A Mississippi memorial to a teenage boy murdered on the banks of the Tallahatchie River has been rededicated for the fourth time. Emmett Till was an African American boy from Chicago visiting his Southern relatives when he was kidnapped and killed by two white men. Images from the horrific act helped to start the Civil Rights movement. Since the 1955 killing, three memorials have been installed to honor Emmett Till, but all have been vandalized. Listen to hear the director of the Emmett Till Memorial Commission explain why the group decided to put up a fourth marker and how it will be protected.
Story Length: 3:53
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March 17, 2017
3:27
The government and private citizens in Austria disagree over what to do with the house where Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was born. The government is planning to seize the property from its current owner to tear it down to build something new. They are worried that the home could become a destination for neo-Nazis. However, some are worried that removing the house destroys history. Listen to learn more about the dispute over Hitler’s birthplace and then debate whether or not it’s important to preserve historic sites that have a shameful past.
Read MoreJanuary 11, 2017
5:17
There are parallels between the race struggles of Martin Luther King half a century ago and the Black Lives Matter movement of today. This story tells of how attention is being brought to the disparities between races in the United States, and how the message has changed from an aspirational tone to a commitment to truth-telling. Protesters in both struggles were working to transform America and focus on respect. Listen to hear more about civil rights activism in this interview recorded on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Read MoreJanuary 15, 2015
3:54
The 1965 voting rights march in Selma, Alabama exposed police brutality to the world and set the stage for the passage of the Voting Rights Act. The movie ‘Selma’ tells the story of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the movement in Selma in a new and authentic way. Listen to learn more about traditional Hollywood depictions of civil rights and how this movie has broken that mold.
WARNING: THIS AUDIO STORY CONTAINS STRONG LANGUAGE
Read MoreDecember 3, 2014
3:43
Fifty years ago, on June 21, 1964, three young men went missing. They were part of Freedom Summer, an effort to register black residents to vote in segregated Mississippi. They were murdered by the local Ku Klux Klan. When their bodies were found a month later, the outrage led to the passage of civil rights protections. On November 24, 2014 President Obama posthumously awarded these three men the highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, to honor their sacrifice and work towards equality.
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