RantCrush Top 5: December 28, 2016

President Barack Obama has signed the Emmett Till Bill—legislation that allows the FBI and Department of Justice to reopen cold cases dealing with civil rights crimes. The bill was first introduced in 2005 by activist Alvin Sykes, and signed into law three years later. The bill that Obama just signed is an expansion of that legislation. It was named after 14-year-old Emmett Till, who was lynched in 1955 because he whistled at a white woman. Two white men were acquitted of the murder, even though they later confessed that they were guilty.

President Obama extended the Emmett Till bill which re-opens civil rights cold cases https://t.co/Lt4b9w1b95 pic.twitter.com/QoEh0rZpw4

— Black Youth Project (@BlackYouthProj) December 27, 2016

The new version of the law makes it possible to reopen cases from before 1980, while previously it was limited to cases from before 1970. It encourages members of law enforcement to reach out to “activists, advocates and academics working on these issues.” And finally, it calls for the “full accounting” of victims who were killed or abducted because of their skin color, and requires agencies to keep families updated about the status of their cases.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.