CICELY TYSON

As the first-ever feature-length retelling of the lynching of Emmett Till goes into wide release, so does an art campaign meant to honor the power of images like those of his open casket that were printed by the Black press.

As another year winds down, it feels natural to look back at what transpired, and examine some of the bigger headlines and events of 2021.

This year’s inductees into the National Film Registry include an epic Star Wars and Lord of the Ring films, projects starring Jennifer Lopez and the late Cicely Tyson along with films that took on racially motivated violence against people of color.

They both carved out sterling reputations as military and political leaders over years of public service.

Pallbearers carry the casket of pioneering Black actor Cicely Tyson from Harlem's famed Abyssinian Baptist Church to a hearse on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. The New York-born actor was 96. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)NEW YORK – Tyler Perry and Bill and Hillary Clinton were among the attendees of a private memorial service for Cicely Tyson at Harlem's famed Abyssinian Baptist Church. It was very Cicely Tyson: It was formal, it was humorous, it was sad, it was glorious,” said Larry Thompson, Tyson's manager for more than 40 years. The New York-born actor was 96.

People wait on line to attend a public viewing for Cicely Tyson at the Abyssinian Baptist Church in the Harlem neighborhood of New York, Monday, Feb. 15, 2021. Tyson, the pioneering Black actress died on Jan. 28. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)NEW YORK – People traveled across the country and stood in a block-long line to pay respects to Cicely Tyson at a public viewing Monday. Hundreds of admirers of the pioneering Black actor lined up outside Harlem's famed Abyssinian Baptist Church on a wintry Monday. Many in the multigenerational crowd held photos of Tyson, who died Jan. 28.

FILE - Cicely Tyson arrives at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 20, 2009, in Los Angeles. Tyson's death was announced by her family, via her manager Larry Thompson, who did not immediately provide additional details. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File)NEW YORK – People wishing to pay their final respects to legendary actor Cicely Tyson will get a chance during a public viewing at a famed Manhattan church. The viewing for the actor, who died last week at age 96, will be held on Monday, Feb. 15, at Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, according to a statement by her family through her manager Larry Thompson. The viewing will be from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and COVID-19 protocols will be in place, with masks and social distancing requirements.

Tyson's death was announced by her family, via her manager Larry Thompson, who did not immediately provide additional details. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)NEW YORK – Cicely Tyson was active to the end, in the middle of promoting her memoir “Just As I Am” when she died at age 96. Many media outlets this week had been celebrating Tyson and her memoir. AdIn the days before her death, Tyson was also a guest on The Bakari Sellers Podcast, where she talked about her acting choices, injustices and her marriage to late jazz great Miles Davis. In an NPR interview, Tyson said she came to acting so that she “could speak through other people,” after being naturally drawn to observing other people as a shy child.

(AP Photo/W.A.Harewood, File)LOS ANGELES – Cicely Tyson was a Black actor who knocked down doors so other women of color could walk through them. Tyson strategically selected powerful roles with an intent to elevate how Black actors were perceived. Tyson desired to get away from the negative portrayals of Black women with the hopes of highlighting them with powerful prestige. “Tyson showed the world that the Black woman is more than a moment. He went on to say that Tyson “became a vessel through which all the dignity of who she was as a Black person, a Black woman, could flow.”AdTyson’s fame transcended all media.

FILE - Cicely Tyson arrives at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 20, 2009, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File)LOS ANGELES – Reaction to the death of Tony and Emmy-winning actor Cicely Tyson at 96. Thank you Cicely Tyson. Cicely Tyson just published her memoir this week!! "I’m sad to hear the news that we lost our dear Cicely Tyson, the sweetest person I’ve ever met.

FILE - Cicely Tyson arrives at night two of the Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Sept. 15, 2019, in Los Angeles. “With heavy heart, the family of Miss Cicely Tyson announces her peaceful transition this afternoon. I grew up in an area that was called the slums at the time,” Tyson said at the time. Ad“It’s important that they see and hear history from Miss Jane’s point of view,” Tyson told The New York Times. Tyson played his secretary, making her the first Black woman to have a continuing role in a dramatic television series.

FILE - In this May 1, 2019, file photo, actress Carol Sutton arrives at the World Premiere of "Poms" in Los Angeles. Sutton, a fixture on stages in her native New Orleans who built a steady career on the big and small screens, including roles in the 1989 comedy Steel Magnolias and the TV series Queen Sugar, has died Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020, from complications from COVID-19, according to New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. Sutton was 76. (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP, File)NEW YORK – Actor Carol Sutton, a fixture on stages in her native New Orleans who built a steady career on the big and small screens, including roles in the 1989 comedy “Steel Magnolias” and the TV series “Queen Sugar,” has died from complications from COVID-19, according to New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. Sutton was 76.