Categories: Classroom Resources

PRIMARY SOURCE TYPE: DOCUMENTS, 2D OBJECTS
Recommended for grades 7—12

Drawing by Franklin McMahon of Emmett Till’s mother, Mamie Bradley, testifying at Emmett Till trial, 1955. CHM, ICHi-038438

In 1955, the murder of Emmett Till, a Black teenager from Chicago, and the subsequent criminal trial in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, attracted international attention and sparked the Civil Rights Movement.

Injustice: The Trial for the Murder of Emmett Till focuses on the trial through courtroom sketches by Franklin McMahon. The drawings give a visual account of a trial that amplified the inequities Black Americans face within the US court system.

This activity invites students to read excerpts from the trial testimony and examine courtroom drawings to analyze key parts of the trial, learn about the people involved, and consider how these primary source materials shape our understandings of the trial.

Access the full learning guide with standards alignment, a suggested activity, background information, resources, and student materials. Note: Spanish translations of student handouts coming soon.

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