by Nomad
1833 - First Steps to Freedom
With the passage of the Slavery Abolition Act, slavery was abolished in the United Kingdom and most of its colonies on this date in 1833. Historians point out, however, that the new law was not quite what it seemed.The government certainly shelled out £20m (about £16bn today) in 1833. Not to free slaves but to line the pockets of 46,000 British slave owners as “recompense” for losing their “property”. Having grown rich on the profits of an obscene trade, slave owners grew richer still from its ending.
Additionally, the abolition of slavery in the British Empire did nothing to address the demand for cheap cotton imported from the Southern slave states in the United States. This, in turn, provided the impetus for the successionist movement, leading to the Civil War.
A month later, his alleged killers, Roy Bryant and his half-brother J.W. Milam, would stand before all-white, all-male jury. For his closing summation, defense attorney Sidney Carlton warned the jury, if they didn't free the accused:
Till's mother insisted on an open-casket funeral in order that the world could witness what had been done to her son. Till posthumously became an icon of the emerging Civil Rights Movement.
1955 - Outrage in Mississippi
On August 28, the savage murder of 14-year old Emmett Till by three white men in Mississippi sparked national outrage. Till had been accused of offending a white woman in her family's grocery store.A month later, his alleged killers, Roy Bryant and his half-brother J.W. Milam, would stand before all-white, all-male jury. For his closing summation, defense attorney Sidney Carlton warned the jury, if they didn't free the accused:
"Your ancestors will turn over in their grave, and I'm sure every last Anglo-Saxon one of you has the courage to free these men."After only an hour of deliberation, the pair were acquitted of the crime. According to journalists, laughter was heard inside the jury room. Protected against double jeopardy, the two men publicly admitted in a 1956 interview with Look magazine that they had killed Till. (In a 2007 interview, Carolyn Bryant who had claimed Till had made passes at her admitted to that she had lied.)
Till's mother insisted on an open-casket funeral in order that the world could witness what had been done to her son. Till posthumously became an icon of the emerging Civil Rights Movement.
1957 - Failed Obstruction
Two years after the murder of Emmet Till, South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond- a so-called Dixie-crat- launched a 24-hour and 18-minute filibuster of the Civil Right Act of 1957. Even though opponents of the act were able to remove several provisions, the proposed law did empower federal officials to prosecute individuals that conspired to deny or abridge another citizen's right to vote. This would become an important tool for civil rights crusaders.
1963 - Marching Forward
The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic rights of African Americans. Estimates of the number of participants varied from 200,000 to 300,000 and became one of the largest political rallies for human rights in United States history.
In that remarkable address, King said
In a sense, we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.King said:
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds.
Our white brothers.. have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny, and they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.He added:
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.
Check out this newsreel footage.