during a visit to Mississippi in 1955 after being falsely accused of inappropriate sexual behavior towards a white woman. His mother’s brave decision to hold an open-casket funeral for her son to show how badly he had been beaten further galvanized public outrage and exposed the racist violence of the Jim Crow South.
During the signing ceremony, President Biden emphasized the importance of confronting the nation’s history, even the painful and uncomfortable aspects, which was most likely a jab at Florida’s new school curriculum– inspired by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ anti-woke agenda–that says slavery was beneficial to Black people,
The new national monument will include sites in Illinois and Mississippi, NPR reported.
In 2020, Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, which recognized lynching as a federal hate crime, Politico reported.
Many spoke out on Biden’s latest move, which some saw as politically motivated due to the upcoming presidential elections.
Tweeter HarrietEve9 why didn’t Biden make sure Till false accusor Carolyn Bryant was arrested before her death on April 25, 2023.
“Meanwhile, Joe Biden did nothing to insure that Carolyn Bryant was arrested for her part in the brutal murder of Emmett Till…” the user tweeted in part.
“It’s Emmett Till birthday. He would’ve been 82 years old and Joe Biden wants to make a memorial for Emmett Till the same Joe Biden administration refused to prosecute the white woman who responsible for killing him. He’s just using Emmett Till for symbolism once again for Blacks,” tweeted Don Solomon.
Bishop Talbert Swan tweeted, “Biden’s Department of Justice refused to prosecute Carolyn Bryant, who admitted that she lied on Emmett Till, causing his murder, and lied on the witness stand to protect her husband. Emmett’s murderer.bNow he has the caucacity to dedicate a monument, a symbol, after failing to…”
Some say the signing as purely symbolic.
“I spoke about symbolism during Trumps signing of the Juneteenth bill. I apply the same critique to Biden’s proclamation to establish a monument in honor of Emmett Till,” tweeted Leo Carney.
Carney questioned why there hasn’t been a move towards reparations. He asked, “When will lawmakers get serious about full redress of grievances for American descendants of slavery?”
P.Tylerrrr0711 DO-CHATTEL-AS tweeted, “The dems and Biden can go to hades. Damn symbolism, Reparations for black Americans. This is nothing more than BS. Biden and the dems also knew Bryant was alive and did nothing to bring her to justice.”
Others called out the signing as a political move.
“Democrat numbers down? Ramp up the symbolism. U had a chance to prosecute the woman responsible. The statue will only serve as a reminder of how an innocent black child can suffer in life while a guilty white women can live out her days and die in peace,” Tweeted Malcolm Luther VessEy>
Still, there were some who were impressed.
“At a time when Republican zealots are erasing and rewriting Black history, it is more important than ever to remind people about the atrocities and perseverance of our people in the face of grave injustices,” Reecie @BlackWomenViews tweeted.
