Creator says series ‘not just’ a murder or civil rights story
Before Trayvon Martin, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, there was Emmett Till.
In recent years, the killings of these Black Americans and numerous others have been fiery sparks propelling the Black Lives Matter movement, culminating in the racial reckonings of 2020. But such incidents were preceded decades earlier by another galvanizing crime: the 1955 kidnapping and killing of the 14-year-old Till in the Jim Crow South after he was accused of whistling at a white woman in a grocery store.
That horrific act, and the determined battle by Till’s mother, Mamie TillMobley, to punish those responsible, was a catalyst for the formation of the civil rights movement that gained national momentum in the 1960s. But while many key events in the history of the movement have been examined in documentaries and dramatized by film and TV, Till’s slaying has not been a major focal point in these efforts. The brutality of his death — he was tortured and lynched — and lingering questions that hampered the quest for justice for years placed the killing beyond Hollywood’s reach.
ABC steps into that void with its limited series “Women of the Movement,” which shines a new light on Till and his mother. Premiering Jan. 6 and airing over three consecutive weeks, the six-episode series is one of the most powerful — and potentially risky — projects revolving around race ever developed by a broadcast network.
Creator and executive producer Marissa Jo Cerar, whose writing credits
include “The Handmaid’s Tale,” became emotional when asked about the relevance of the project in connection with recent headlines about racism and the tragic deaths of Black people at the hands of others.
“These stories keep happening,” she said, wiping away tears. “Our people keep getting murdered. It’s so horrifying to look at social media and to see a certain group of people immediately criminalizing victims. It’s devastating. They just see a dead body. They don’t see the light that was extinguished. I want people to see Emmett before he was a victim or martyr, just as I hope they could see Trayvon or George Floyd or — there’s too many names to list.”
Cerar became more composed as she added, “They were babies, they were people, they were members of their communities. I just want people to see their humanity.”
Each week’s installment is followed by an hourlong episode of the ABC News docuseries “Let the World See,” examining TillMobley’s life and activism.
Among those appearing in the docuseries are
former first lady Michelle Obama, rapper Common, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and author-scholar Michael Eric Dyson. Actor Nia Long will read excerpts from Till-Mobley’s memoir, “Death of Innocence: The Story of the Hate Crime That Changed America.”
Still, Cerar acknowledged that audiences may be hesitant, at least at first, to watch a historical drama about the vicious slaying of an innocent Black youth.
“There might be people who say, ‘Do we need to hear about another racially motivated murder?’ ” Cerar said. “What I will ask is that they keep watching.”
She stressed that “Women of the Movement” would highlight the emotional and inspirational elements of TillMobley’s journey.
“This is not just a murder story or a civil rights story. The only way I would consider it was coming at it from the mother’s point of view, and approaching it as a family drama based on a true crime. We get to know the people before the tragedy so we can relate to them more. It’s a boy’s coming of age. It’s a woman’s coming of age,” Cerar said.