About sixty-eight years following the incident, Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr. is the final dwelling witness to the kidnapping of Emmett Till, and he’s recounting the night time that all of it went down.
Rev. Wheeler Parker Speaks On The Memory Of Emmett Till: ‘He Was A Fun-Loving Prankster’
In a current profile by NPR, the 83-year-old spoke on how the ordeal made a serious impression on his life, as he famous, “I promised God if he just saved my life, I was going to do right.”
While initially trying again on Emmett, who was Parker’s cousin and finest good friend, the pastor recalled, “He was a fun-loving prankster.” Additionally, he shared a bit of little-known info concerning how Emmett “stuttered all of the time” on account of a run-in with polio.
“He was a fun-loving prankster, loved to tell jokes, stuttered all of the time. We do not really emphasize his stutter enough.”
Parker additionally added that, as Emmett “didn’t have any siblings,” they’d typically spend time fishing and occurring journeys collectively.
“We were bonded like that.”
The Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr. was simply 16 years outdated when his cousin and finest good friend, Emmett Till, was lynched in 1955.
Today, he’s the final dwelling witness of the kidnapping. https://t.co/HpOLXchwy9
— NPR (@NPR) March 12, 2023
The Last Living Witness To The Kidnapping Shares His Story
One such journey concerned Parker and Till—then aged 16 and 14, respectively—touring from Chicago all the way down to Mississippi. While the boys had been visiting Parker’s grandfather Down South, the notorious tragedy performed out after an interplay with Carolyn Bryant Donham at a retailer.
Parker particularly recollects Till wolf-whistling on the white lady, which is a well-liked methodology of complimenting one’s attractiveness.
However, the scenario went horribly flawed.
“He loved to have pranks, so he whistled. He gave her the wolf whistle. When he did that, we could have died. Nobody said, ‘Let’s go.’ We just made a beeline for the car.”
Regarding the wolf-whistling, Parker defined that Emmett was “joking” in an try to make his pals snort. However, as soon as Emmett noticed his pals’ response, he grew “frightened,” and the pastor recollects being chased down a gravel highway whereas heading off.
“He was joking. He wanted to make us laugh. When he saw that we didn’t laugh and we were scared, he’s frightened now. And we jumped in the car, and we’re going on this gravel road. And there’s a car coming behind us. Dust is flying everywhere. And someone said, ‘They’re after us, they’re after us.’ And of course, we jumped out of the car and into the cotton field, and the car went on by.”
Eventually, although, Carolyn’s husband and his half-brother confirmed up the place the boys had been staying, and Parker recollects “getting ready to die” that night time.
“I heard them talking at 2:30 in the morning. They said, ‘You got two boys here from Chicago.’ And, of course, when I hear this, I’m thinking — ‘Man, we’re getting ready to die.’ I said, ‘These people finna kill us.’”
He continued along with his account, noting that he was “shaking like a leaf” and that your complete ordeal was a “horrible feeling” to undergo.
“I’m shaking like a leaf on the tree in the dark of a thousand midnights. It’s so dark, you can’t see your hand before your face. So, when they came in with the gun in one hand and a flashlight in the other, I closed my eyes to be shot. Horrible feeling. Horrible, horrible feeling.”
The males finally took Till, who “had no idea what was about to happen to him.”
“Then they aroused him. And I think they told him to put his shoes on, and he wanted to put his socks on. It was just pure hell over there. Emmett had no idea who he was dealing with. He had no idea what was about to happen to him. He had no way of knowing because he didn’t know that way of life. And he left, and that’s the last time we saw him alive.”
Today is the anniversary of Emmett Till’s homicide. I’ve visited his grave a number of instances on the Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip IL and each time I hear his story I’m left speechless on the cruelty of his loss of life. pic.twitter.com/Ub1hdcxxdw
— LifeBeyondTV (@LifeBeyondTv) August 29, 2022
Parker Says He Struggles With Survivor’s Guilt
In the aftermath of Emmett Till’s homicide, Rev. Wheeler Parker notes that he’s “always had survivor’s guilt.”
He additionally added that—whereas Emmett’s mom, Mamie Till-Mobley—”by no means requested [him] what occurred,” she did ask him to “carry on the work.”
“We have an Emmett Till memorial center. And [Mamie] came and she saw what we were doing. She said, ‘I want you to carry on the work.’ And I remember saying yes, but inside, I said, ‘What can I do, what can I do?’ Not knowing that I’ll be catapulted to where I am now. God put things in place… He going to make sure he put the fire in you to do what you’re supposed to do.”
Parker went on so as to add, “We’re here now because he still speaks from the grave.”
May Emmett Till proceed to Rest in Power.