A Mississippi Delta based group with the mission of bringing justice to those responsible for the 1955 murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till marked the death of Carolyn Bryant Donham as a somber occasion.
Donham, the last living person directly involved in the infamous case, was the woman whose accusations against Till ultimately led to his lynching. She died Thursday in Louisiana at the age of 88.
Patrick Weems, executive director of the Emmett Till Interpretive Center in Sumner, issued a statement shortly after her death, saying it ensures that the world will never see justice brought to those involved in the killing.
“Mamie Till-Mobley, through her grief, wanted to “let the world see” what happened to her 14-year-old son Emmett Till. The woman [Donham] whose lies in 1955 put the torture of Emmett in motion died today,” Weems said. “She continued to uphold these lies and to protect the murderers until her death. While the world saw the horrors of racism, and the real consequences of hatred, what the world will never see is remorse or responsibility for Emmett’s death.”
Members of the Till family had sought Donham’s arrest and prosecution in the years and months leading up to her death. Last year, Till family members who were searching through decades old court records found the original arrest warrant from the case, which listed Donham, her husband Roy Bryant and his half-brother J.W. Milam. Bryant and Milam were arrested and controversially acquitted, only to later confess to the crime in a magazine article.
Donham was never arrested or charged, leaving the possibility that she could still face prosecution. That never happened though, as the local sheriff later announced that the warrant was no longer enforceable.
Weems said the interpretive center, which held seeking justice at the core of its mission since its founding, will continue its work even after the death of the last person directly involved.
“We will continue working to educate people around the world about what Emmett Till’s life and Mrs. Mobley’s work meant to racial healing and freedom,” Weems said. “Since we will never see justice through the criminal justice system, we will continue working toward restorative justice for the memory of Emmett Till and for the people of the Mississippi Delta.”
