Example Body Paragraph - Emmett Till Essay

The history of Jim Crow was a significant factor that contributed to the impact of the Emmett Till murder. Emmett Till was murdered in the South, where for years Jim Crow laws had kept whites and blacks separate and unequal. At the time of Emmett Till’s murder, blacks in the South were routinely humiliated by Jim Crow laws that considered them to be less than human. The humiliation blacks felt at having to obey Jim Crow laws was a significant factor in making blacks outraged at the Emmett Till murder - they had had enough. One particularly humiliating Jim Crow law existed in Danville, Virginia. There, the government made a law that required blacks to move off the sidewalk to allow whites to pass by (Chicago Defender, 1915). This kind of law surely made many blacks angry. When Emmett Till was murdered, they were probably more likely to stand up and protest against laws such as this one. In Alabama, there was a law that said, “legislature shall never pass any law to authorize or legalize any marriage between any white person and a negro, or descendant of a negro” (Code of Alabama, 1923). Laws keeping blacks and whites from being together increased hostility between the two groups of people. Also, if the government is saying that a black man cannot be with a white woman, that might give justification to individuals who want to punish a black man such as Emmett Till for flirting with a white woman. Schools were also segregated in the South (Code of Alabama, 1923). Black students were given unequal resources, supplies and teachers compared to white students. Blacks did not have a fair chance to improve their lot in life because they did not receive a good education. When Emmett Till was murdered, that was like rubbing salt in the wound. The history of Jim Crow laws kept blacks and whites apart, and made blacks in the South angry and frustrated. When young Emmett was murdered, the pot boiled over, and all of the anger and frustration blacks felt at Jim Crow came rushing out into the streets in protest.