Painful Reminder of of Emmett Till Murder

I read your article concerning the Emmett Till murder that took place 30 years ago. It reminded me of an episode in my own lifetime that took place while I was in the Army stationed at Ft. Jackson, S.C., as a member of Company D, 13th Infantry Regiment.

We were undergoing six weeks of basic infantry training, and among our cadre was a 19-year-old Pfc. who was of a particular galling nature to most of us recruits undergoing the training. He was one of those characters with such a “lovable” personality that white and black alike had agreed that should he go to Korea, he would be among those who would not return. Indeed, I improved my marksmanship by imagining that I could see his face in the bull’s-eye.

Before our six weeks of training were over, the Pfc. had been reduced to private, placed on company labor, and, eventually, went AWOL. This was in November, 1950. I heard no more about our 19-year-old for the duration of my stay in the Army, which ended in 1952. Three years later while living in Florida, I read of the Emmett Till murder and was dumbstruck to see that one of the defendants in the case was none other than Roy Bryant, the former soldier from my company at Ft. Jackson. Apparently he never made it to Korea.

KENNETH L. BOWERS

West Covina