Congress Makes Lynching <br />a Federal Crime Passed unanimously by the <br />Senate last year, the House <br />approved the bill by a vote of 410 to four. Since a similar bill was first <br />introduced 120 years ago, nearly <br />200 efforts to designate lynching <br />as a federal crime have failed. Illinois Democratic Rep. Bobby Rush <br />introduced the bill, named after Emmett Till. Till was 14-years-old when <br />he was kidnapped, tortured and <br />violently murdered in Mississippi <br />for flirting with a white woman. The bill was approved <br />by the House 65 years after Till's <br />murder sparked outrage across the U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush, <br />via NBC News It is thought that the U.S. has <br />been host to more than 4,000 lynchings,<br />the majority of which were black men and women.
