Summary

The book “Getting Away with Murder" is about a 14 year old boy Emmett Till being kid napped from his home and murdered. His murder and the succeeding trial of his accused killers became a lightning rod for moral outrage, both at the time and to this day. Rumbling racial tensions were intensified by the recent ruling against segregation in the Brown vs. Board of Education case.  All of this was most likely unknown to Emmett, who had grown up in Chicago, where Jim Crow laws were not as strict. Emmett was visiting family in Money, Mississippi in the summer of 1955. Unaware of the racial tensions in in the south he was on a dare and Emmett talked to Carolyn Bryant, a white woman who worked at a convenience store.  Apparently Emmett had whistled a wolf whistle at her, which also gave the trial its name.  Many believe that at most, Emmett said “Bye, Baby” to Mrs. Bryant after purchasing candy from her.  Upon the hearing of Emmett’s alleged rude and disrespectful behavior, Mrs. Bryant’s husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother, J. W. Milam, kidnapped Emmett from his home took him to the barn that was behind Roy Bryant’s house where they tortured and killed Emmett .  The two men were acquitted of the charges also, admitting they had committed the murder outside of the courtroom.  So overall this book is about a young African American boy who was killed for having a little fun. The story shows how racism was a big issue then and still is today.