Black History Month Film and Discussion: Till

The City of Lewiston Diversity, Equity and Inclusion office is highlighting Black History Month with a special screening and discussion on the 2022 film Till on Thursday, March 9th. This free, public program will take place from 4-7 in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library.

Ayat Hamza, a graduate from UNC Chapel Hill and an attorney at OgleTree, one of the nation’s top law firms, will introduce the film. The discussion to follow will be led by Marcelle Medford, Assistant Professor in the Sociology Department at Bates College and Melissa Hue, the DEI Director for the City of Lewiston. The movie presentation will be followed by interactive discussion with audience members. Professor Marcelle Medford will co-facilitate with Director Melissa Hue a collective debrief of the movie, its impact on the civil rights movement, and where we are now.

Till depicts the story of Emmet Till through the lens of his loving mother, Mamie Elizabeth Till-Mobley. Emmett Louis Till was a 14-year-old African American boy born in Mississippi in 1955. Emmett was accused of offending a white woman, Carolyn Bryant, when he visited her family’s grocery store. Emmett was then abducted, tortured, and lynched. The brutality of his murder and the subsequent acquittal of those responsible drew national attention to the long history of violent persecution of African Americans in the United States. Till subsequently became an icon of the Civil Rights movement. Mamie Till insisted that the casket containing Emmet’s body be left open because, in her words, “I wanted the world to see what they did to my baby.” She travelled the nation showing pictures of her son’s body, his face, and the brutality, doing so to bring awareness to the injustice happening towards African Americans and to mobilize people to take action in support of humanity.

Attendees should note that the film has a rating of PG-13 and deals with sensitive content.

The Lewiston Public Library is located downtown at 200 Lisbon Street at the corner of Pine Street. More information on Tuesday’s lecture is available by contacting the Lewiston Public Library at 513-3135 or LPLReference@lewistonmaine.gov.