In August 1955, white supremacists murdered 14-year-old Emmett Till. His grieving mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, distributed the photo of his mutilated corpse to the media, believing that if Americans could see the brutal reality of segregation, they would be more likely to support civil rights.
The West Baton Rouge Museum echoes this sentiment with its exhibit, “For All the World to See: Visual Culture and the Struggle for Civil Rights.” The exhibition, which consists of photographs, television clips, art posters and historic artifacts, will be on display until Jan. 16.

“We had averted our eyes for far too long, turning away from the ugly reality facing us as a nation,” Mamie Till-Mobley said, according to the museum’s website. “Let the world see what I’ve seen.”
“For All the World to See” illustrates how images and media transformed the modern civil rights movement and jolted Americans out of denial, according to a museum news release.
“This has been an emotional exhibit for us,” museum curator Angelique Bergeron said. “Some of the images are graphic and disturbing but were necessary to shock the nation out of complacency. As a new mother it hurts my heart to see images of children gunned down or brutally murdered or mourning the loss of a parent.”
Photographs from magazines such as LIFE, JET and EBONY are included in the exhibit, along with CBS news footage and clips from “The Ed Sullivan Show.”
Both positive and negative civil rights-era imagery and artifacts are on display, including 1930s produce advertisements, Jackie Robinson baseball memorabilia, 1960s children’s toys with African-American portraiture and Aunt Jemima syrup dispensers, as stated in the news release.
As a regional history museum, WBRM tells stories about everything from sugar plantations to slavery to the Civil Rights Movement that are related to the community.
“This nationally touring exhibit fits our mission, and we have added artifacts from our collection for a local tie-in,” Bergeron said. “The WBRM is on the African American Heritage Trail and is committed to showing how history is relevant to current times.”
Bergeron said it is always important to study history, and this exhibit gives visitors “much to consider vis-a-vis many different past and current events.”
“For All the World to See” was curated by Maurice Berger of Baltimore and organized by The Center for Art, Design and Visual Culture and the National Museum of African-American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution.
“I hope visitors will feel compassion and empathy for the struggles of generations who came before us and leave with a better understanding of where we are today as a society,” Bergeron said.
Admission is free for residents of West Baton Rouge Parish, $2 for students and $4 for adults.