Floor SpeechCeremonial2026-07-16

HE COULD HAVE BEEN ME

Civil Rights

Context

On 2026-07-16, Representative Danny K. Davis (D-IL-7) delivered a floor speech titled "HE COULD HAVE BEEN ME" in the House.

Full Text

HE COULD HAVE BEEN ME

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 116 (Thursday, July 16, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 116 (Thursday, July 16, 2026)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Pages E699-E700] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] HE COULD HAVE BEEN ME ______ HON. DANNY K. DAVIS of illinois in the house of representatives Thursday, July 16, 2026 Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Emmett Louis Till. Emmett Louis Till was born July 25, 1941. I was born September 6, 1941--just forty-two days later. Had Emmett lived, he would be turning 85 years old today. I turn 85 in September. We are the same age. We came into this world together, and that truth has never left me. In the summer of 1955, when Emmett was murdered in Mississippi, I was 14 years old--living in Parkdale, Arkansas, and visiting my grandfather in Mississippi every summer, just as Emmett visited his great-uncle. When that news reached us, it terrified every Black family in the South. The thought that formed in my mind at 14 years old has stayed with me every day of my life: that could have been me. Emmett's mother, the incomparable Mrs. Mamie Till-Mobley, turned unimaginable grief into the most courageous act in American history. She opened that casket and said: ``Let the people see what I've seen.'' That decision ignited the Civil Rights Movement. Rosa Parks said she thought of Emmett Till before she refused to give up her seat. I was privileged to know Mrs. Till-Mobley personally, and I carry her courage with me in everything I do. In her honor, I introduced legislation to establish the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Historic Site in Illinois--because their story must be protected, taught, and never forgotten. Tonight we celebrate what would have been Emmett's 85th birthday. He should be here-- [[Page E700]] gray-haired, surrounded by grandchildren, full of stories. The distance between his fate and mine was not character or worth. It was chance. And that is why I will never stop working to ensure that no mother ever has to do what Mamie Till-Mobley did. I wish Emmett a Happy Birthday. We carry him. We remember him. We will not rest until the justice he never received in life is fully honored in history. ____________________

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HE COULD HAVE BEEN ME Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 116 (Thursday, July 16, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 116 (Thursday, July 16, 2026)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Pages E699-E700] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] HE COULD HAVE BEEN ME ______ HON. DANNY K. DAVIS of illinois in the house of representatives Thursday, July 16, 2026 Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Emmett Louis Till. Emmett Louis Till was born July 25, 1941. I was born September 6, 1941--just forty-two days later. Had Emmett lived, he would be turning 85 years old today. I turn 85 in September. We are the same age. We came into this world together, and that truth has never left me. In the summer of 1955, when Emmett was murdered in Mississippi, I was 14 years old--living in Parkdale, Arkansas, and visiting my grandfather in Mississippi every summer, just as Emmett visited his great-uncle. When that news reached us, it terrified every Black family in the South. The thought that formed in my mind at 14 years old has stayed with me every day of my life: that could have been me. Emmett's mother, the incomparable Mrs. Mamie Till-Mobley, turned unimaginable grief into the most courageous act in American history. She opened that casket and said: ``Let the people see what I've seen.'' That decision ignited the Civil Rights Movement. Rosa Parks said she thought of Emmett Till before she refused to give up her seat. I was privileged to know Mrs. Till-Mobley personally, and I carry her courage with me in everything I do. In her honor, I introduced legislation to establish the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Historic Site in Illinois--because their story must be protected, taught, and never forgotten. Tonight we celebrate what would have been Emmett's 85th birthday. He should be here-- [[Page E700]] gray-haired, surrounded by grandchildren, full of stories. The distance between his fate and mine was not character or worth. It was chance. And that is why I will never stop working to ensure that no mother ever has to do what Mamie Till-Mobley did. I wish Emmett a Happy Birthday. We carry him. We remember him. We will not rest until the justice he never received in life is fully honored in history. ____________________