That was Phoebe on our back doorstep this afternoon. Wellies on, Monty the Sloth by her side and a bag of "Pom-Bears" in her hand. On the bench a choice of milk or water. What could be better?
Tonight I was in the mood for a good film. On Amazon Prime, I was delighted to find "Till" - released just last year and telling the true story of Emmett Till - a fourteen year old Chicago boy who was murdered in Mississippi in 1955. It was a very famous case in the continuing struggle for racial equality in America.
To a large extent, the film isn't really about Emmett, it's more about his mother Mamie Till who reluctantly became a fierce champion for civil rights. Her part is played beautifully by Danielle Deadwyler.
She insisted that her son's body should be brought back to Chicago. It was swollen and corrupted and yet she insisted on time alone with his remains. It was a very moving and tender scene.
Later in the county court in Mound Bayou,Mississippi the defending lawyer raised doubts that the body that was found in the Talahatchie River even belonged to Emmett. However, in a moving testimony, Mamie insisted that as his mother she knew every inch of his body. Naturally, the white killers were let off by the all-white jury, taking less than an hour to reach their verdict.
I guess it depends on what you seek in films but I thoroughly enjoyed "Till" and am very happy to recommend it. A small part was played by Whoopi Goldberg as Emmett's grandmother. Finally, I might ask - why did it take so long for Emmett's story to reach the silverscreen?
The Death of Emmett Till :
ReplyDeleteYour post brought back the Bob Dylan song of Emmett's brutal racist murder.
The Autobiography of Malcolm X I reread after 50 years and then found two
biographies of Malcolm by black American scholars.
Malcolm said Christianity in America lost all moral authority because it had
supported segregation after Abolition, so he turned to Islam.
Ta Nehisi-Coates wrote a great book about President Obama :
*We Were Eight Years in Power* which told me a lot about our troubled USA.
Phoebe is the picture of happiness.
Her cuddly friend is enjoying 40 winks which is where I'm headed.
Sleep is the new staying up late.
Bob Dylan wrote:-
DeleteThis song is just a reminder to remind your fellow man
That this kind of thing still lives today in that ghost-robed Ku Klux Klan.
But if all of us folks that thinks alike, if we gave all we could give,
We could make this great land of ours a greater place to live.
There would be many stories to choose from on this topic. It's a sad history.
ReplyDeleteThere's not enough time to tell all the terrible stories.
DeleteIt took so long to tell the story because he was black, living in a racist society, murdered by white men who believed that they could act with impunity. I don't think I could watch the movie. I've read a lot about what happened and it's heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteIt's a story that needed telling and a story that we must keep listening to.
DeletePhoebe looks so grown up! A proper little girl now, baby no more. I shall look out for "Till" coming to my TV.
ReplyDeleteShe may look grown up but from time to time she still has attacks of "The Screaming Ab-Dabs".
DeleteNot my sort of film. Although I am aware of the atrocities carried out by humans on each other I don't want to watch it on TV or film. I am too squeamish.
ReplyDeleteMy wife is a bit like that. Prefers to look away.
DeleteEven now in this country, it is injustices to the photogenic white middle classes that make the news.
ReplyDeletePhoebe has grown into a lovely little girl. Love the wellies!
ReplyDeleteNot a film I would watch.
Those who fail to learn history, are destined to repeat the horrors of the past.
ReplyDeletePhoebe was but a baby a few months ago, now she is a little girl. That photo needs displaying on the sideboard. As for the film, like JayCee I cannot watch terrible things happen on TV.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what to say. I cannot speak for others but I can tell you that Emmet Till's story causes a great shame in me. Shame for my country. Shame for being white. Shame for the fact that instead of restitution for slavery, my country has offered cruelty, murder, oppression, and a vast ignorance of history.
ReplyDeleteAnd that's not even the tip of that particular iceberg.
Also, forgive me for not saying that Phoebe is a glorious girl. August's favorite stuffed animal is also a sloth but his name is "Slothie."
ReplyDeleteIt's enough just knowing the horrible story of what happened to Emmett Till and how his murderers got away with it. I won't be watching the film.
ReplyDeleteLittle Phoebe is so cute and looks so interested in everything and everybody. And, although it is maddening sometimes, I know you will not mind her independent streak that you have spoken of before. It will bode well for her to have that trait as she ages.
ReplyDeleteEmmit Till's story, many years ago, had a good deal to do with my awakening of what people were capable of as pertains to racism in this country. After all these years, in 2023, the racism is no different. It is covered up a little, lied about a little, swept under the rug a lot, but it is no different. When one bigot wakes up to what is true, another is born even more bigoted and ignorant. I am so tired of this shit!!!
I remember hearing about this movie coming out but somehow lost track of it and missed it. I'll have to make sure it gets added to my list.
ReplyDelete"Monty the Sloth" -- what a great name for a sloth! LOL
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen "Till" and yes, it is interesting that it took so long to come to the big screen. Perhaps it took a while to work things out with his living relatives, or perhaps Hollywood was waiting for the right time. (In the wake of George Floyd and "Black Lives Matter" it seems particularly germane.)