July 17, 2025
Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley welcome center will open its welcome center on what would have been Till’s 84th birthday.
The Visitor Center for the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument will hold its grand opening on July 25.
The grand opening coincides with what would have been Emmett Till’s 84th birthday. Additionally, the day marks the second anniversary of the site’s national designation. The celebration will take place from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 158 North Court Street in Sumner, Mississippi.
A completed installation of the exhibit Emmett Till & Mamie Till-Mobley: Let the World See will be unveiled. Exhibit pieces include historic photos, interactive features, and an immersive sound and light show. According to the press release, two versions of the multimedia show are available: a three-screen immersive format and a single-screen theater-style presentation for larger audiences. Narration by the Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr., Till’s cousin, accompanies the visuals. Rev. Parker Jr. is the last surviving eyewitness to the 14-year-old’s abduction.
In a press release, organizers say the event marks a historic milestone in commemorating the legacy of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old Black boy whose 1955 lynching in Mississippi became a turning point in the American civil rights movement.
Emmett Till Interpretive Center’s Community Engagement Coordinator Venita Halbert, who led organizing efforts, said the evening will begin with an overview of the exhibit’s origins and purpose. “The intent is to send a message that the space is open to all in the community,” she said.
Special Projects Coordinator Jessie Jaynes-Diming recalled her early visits to Sumner in 1996. “In 2007, I stood in the same space with the late Jerome G. Little, imagining it as an Emmett Till Welcome Center. At the time, it was bare and gutted out,” Halbert said. “Now in 2025, we are a state-of-the-art National Park destination.”
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the killing of the 14-year-old. His mother’s selfless act of displaying his battered corpse gave a harrowing visual of the atrocities of American racism during the Jim Crow era. Till’s story lives on in memory, history, and the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument.
The event is free and open to all supporters from in or out of state. Light refreshments will be served. A virtual poetry reading hosted by Monument Lab will also be featured during the event.
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