Award-winning Investigative Journalist Marion Brooks examines the 1955 lynching of a Black teenager from Chicago who was visiting relatives in Mississippi and how his murder impacted the Civil Rights Movement.
NBC O&O WMAQ Chicago has unveiled its latest original documentary, The Lost Story of Emmett Till: The Universal Child, which is available on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire and NBCChicago.com.
Award-winning investigative journalist Marion Brooks examines the 1955 lynching of a Black teenager from Chicago who was visiting relatives in Mississippi and how his murder impacted the Civil Rights Movement.
So how did a globally known name – Emmett Till – quickly fade away from history books? How could Chicagoans forget the brutal torture of a 14-year-old boy?
Marion Brooks details the events surrounding the case to help viewers understand the context behind the lost story of Emmett Till.
“This heinous crime happened 66 years ago, and the story is still relevant today,” Brooks says. “The world’s shock of Emmett Till’s open casket photograph is a parallel to the world’s shock of the George Floyd video. It’s important to understand our history as we look to heal and grow.”
“Emmett Till’s family never found justice,” says Kevin Cross, WMAQ’s GM. “The investigation is closed now. At NBC Chicago, we recognize the importance to keep this story alive and reflect on how far we’ve come and how much more work needs to be done as a community.”
The Lost Story of Emmett Till: The Universal Child features video sourced from NBC Chicago’s 1985 documentary Emmett Till: The Murder and the Movement, written by Rich Samuels and produced by Anna Vasser.
The film includes interviews with Till’s mother and people who witnessed the injustice surrounding the case. Reporter Rich Samuels also approaches one of the killers. Marion Brooks complements the archival footage with context on what the world was like in 1955 and why Emmett Till’s story began to disappear from public consciousness.
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