A New National Monument Honoring Emmett Till Just Opened — What to Know and How to Visit

The monument spans from Chicago to Mississippi.

A new national monument has been established to honor Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley.

The national monument, which stretches from Till’s birthplace in Chicago all the way down to where the 14-year-old was lynched in Mississippi, was established as the country’s 425th national park on Tuesday on what would have been Till’s 82nd birthday, according to a White House proclamation. Till, while visiting Mississippi, was lynched in 1955 for reportedly whistling at a white woman.

The national monument includes Graball Landing in Glendora, MS, where Till’s body was believed to have been pulled from the Tallahatchie River; Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ in Chicago where Mamie Till-Mobley held his open casket visitation and funeral service; and the Tallahatchie County Second District Courthouse in Sumner, MS, where Till’s murderers were tried and ultimately acquitted.

The National Park Service will now provide visitor services at the Pullman National Historical Park in Chicago and in partnership with the Emmett Till Interpretive Center in Mississippi.

“When we ended lynching as a matter of law, we talked about wanting to do this. But the support from the community has been so overwhelming,” President Joe Biden told reporters on Tuesday. “We can’t just choose to learn what we want to know… We should know everything: the good, the bad, the truth of who we are as a nation. That’s what great nations do, and we are a great nation.” 

He added: “For only with truth comes healing, justice, repair, and another step forward toward forming a more perfect union… That’s what’s happening. That’s what’s going to happen with visitors of all backgrounds [learning] the history of Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley through our national monument.”

In Mississippi, visitor information can be found at the Emmett Till Interpretive Center on Tuesdays through Saturdays. In Illinois, visitor information can be found at the Pullman National Historical Park, which is about 11 miles south of the Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ. Visitors can only access the outside of the church itself since it is still an active church.

For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.