Racial Injustice In To Kill A Mockingbird

English Literary Essay Amy Olley I have always felt very strongly about discrimination of races and so I decided to examine racism in Southern America between the 1930s and 1960s. The theme of my book project is: An Examination of the effects of the Jim Crow Legislation and of racism on both black and white in the books To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, which is my classic, The Help by Kathryn Stockett and The Colour Purple by Alice Walker. The Jim Crow Legislation was implemented in Southern America in 1876 and it ended in 1965. The Jim Crow was a legalization of black and white segregation. Separate areas for whites and blacks were constructed and there were punishments for people conversing with a different race.

To Kill a Mockingbird Argumentative Essay In our society, we are all judged and discriminated based on the minority of race, class and gender. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird follows the childhood of Jean Louise, or “Scout”, Finch in the 1930’s. One of the most significant events in the plot is the case of Tom Robinson, an African American man accused of raping 19 year old Mayella Ewell. Scout’s father Atticus Finch was Tom’s attorney and brought strong evidence to prove he was innocent, but he was still convicted and sent to death because of racial injustice. While class and gender have a role in To Kill a Mockingbird, race is the most significant because the case of Tom Robinson led him to his death even though he was proven innocent, which proves the theme of racial injustice.

The first influence on Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird are the Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws were horrible demeaning laws to keep african americans lower than whites. The laws were designed to keep the white class higher and superior to blacks in all areas of work, education and society in general, the jim crow laws were a racial caste system that was mostly in use in the south. ( what was Jim 1) “ Jim crow was more than a series of rigid anti-black laws, it was a way of life.” (Pilgrim 1). “Beginning in the late 1870s, Southern state lawmakers passed laws that required Whites and Blacks to attend separate schools and to sit in different areas on public transportation.” (“Jim Crow Laws” 1).

Racism means hate towards another race and injustice mean unfair treatment, according to learner 's dictionary. In Just Mercy, Bryan Stevenson, an African american lawyer, was helping people get justice for the colored community. Another book similar to Just Mercy is, To Kill a Mockingbird, which made in 1960 was written by Harper Lee. Harper Lee addressed many issues about racial injustice too. Just Mercy was written in 2014, In modern day society, racial injustice has a big impact in this world today, as stated in Just Mercy and To Kill a Mockingbird.

Novelist Harper Lee, in her book To Kill a Mockingbird, depicts the racism and inequalities in the town of Maycomb by having a white man, Atticus Finch, defend Tom Robinson who was black. Lee’s purpose is to show the world is unfair between races and we need to have compassion for others. She adopts a serious tone to appeal to people’s morals to do the right the thing by those seeking changes for equality. Throughout his closing argument, Atticus ensures credibility, mentioning God, and by presenting evidence that Tom Robinson is not guilty but someone in the courtroom is, to explain Mayella’s reasoning to lie. When Atticus presented the “circumstantial evidence to indicate Mayella Ewell was beaten savagely by someone who led almost exclusively with his left hand”, he mentions Mr. Ewell “did what any God-fearing .

Ezekiel Gaytan 2/26/16 E2P8 Argumentative Essay In the courtroom the defendant relies on the lawyer to defend him prove him not guilty. A well developed speech can change the views that people have and ultimately land a deadly blow on any thought of prejudice that the court has on the defendant. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary; the definition of prejudice is an unfair feeling of dislike for a person or group because of race, sex, religion, etc. In Atticus’ closing argument, the prejudice against Tom Robinson is that he is black, and that any crime that he commits thus must be true, “ the evil assumption - that all Negroes lie, that all Negroes are basically immoral beings…” (Lee).This affects the possibility of Atticus proving Robinson not guilty because of the prejudice that everyone in the courtroom has against him. The case is revolving around that Tom Robinson is accused of beating and raping Mayella Ewell, the counterargument that Atticus presents shows that Mayella was beaten with the left hand, but Tom Robinson is only capable of using his right hand because his left hand was caught in a cotton gin completely disabling it.

In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, readers are introduced to a class system that often seems arbitrary and unfair, yet forms the basis for how the entire story plays out. Tom Robinson, the Ewells, and the Cunninghams represent three distinctly different social classes and their affects on others’ treatment. As a Black American in 1930s Alabama, Tom Robinson represented the very lowest rung on the social ladder. Negros were considered dirty — an untouchable class. A Black person’s testimony was of no use in court unless accompanied by two agreeable white witnesses.

The story of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a classic part of American Literature that explores the different aspects of prejudice and integration. There are multiple scenes in both the novel and movie that show this separation between races, because these actions were common at this time in the 1930’s. Some examples of segregation in the story include the separated courtroom, the housekeeper Calpurnia in the back of the car, and the outcome of Tom Robinson’s case. One example of segregation is the separation in the courtroom. During Tom Robinson’s trial, the courtroom was very clearly divided between whites and blacks.

The classic American novel “To kill a Mockingbird” relates to the era of the Great Depression which as we know was an era in which racism toward black men was at its peak, due to that white supremacy was very noticeable. We can observe how some of the character of this best seller are very racist, during the story in causal events that black and white men should have equal opportunity to win the colored person has no chance at all, there were places just for white or black people and the areas for white men were impeccable and had more resources that the black venues could ever imagine, and lastly the lack of education toward colored people was very pronounced. Education, a fundamental human right according to UNESCO was taken away of black men, that is why the majority of the colored man were not lawyers nor doctors. Everyone should have the right to know how to write and read, the majority of black men died without knowing. The small percentage of people that knew how to read and write learned because someone who was white had taught them, it had nothing to do with school.“ Jem said it looked like they could save the collection money for a year and get some hymn books.

Despite many attempts by prominent social figures to weaken it, prejudice and racism is deeply ingrained in society. In To Kill a Mockingbird, which takes place during the Great-Depression era of Alabama, racism is a main point of debate. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the setting, character’s tone, and Scout’s narration so that the audience can understand racism and change their attitude about it. The story centers on the trial of Tom Robinson, a black man wrongly accused of raping a white woman. The setting in the fictional town, combined with the tone given by many characters and Scout’s innocent and unbiased narration.