Definitive History Book on Emmett Till Set for August Publication -- 60th Anniversary of Till's Death in Mississippi

Share |

(NOTE -- Devery Anderson's fascinating notes on the family and major players involved in the 1955 murder of Emmett Till, and of those involved in the trial of his murderers, appear at the end of The Emmett Till Book, by Susan Klopfer.)

Author Devery Anderson: Photo by Emily Hatch

Author Devery S. Anderson has announced that his newest book, Emmett Till: The Murder That Shocked the World and Propelled the Civil Rights Movement, is set for publication in August 2015 by the University Press of Mississippi, and features a forward by civil rights icon, Julian Bond.

***

[My new Emmett Till book] is based on hundreds of hours of archival research, sifting through dozens of newspaper stories, as well as original interviews with those who witnessed the case unfold, including Emmett Till’s family members who were with him in Mississippi, trial witnesses, and newspaper reporters who covered the story in 1955. It also brings the case up to the present, including the recent FBI investigation. Julian Bond, civil rights legend and former chair of the NAACP, has written the foreword.

(Quote From Anderson's website,http://www.emmetttillmurder.com)

***

CIVIL RIGHTS AUTHOR DEVERY ANDERSON TELLS website followers that he first became acquainted with Emmett Till in the fall of 1994, as a student at the University of Utah,  after watching the first segment of the PBS documentary series on the Civil Rights Movement, Eyes on the Prize.

"Emmett’s murder and the subsequent acquittal of his killers left me full of questions. What happened to the killers after their acquittal? What happened to Emmett’s mother? Was she alive, or had she died somewhere in obscurity? Why was I not already familiar with this case?" Anderson was soon asking himself.

It was several months later, that Anderson discovered at least one book on the subject in print, "and so I purchased Stephen Whitfield’s A Death in the Delta: The Story of Emmett Till."'

BUT THEN, CLENORA HUDSON-WEEMS, professor of English at the University of Missouri-Columbia, soon came to speak at the University of Utah in May 1995. Her lecture was on another topic, yet the school newspaper noted that she was the author of the book,Emmett Till: The Sacrificial Lamb of the Civil Right’s Movement, Anderson tells his followers on his Emmett Till website at http://www.emmetttillmurder.com/.

Anderson attended Hudson-Weems' lecture, purchased her book and soon was full of questions. "I read both of these books and wanted to learn more. Both were written at a time when research, writing, and a renewed interest in the Till case was in its infancy, and I eventually discovered that they contained many factual errors, but they did whet my appetite for more."



OVER THE ENSURING YEARS, the Utah resident found that this case consumed him "... in ways I could not quite explain."

In 1996, while still a student at the University of Utah, Anderson took a class on racism. Students were given a major assignment, due at the end of the quarter, "that we would each present to the class. I decided that I would put together a scrapbook on the Emmett Till case and include an original interview with Mamie Till-Mobley, Emmett’s mother."

Surprisingly, Anderson found it was not difficult to locate Till-Mobley in the Chicago telephone directory and he wrote her a letter and arranged a time for a telephone interview. Their two-hour conversation took place on December 3, 1996 and was followed by "dozens" more, over the next six years up until a month before her January 2003 death.

***

Anderson's fact-filled website allows him a way to contribute to the spread of knowledge about the Emmett Till murder. The author researched and wrote his new book between 2004 and 2014; he lives in Salt Lake City, and is the father of three children, Amanda, Tyler, and Jordan. Anderson holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Utah.

***

From reviewers

"The manuscript is balanced, clearly organized, exhaustively researched, and well written. The narrative flows logically and will hold the attention of readers who are otherwise unfamiliar with the case. Right now, and probably for decades to come, it will be the definitive work on this subject. The manuscript will not only be of interest to a general readership but historians in such fields as civil rights history, the history of the South, and legal history. It offers much that is entirely new to our understanding of this topic and/or sheds an original light on old questions. This book will deserve a place in any good library."

—David T. Beito, co,author, Black Maverick: T.R.M. Howard's Fight for Civil Rights and Economic Power

"Much has been written about the Till case in the past decade, but what has been missing is a definitive history of the case. This book provides that definitive history. The author gives a thorough account of the case from almost every angle. I am very familiar with the scholarship on Emmett Till, and the author has left no stone unturned. ...A reader coming to the case for the first time will get the best account we have of the case; scholars familiar with it will learn new details from new sources, and will be persuaded by how well the author settles long debated controversies about what happened and when. The author knows where the historical record is murky or contradictory, and he never rushes to judgment. When he does settle a controversy, he marshals the requisite evidence. When he is not able to settle a controversy, he presents the contradictory evidence and leaves it unresolved. Anyone interested in this case will find this book a valuable guide to the full story of Emmett Till."

—Christopher Metress, ed., The Lynching of Emmett Till: A Documentary Narrative

***

ONE FINAL NOTE: I am really looking forward to reading this new book. From time to time I have been in contact with Devery throughout his research process. I know that he has traveled to Europe and elsewhere in search of latest information on this civil rights crime that helped spark the modern civil rights movement. In the future, I will ask him to answer some of my questions, and to tell us more about the book. sk

Civil Rights Author Releases Autopsy of Mississippi Lawyer; Death of Cleve McDowell 'Still a Mystery'

For Immediate Release

Susan Klopfer

Civil Rights Author, Speaker

http://susanklopfer.com

Mississippi Civil Rights Author Releases Autopsy of Delta Lawyer Murdered in 1997; Report Found in Sunflower County Courthouse Basement 'Leaves Open Questions About What Really Happened to Cleve McDowell'

(Gallup, NM) – A controversial autopsy of a civil rights lawyer murdered in 1997 has been placed on the Internet “for the public to see” by the author of three Mississippi civil rights history books and eBooks.

“I still think about Cleve McDowell, how brave he was and how he remains a forgotten civil rights hero. And I believe his murder should be reinvestigated,” Klopfer said today, after placing the 29-page report on a civil rights blog, MississippiSovereigntyCommission.com. 

Klopfer, a graduate of Hanover College, is the author of Who Killed Emmett Till, The Emmett Till Story, and Where Rebels Roost, Mississippi Civil Rights Revisited. She is a former acquisitions and development editor for Prentice Hall, and has won journalism awards in Branson, Missouri for her investigative work.

The story of Cleve McDowell, a small-town civil rights leader who investigated the murder of Emmett Till and so many others killed in the civil rights movement has been “pretty much” forgotten, Klopfer said.

“Go to Mississippi’s state civil rights library that houses civil rights reports and books, and ask for something on McDowell. Most likely, you will get a blank stare. The state has forgotten this man – the first African American to be admitted to the University of Mississippi’s law school – and a cohort of James Meredith and Medger Evers.”

McDowell a 'Bad' Lawyer, Delta Matron Claims

Klopfer said she learned of McDowell only because she asked a simple question about a gate protecting an unfinished home on the outskirts of Drew, Miss., where McDowell was born and later murdered.


“I was riding in a car with one of the matrons of this small Delta town. I saw the rusted gate and several large stakes driven into the ground. It looked like a construction project that was halted a number of years ago – and it turned out this was a home McDowell was building for himself at the time he was killed.”


Klopfer said she asked the driver of the car, a woman she was interviewing at the time on what happened – who abandoned the construction, and why.


“She would not look me in the eyes, but said a ‘bad’ lawyer was murdered, and was building this house at the time. That caught my attention and I started asking people about the ‘bad’ lawyer, and soon I began to piece together his story.


“As it worked out, he was an important person who set several state records for African Americans. His short stay at the University of Mississippi was controversial – he was kicked out for carrying a gun in self-defense. He had been chased by students with guns back to his car, and even when driving home. Nothing happened to the white students, but McDowell was booted out. His law professor helped him get into a Texas law school where he finished, and returned to Mississippi to practice law.


When Klopfer approached the current dean of the law school, asking for the letter of recommendation that was written for McDowell back in 1963, she said he refused to hand it over.


"Several years later, I received a copy of the letter from an archivist at the school. She personally pulled it from law school files so that it would be saved from destruction.”

McDowell's attorney friend 'commits suicide' in Alabama

Klopfer became further intrigued with the story, when learning that another black lawyer, McDowell’s protégé and investigative partner, was killed in Alabama (“committed suicide”) several years before McDowell was murdered.


“McDowell went to Alabama and investigated his friend’s 'suicide.' He knew this man since they were children, and even influenced his decision to become a lawyer.


“When McDowell returned to his Delta home from Montgomery, he told a best friend this was not a suicide, but a murder – there were signs of torture. He also told this friend, he (McDowell) would be next.”


McDowell immediately quit practicing law in his office, and started a small church in Drew where he spent his last years. "His secretary told me that he stayed at the church most of the time, telling her how to proceed. She told me that on the day before he was killed, he wrote a lengthy resume that included all of his accomplishments."


Klopfer personally believes that McDowell and his friend were very likely investigating the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.


“Too many signs point in this direction. McDowell was a friend of King. He worked for the SCLC right out of law school, and on several occasions, Dr. King visited his office in the tiny town of Drew. After learning as much as I could about McDowell, I know that he was a dedicated and persevering man, who investigated many murders in the Delta, and would not have left King’s assassination alone. 

Finds Clue in Lubbock, Texas Newspaper

"In an obituary appearing in a Lubbock, Texas newspaper  –  where I once worked as a journalist  –  it was reported that he was known for investigating civil rights crimes, with several other lawyers. Ironically, this information never made it into Mississippi newspapers, as far as I could tell.”


McDowell also had working papers in boxes and in his safe, stashed in his office from various investigations over the years, including the murder of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old Chicago visitor to the Delta who was murdered in 1955.


“Those papers all disappeared following McDowell’s murder. All of his guns were removed from his office and home, too. Months later on, his entire office ‘caught’ on fire.”


A young man was arrested for McDowell’s murder, and remains in prison.

Autopsy Leaves Questions

“In court records that I found in the basement of the Sunflower County Courthouse, I learned that this young man tried to commit suicide while in jail, and that after confessing, he later claimed he did not kill McDowell, that he admitted guilt because he was threatened he would be charged with a capital crime if he did not plead guilty.”


The autopsy leaves some real questions for Kloofer, “after learning how McDowell’s murder was described in court.


“Some pieces don’t fit the puzzle, and I believe that this murder is far more complex than what meets the eye. I never met McDowell, of course, because I did my research in 2004 and 2005. But every time I tried to interview family members and some friends or relatives about him, and about his murder, I ran into a brick wall.


"The person who did the autopsy was frequently questioned by his peers regarding his standards. And then, a host of crime scene questions have not been resolved--in fact, they need to be asked!"


Klopfer said her book, Who Killed Emmett Till, gives "relevant details that have never been resolved" about the murder.


Cleve McDowell’s story may be further complicated, "because he was gay (as were several major iconic civil rights figures, at the time) and he kept this secret quite well. This has made it more difficult to find his true friends, and often when I do, they usually won’t talk because they seem to be either afraid or embarrassed.”


The New Mexico author adds that “so little” is still reported and understood about the entire modern civil rights movement in Mississippi.


“This is a small piece of the big civil rights story, but I would really like to know more truth – for now, I really believe that the case of Cleve McDowell is not closed.”

**Related Links

Cleve McDowell Autopsy Report

Mississippi Sovereignty Commission Blog

Emmett Till Blog – McDowell Story
Chapter 21, Where Rebels Roost, Cleve McDowell

Miss. provides $152K to restore 1950s service station connected to Emmett Till’s killing; Gallup civil rights author responds

Information from: The Greenwood Commonwealth, http://www.gwcommonwealth.com

MONEY, Miss. — The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is providing $152,000 to restore a gas station as part of the story of Emmett Till, a black 14-year-old from Chicago who was lynched for whistling at a white woman in August of 1955.

Ben Roy’s Service Station stands next to what used to be Bryant’s Grocery and Meat Market, owned by Carolyn Bryant — the woman Till is said to have whistled at — and her husband, Roy.

Several nights afterward, Roy Bryant and his half-brother, J.W. Milam, killed and mutilated Till. An all-white jury acquitted them of murder, but they later confessed to the crime in an article in Look Magazine.

The station will be restored as part of the Mississippi Civil Rights Historical Program, The Greenwood Commonwealth (http://bit.ly/qlcYAb) reported Sunday.

___

Gallup, New Mexico civil rights author, Susan Klopfer, believes the state of Mississippi is making “a good effort” to recognize its role in this civil rights event, and to help others know the story, as the 56th anniversary of Emmett Till murder moves closer.

“I am always surprised when a teacher, anthropologist, history professor, a John Grisham fan (this one always stops me) or some other person who should know this story gives me a blank stare when I mention my eBook on Till.

“And yes -- this important story was not being taught in high school history classes way back in 1966 when I was a student in Lakeview, Oregon. Most white people and white historians, especially in the North, had not heard the story and certainly were not teaching it. No one in my college U.S. history class touched upon the Emmett Till story, either,” Klopfer said.

"And from what I've observed, this story is still not being taught in most history classes, unless the teacher is particularly enlightened."

The Gallup resident is the author of two books on Till, The Emmettt Till Book, and Who Killed Emmett Till?, The latter book, published both in eBook and print format, was recently nominated for a Global eBook award through publisher Dan Poynter of Santa Barbara, Calif.

“The story goes that in late August of 1955, Mamie Till Bradley put her only son on a train bound from Chicago to Mississippi so he could visit relatives. Having instructed him to mind his manners and corral his quick tongue, Mrs. Bradley made sure the boy kissed her good-bye before watching him scramble to make his train.

“He was a fearless boy, Emmett Louis Till, a 14-year-old inner city kid who sparkled with an impish sense of humor. Such boldness, his mother feared, could get a young black boy into trouble in the heart of the Deep South. It ended up putting him into an early grave,” Klopfer said.

“While looking for something to do on a hot and humid Mississippi Delta day, Emmett and his cousins ambled into the tiny town of Money, Mississippi, which boasted little more than a general store run by Roy Bryant and his wife, Carolyn, a young white woman.

“Carolyn actually lives today in Mississippi, and could shed more light on what really happened next, but she continues to refuse to talk. Even to the FBI.”

What exactly happened in the store is still unclear; there have been accounts that Emmett made a pass at Carolyn Bryant, whistling at her and calling her "baby" before his terrified companions pulled him out of the store and fled the inevitable consequences of disrespecting a white woman, Klopfer says.

“And there are still other stores that continue to float around the Delta. One story goes that Emmett was mentally challenged. Bryant tried to help him, and because he was African American, her racist husband heard about this and went ballistic.”

Three days later, Emmett was dragged from his bed at his uncle's house by Roy Bryant and his half brother, J.W. Milam. His body was later found floating in the Tallahatchie River, tied to a seventy-five pound fan and brutalized beyond recognition.

According to the Gallup civil rights author, Mississippi authorities wanted Mrs. Bradley to keep the world from seeing "images of the grotesque waxen features that dripped from her son's bones, to allow no sunlight to pass through the hole in his skull, or reveal the eyeball that lolled upon his cheek."

But Emmett Till's mother showed great courage, especially for those horribly racist times in this country. “She pried the lid open from her son's coffin to show the world exactly what hatred looked like.”

One person deeply affected by photos of Till appearing in the national and international press, was Rosa Parks who was living in Montgomery, Ala.

“Parks had been planning her act of civil disobedience, to sit at the front of a city bus on her way home from work. After she learned the two men were found innocent of killing Till (and they later confessed to this murder), Parks decided to take a stand.

“Thus, Till’s murder is seen by today's historians as an important spark that ignited the modern civil rights movement.”

Klopfer said she has spent further time researching the life of a civil rights lawyer, Cleveland McDowell, “who was the same age as Till and lived in the small town of Drew, Miss., near the site of Till’s murder.”

McDowell, who Klopfer said she is currently writing a third book about, “was murdered in 1997 – after spending most of his life investigating civil rights murders and brutalities, including the murder of Emmett Till.

“There are many questions remaining about his murder that I will try to answer.”

Appeals Court Affirms Conviction Of Reputed Klansman In Civil Rights Era Cold Case In Miss.

James Ford Seale (Daily Mail, UK)

A federal appeals court has upheld the 2007 conviction of a reputed Ku Klux Klan member in the kidnapping of two black men who were abducted and killed in rural Mississippi in 1964.

In a 2-1 ruling, the panel of judges said the evidence in the case against James Ford Seale was sufficient for the jury conviction in the trial that took place 43 years after the crimes. Friday's decision came from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans.

The judge who dissented said that too much time had elapsed to try Seale and that incriminating statements Seale made should have been barred from his trial.

Seale, now 74, is in federal prison in Indiana. A Mississippi jury convicted him of two counts of kidnapping and one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, and he was given three life sentences.

CBS News reports--
* * *