Susan Klopfer's Blog (32)

11th Post, Blog Book, Who Killed Emmett Till. Focuses on Mississippi Mau Mau, return of black WWII soldiers who become civil rights movement leaders -- Medgar Evers, Aaron Henry and Amzie Moore. Plus info on Nazi ties to Mississippi (Draper Fund). The source? A Rutgers University scholar, Dr. William Tucker, was unearthing sources of funding for academic research when he ran into a story about Mississippi that gave him a jolt.



Plus .. If pundit Pat Buchanan believes that black… Continue

Now working on a blogbook chapter of Who Killed Emmett Till? -- about Dr. T.R.M. Howard, the Rev. George Lee, Regional Council of Negro Leadership (RCNL) and White Citizens' Council -- next post.



I've got to work hard and fast because the anniversary of Emmett Till's death is tomorrow. At approximately 2 a.m. on the morning of August 28, 1955, this young Chicago school boy was kidnapped, tortured and killed in the Mississippi Delta.



He "didn't know the rules," a woman from… Continue

Was going through my photos and found this shot of the Tallahatchie County Courthouse. Actually, the county has two courthouses, one in Sumner and the other in Charleston. This is the courthouse where the trial of Milam and Bryant took place, the two men accused of murdering young Emmett Till. They were found innocent but later admitted to a Look Magazine reporter and gave their account of what took place.



Here's an interesting… Continue

Justice Dept. probes manhunt in Mississippi Delta

Associated Press - August 27, 2009 12:14 PM ET



JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee says the U.S. Justice Department is investigating an incident in the Mississippi Delta in which he was told a mostly white group used weapons and "vigilante" techniques to search for a black burglary suspect.



Democratic U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson represents Tallahatchie County, where witnesses say… Continue

(Juke Joint in Indianola. Photo By Susan Klopfer)



In the mid 1930s, anthropologist Hortense Powdermaker and social psychologist John Dollard, both white Yale colleagues at the Institute of Human Relations, traveled into the Delta to study Indianola and nearby Sunflower, making the Sunflower County seat historically significant as the site of the first anthropological studies on non-Native people in the United States.



Their… Continue

“You will have to see the mass of disfranchised, frightened Negroes in the Mississippi Delta to understand what it is to be without freedom.”



Dr. Clinton C. Battle addressing an NAACP Delta freedom rally in 1958.

++++ ++++ ++++



Four years ago this Saturday, Hurricane Katrina hit the city of New Orleans with devastating force. Who could forget watching the televised images of the poorest residents fighting for their lives while their… Continue

Just put up the eighth post on my blog book, Who Killed Emmett Till?. It's a fascinating account of a returning black veteran's murder in Drew, Miss. Would appreciate your comments. You can take a look at http://whokilledemmetttill.com or at http://emmett-till.com.



Joe Pullen's murder is considered a watershed event.… Continue

Recently, I sent out press releases on the blogbook that I'm creating about the Mississippi Delta and the 1955 murder of 14-year-old Chicagoan Emmett Till. As a result, I was invited to be interviewed for an hour by Ron Herd of Memphis who operates a well-known live podcast through All Channels (sorry, I'm just learning these terms). He did an amazing amount of pre-publicity and I've been happy with the results.



Yesterday, I learned of a horror story in the Delta regarding a black… Continue

You are invited to come and listen and critique! Tonight, 9 p.m. Central

W.E. A.L.L. show by R2C2H2 That Artivist on #BlogTalkRadio - http://tobtr.com/s/615573

While sitting out in our cool back lawn surrounded by daisies, drinking a freshly minted iced tea and reading about Continental’s mistreatment of passengers, it struck me. I could have been on that plane! Talk about lack of customer care! I will NEVER fly Continental again, or any other airlines that does this to customers. Continental should join up with Congress and the private insurance industry. Perfect fit.



I get more writing done when riding on AMTRAK, anyway. I'm flying out to… Continue

Just posted an incredible video at free blogbook, Who Killed Emmett Till? Very historical, includes interview with Mose Wright, Till's uncle. I hadn't seen this video before and it contains excellent footage of interviews showing the life and times of people living in the Mississippi Delta. This would be a good video for school kids to see since it even goes into the trial phase.



This event represents the first time that… Continue

Just added the seventh post to this blog book. This chapter is set at the time following the First World War when black veterans returning home were feared by whites, believing the returning soldiers would demand new rights. Also covers the Elaine Massacre across the Mississippi River. Klansman and planters from the Delta crossed the river to help kill possibly 1,000 black tenant farmers who were trying to organize and improve their work and living conditions.



Go to… Continue