The Emmett Till
Memory Project
App Development
The Emmett Till Memory Project (ETMP) was born in response to the vandalism that plagued Emmett Till’s commemoration, while the
ETMP website and a smartphone application circumvent the vandalism to tell the story of Emmett Till’s 1955 murder. The app marks sites in the Mississippi Delta and in Chicago, IL, related to the life, murder, and memory of Emmett and the legacy of his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley. The Till
family has closely consulted with the project leaders and contributors throughout development.
The included team views this moment in time, The Emmett Till Memory Project, and its existing and expanding community, as a chance to bring Emmett’s story back to the front page of the collective consciousness while increasing awareness of the next generation.
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History exhibited “Reckoning with Remembrance: History, Injustice and the Murder of Emmett Till” as a monthlong display of the bullet-ridden sign that was placed by the Tallahatchie River in Mississippi in remembrance of Emmett Till.
A panel discussion, “The Long Battle: The Work of Preserving Emmett Till’s History,” with the Rev. Wheeler Parker, Till’s cousin, Tallahatchie community leaders and Till scholar Dave Tell of the University of Kansas explored the efforts and challenges to preserve Till’s memory.
The included team has collaborated with Adam Larson of Adam & Co; Terésa J. Carter of Proclaim Communications; Chicago-based app development firm Think Box 312; digital archive specialists Portico; Rhode Island School of Design; and the University of Kansas. Work in process has been endorsed by Reverend Wheeler Parker (cousin of Emmett Till), Rev. Parker’s wife Dr. Marvel McCain, and Chris Benson, Northwestern University Journalism Professor.
Rhode Island School of Design Graphic Design students Zoe Pullen and Alejandro Molestina, and ID alumni Stephanie Hu participated in an included by FAVOR internship during Wintersession 2022. This merging of seasoned designers, app developers, educators, and archivists yielded a cadre of fresh and innovative concepts for the Emmett Till Memory Project website and mobile application. More to come.
Team
Dave Tell
Emmett Till Memorial Commission
Author, Educator
Patrick Weems
Emmett Till Memorial Commission
Executive Director
Benjamin Saulsberry
Emmett Till Interpretive Center
Public Engagement and Museum Education Director
Kate Wittenberg
Portico
Director
Karen Hanson
Portico
Senior Research Developer
Brandon Erby
University of Kentucky
Assistant Professor of Writing, Rhetoric,
and Digital Studies and African American
and Africana Studies
Rene Payne
Creative Direction
Adam Larson
Adam & Co
Creative Director
Terésa Carter
Proclaim Communications
Project Manager
Dorian Flowers
Think Box 312
Web Advisor
Zoe Pulley
included intern
ETMP Designer
Stephanie Hu
included intern
ETMP Designer
Alejandro Molestino
included intern
ETMP Designer
Special thanks to Reverend Wheeler Parker, cousin of Emmet Till,
and his wife Dr. Marvel McCain for their trust and assurance with this worthy assignment.
Extended thanks to The Rhode Island School of Design for
their unwavering support with this assignment.