. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime. >> i wanted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the c

. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime.ed people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the cause for v

. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime.nted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the cause for

. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime.> i wanted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the cau

and because of that, emmett till was killed. and the investigation that led into his death culminated with a 67-minute deliberation by a jury that found both men and they acquitted him. both individuals confessed to the murder in 1956 and our criminal justice system says when you're found not guilty, you can't be retried. and it was an injustice that was done. in this particular case the injustice was done to emmett till, a 14-year-old. and without an understanding of how many people might have been affected by the same lack of justice applied equally, there was a self-taught individual that became an activist. his name was alvin sykes. alvin sykes became a civil rights activist. he was a cold-case researcher. through the frustration of trying to get a bill through the united states senate that my good friend tom coburn held up, alvin sykes did what most people don't do in this town. rather than hold a press conference and talk about a civil rights bill, he called tom coburn and said i'd like to come see you. and he sat down wit

. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime. >> i wanted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the c

. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime.i wanted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the cause

. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime. >> i wanted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50 years ago? >> yes to support the c

is that we're having a discussion about it. >> what took place here 60 years ago...the murder of emmett till is to this day an unsolved crime. >> i wanted people to hear the true story of till. >> never thought that he would be killed for that. >> that was the first step in the modern civil rights movement. >> ferguson has a...asking for assistance with crowd control... >> we're live in ferguson, missouri. >> these young people deserve justice. >> this is a target you can't get rid of. >> they were so angry, because it could've been them. >> there's clearly an issue and we have to focus on how we bridge that. >> they say they did it because they were trying to protect my children. they didn't protect my children, they traumatized them. >> we're just the average person, trying to go to work, provide for our families, and do what we can in this world. >> don't get lost in a sea of despair. >> i'm interested in getting us to a place where we're feeling something that looks more like freedom and justice. >> check which ethnicity - i check multiple boxes. >> this is who i am. >> were you here 50

foundation of industry here from the get go, to jim crow, lynchings, to church burnings. 14-year-old emmett till a white lady in 1955. the assassination of medgar evers in 1963. the murders of civil rights workers james chaney, michael schwerner and andrew goodman in 1964. hell, they had to send in 30,000 armed federal agents, national guardsmen, and military police just to enforce federal law allowing a black man to attend state college. a notion that was, shall we say, less than popular here. to be honest, that was about all i had for an image of the state of mississippi. that was all i knew. and it hadn't occurred to me to look further. but i've traveled the world since then, and i've visited and learned to love many places not my own. cultures and beliefs very different from the upper east side of manhattan. why can't i love mississippi? ♪ y'all know the name pyinfamous ♪ ♪ all bets are off i'm through talking ♪ ♪ never gonna fall for my spider move august and september ♪ ♪ block your october so you should be thankful the party's not over ♪ ♪ we won the race 'cause they ran a lame campaign ♪

into trouble. 1955, 15 years old in the 10th grade, i heard about what happened to them at teal -- emmett till. i heard about rosa parks. heard the words from martin luther king jr. on the radio. the action of rosa parks, the words of dr. king inspired me to find a way to get in the way. i got in trouble, good trouble, necessary trouble. we were too poor to have a subscription to the local newspaper. my grandfather had one. each day, we would finish reading the montgomery advertising. we got the paper and we read it. one of my teachers was from montgomery. who came to troy, the place doctor king called the four corners of alabama. he called me the boy from troy. he told me what was happening there. in 1957, at the age of 17 when i finished high school, i wanted to attend a school called troy state college, now known as troy university. i never heard a word from the school, so i wrote a letter to martin luther king jr., told him i needed his help, he wrote me back and sent me a round-trip bus ticket and invited me to montgomery to meet with him. in the meantime, i had then excessive to a little