ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Students at Louis E. Dieruff High School said they believe they must continue to fight for civil rights today to secure equal rights for people of color.
The students took part Tuesday in a Black History Month presentation and discussion on Emmett Till and the civil rights movement of the 1960s.
- Retired professor Robert Mayer wrote a book about Emmett Till and the youth of the civil rights movement
- He said he hoped it inspired today's students
- Some students said it was still a struggle for people of color to be treated equally
It was led by author and retired Moravian University Professor Robert Mayer. He discussed his book “In the Name of Emmett Till: How the Children of the Mississippi Freedom Struggle Showed Us Tomorrow.”
Mayer said most of his book centers on young people who were inspired to become politically and socially active because of Till’s racially-motivated murder in Mississippi in 1955.
Mayer profiled young people such as Brenda Travis, a Mississippi youth activist who fought against segregation in the years following Till’s death.
He said it parallels with more recent history, such as the killing of Trayvon Martin in 2012. Martin was a 17-year-old Black youth when he was killed in Florida by a neighborhood watch captain. The shooter was later acquitted.
“That’s inspired a lot of people,” Mayer said. “We now have a Travyon generation, which is great. So I see that’s one really powerful connection to today.”
Till was 14 when he was beaten and lynched by two white men. His mother held an open-casket funeral for him that forced the nation to bear witness to what had been done to him.
Shalanda Riddick, 16, said she only knew some of Emmett Till’s story before today. She said there’s still work to be done. She attended as part of her U.S. History II class.
“People are still racially profiling people and they should stop,” she said.
Riddick said she plans to become an activist when she gets older by becoming a lawyer.
Mayer said he has visited Dieruff many times before to supervise student teachers. Librarian Diane Hollowell said she contacted Mayer to talk with students after reading the book given to her by former Allentown School District Superintendent John Stanford.
“We can’t hide from history, we have to learn from history,” she said. “We have to encourage all of the 18-year-olds to go out and vote.”
"We don't shy away from hard conversations. It's not something we're not going to address because it's obviously impacting our students."Dan Jurasits, Social Studies department chair at Dieruff High School
Social Studies Department Chair Dan Jurasits teaches history and psychology at the high school. He said he and the school’s librarian worked to bring the author in for a discussion and presentation because of the focus on civil rights and youth.
“We thought it’s a powerful message for our kids to hear,” he said. “Not just part of their regular study of civil rights and Black history, but just because we’re just trying to educate and prepare that next generation of leaders who are going to lead Dieruff High School and going out into the real world.”
Jurasits said hard topics such as fatal encounters with police officers are discussed and not brushed aside with students.
"We don't shy away from hard conversations," he said. "It's not something we're not going to address because it's obviously impacting our students. We're a school that serves primarily students of color and we know that's going to have a direct impact on them."
Another assembly with Mayer is scheduled with advanced placement students to discuss the book later in the month.
