Death of Innocence

“I am so thankful for the bravery and courage Mamie demonstrated when she shared her only child with the world. The news of Emmett’ s death caused many people to participate in the cry for justice and equal rights, including myself. The respect I have felt for her since 1955 will always live with me. She was blessed among women to carry the mantle with grace and dignity.”—Rosa Parks

“Death of Innocence reveals Mamie Till-Mobley for what she was: one of the greatest, but largely unsung, heroes in all of African-American history. Her words are powerful; her strength and vision in the face of the unspeakable horror of her son’s death are astonishing. The life and work of Mamie Till-Mobley serves as an inspiration to all who love justice.”—Stanley Nelson, executive producer and director of the documentary The Murder of Emmett Till

“Mamie Till-Mobley has written a powerful book in which she reveals to us the life she shared with her son, Emmett Till, and her pride and joy as he became a remarkable young man. This story shows us how the cruelty of a few changed the life of a loving, caring mother and the history of a nation.”—Kadiatou Diallo, author of My Heart Will Cross This Ocean: My Story, My Son, Amadou

“An epic drama of despair and hope. The most powerful personal story, so far, from the civil rights movement.”—Morris Dees, Southern Poverty Law Center

“Mamie Till-Mobley has always deserved our admiration for her insistence that the world know her son’s terrible fate, and for her determination to confront his killers in a Mississippi courtroom. Now, in the final act of her life, she gives us an account of the crime, its victim, and its aftermath that is as historically valuable as it is inspiring.”—Philip Dray, author of At the Hands of Persons Unknown: The Lynching of Black America

“In the pantheon of Black women I love and admire, Mamie Till-Mobley stands tall. Throughout her memoir…she is as fearless in sharing her life story as she was when she insisted on an open-casket funeral for her beloved son, Emmett. It was wise of Till-Mobley, who died earlier this year at 81, to wait until she could see the end of her journey to tell her story….Throughout her life, Till-Mobley never tried to cash in on her son’s death. Instead, she tried to find a way to make sense of it. None of us can really know her pain, but through Death of Innocence we do know her grace. Her book is a story of faith and hope — but not blind faith and hope; rather faith and hope as action, as being worthy of the challenge.”—Nikki Giovanni