Rep. Cleaver Attends Signing of Emmett Till Antilynching Act, Releases Statement on Legislation

Statement

Today, U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO) traveled to the White House for the signing ceremony of the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, which was signed into law by President Biden and officially makes lynching a federal hate crime in the United States. After the signing ceremony, Congressman Cleaver released the following statement.

"I will never forget the day my parents talked to me and my siblings about the brutal lynching of Emmett Till. It was the kind of discussion that would be considered extraordinary by many parents, but a conversation that, tragically, Black families have been forced to have for centuries now. After revealing the traumatic photo of Mr. Till on the cover of Jet Magazine--and making clear that Emmett could have easily been Emanuel--that image was seared into my mind and something I have carried with me to this day.

"Now, after more than 200 attempts by the Congress since 1900, President Biden has finally signed legislation designating the despicable, racist, and hate-fueled act of lynching as a federal hate crime in America. While this can never return the more than 6,500 souls that were stolen by this evil practice between 1865-1950, it will ensure modern day perpetrators are held accountable by the Department of Justice and marks a righteous step toward reckoning with one of the darkest time periods in American history, beginning to heal the pain and trauma that millions of Americans still feel today.

"I have long believed that the United States of America is exceptional because it gives the American people the ability to right the wrongs of the past and create a fairer future for all of God's children. Today is a demonstration of the greatness of America, and I was honored to stand with President Biden, Congressman Rush, and the rest of the Congressional Black Caucus as this historic law was finally, officially enacted."

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