The gun used in the 1955 lynching of 14-year-old Emmett Till has gone on public display at a Mississippi museum, sparking mixed reactions from his family. The .45-calibre pistol and holster, owned by one of Till's killers, John William 'JW' Milam, were unveiled on the 70th anniversary of his murder.
The Mississippi Department of Archives and History announced the display on Thursday, the anniversary of Till's abduction. Milam and Roy Bryant kidnapped Till from his great-uncle's home after the teenager was accused of whistling at a white woman. They tortured and killed him, dumping his body in the Tallahatchie River. An all-white-male jury later acquitted both men.
Deborah Watts, Till's cousin and co-founder of the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation, expressed unease. 'It is an emotional day for us, and I just don't think that associating a murder weapon with the 70th anniversary is appropriate at this time,' she said. She views the weapon as evidence in an ongoing struggle for justice, not a museum artefact.
However, another cousin, Wheeler Parker, who witnessed the kidnapping, welcomed the display. 'I think it's good because it brings closure,' he said. The gun was donated anonymously by a Mississippi Delta family and authenticated via serial numbers matching FBI records.
Michael Morris, director of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, hopes the exhibit prompts reflection on societal progress. 'To me, that's the legacy. It's not just his death. It's the way that he still finds a way to inspire folks to be the change that they want to see in the world,' he said. Till's murder galvanised the civil rights movement, with his mother insisting on an open casket to reveal the brutality of his death.
