Eyes on the Prize- Tess Kihm

What really moved me from the film, was Emmett Till's murder and the court case that came from it. It was horrific to see what the two men did to Emmett, and how they so easily got away with it. The evidence and state of Till's body so clearly showed that he was murdered and mutilated, but somehow the men were found not guilty. I don't think that the case was fair and just whatsoever. The jury consisted of all white people, creating a huge bias against Till.
Today, you see similar patterns in the judicial system. Black people get accused and sentenced more often for the same crimes than white people. The majority of people incarcerated are black males, and the mass incarceration of them has only continued prior to the civil rights movement.
Even though both men were found not guilty, Till's murder opened the eyes of Americans across the country to the realities of racism and violence. He was a martyr for the civil rights movement, and inspired people to take action. The open casket funeral and the presence of the media, really helped to expose the horrors of racism so prevalent in our society.