GLENDORA, Miss. (WJTV) – On the 68th anniversary of the death of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, were honored in Mississippi during a commemoration at a new historical location.

The abduction, torture and killing of the Black teenager from Chicago in 1955 helped propel the Civil Rights Movement. His body was found in the in the Tallahatchie River.

A commemoration was held near the river on Monday in honor of the Biden Administration declaring the location, along with two others, a national monument in honor of Till and his mother.

Those locations are the Graball Landing site, the Tallahatchie Courthouse and Robert’s Temple Church of God and Christ in Illinois.

Shannon Estenoz, Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, said national monuments mark the nation’s most significant, cultural, historical and natural resources. She said Till’s story changed American history, and his death inspired a movement for justice.

“One family’s unthinkable loss and indescribable pain became a nation’s clarion wakeup call, maybe shook the nation awake by laying bare the brutality, the injustice, the barbarity inflicted on its Black citizens,” said Estenoz.

U.S. Representative Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said the path to the Till monuments is a tribute to the Biden Administration’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. He said the sites also serve as symbols of the work that lies ahead.

“That’s part of why we’re here. So, we can bring people to this area and talk about the dastardly deed that young Emmett had to endure at the hands of his killers. So, it’s in his spirit. We’re here today,” Thompson said.

Acting superintendent for the national monument, Deirdre Hewitt, said they will preserve the area so people can pay their respects in the years to come.