On the anniversary of Emmett Till’s murder, 71 years later Black communities are still confronting violence, injustice, and a system that too often fails to protect Black lives.
As Black communities continue to grieve and process the suspicious deaths of our people across the South, for us, it is reminiscent of a terrifying past that our people have endured for centuries — lynching. Things cannot continue to go on business as usual as so many turn a blind eye while Black bodies are being found hanging from trees. We’re calling out not only state and local officials responsible for investigating these deaths, but also the media, who have too often failed to speak up, ask hard questions, and give these cases the attention they deserve.
Black Voters Matter has a responsibility to say plainly what history teaches us: lynching was never simply an act of individual violence. It was a weapon of racial terror, wielded to intimidate Black people, instill fear in Black communities, and enforce white supremacy. It’s not by accident that the cause of death in these cases was ruled “suicide” before a thorough investigation was conducted. And it’s not by accident that these grieving families are left demanding answers, while officials maintain their silence.
Silence is not an option for us. We stand with the families who have been denied justice and are calling on Congress to push for a federal investigation into the more than 70 suspicious deaths of Black people since 2000.