To Kill a Mockingbird: Race Relations Race relations have been happening for many years. Race relations is the difference in how people treat different races or religions in a community. Racism is not only present between the African-Americans and Caucasians, but it is also present between many other races and even religions. If you are not white, there is a chance that you will run into racism sometime in your life. Racism happens everyday and most often is very hostile. We seem to overlook racism and the power it can have to make some-one feel so poorly by being treated so badly. There are cases all the time where we have to deal with race relations in present day society. Take into account the book To Kill a Mockingbird, the Scottsboro …show more content…
This took place in 1931. The boys were accused of having raped the girls because it was unlikely for two white girls to escape rape from a group of negro boys. According to ACLU, American Civil Liberties Union, “all negroes were brutes and had to be held down by stern repressive measures or the number of rapes on white women would be larger than it is. Their point seemed to be that it was only by ruthless oppression of the Negro that any white woman was able to escape raping at Negro hands.” (Linder, Douglas. "The First Scottsboro Trials”) The Scottsboro Boys were found guilty and sentenced to death in 1931. Then in 1932, one of the raped white girls, Ruby Bates, said in a letter to her boyfriend that she had never been raped. Ruby Bates explained in a letter to her boyfriend that the whole story was a lie and the boys never even touched her. Bates explained that the only reason she went along with the lie was because she was drunk and did not want to be stuck in jail will eight negro boys. In 1937, all the rape charges were dropped. The Emmett Till case is another event that happened that is similar to the two other cases. The Emmett Till case was just more …show more content…
Griffin took a treatment to make himself black so he could go undercover and see how hostile whites treated blacks. Griffin traveled around throughout the south and saw how the race relations changed in different places in the south. Once Griffin completed his experiment and told everyone about his findings, he was shunned by every white in his hometown in Texas but received support from both whites and blacks world wide. Both blacks and whites supported his idea to show everybody how badly whites treat blacks. Griffin got much support but meanwhile he was getting threatened by the whites in his hometown. People of Griffin’s hometown felt betrayed and disappointed in him for going behind everybody's backs to see what being a black was like. Griffin could have been treated much worse. Race relations has gotten much better but is still bad. Griffin could have been sent to jail or put to death but instead he received support. No matter how much time changes, there will always be racism or even race relations between which religion you
But back then there were no black people in law enforcement. The two men were only tried for kidnapping and not for murder (Mamie Till). This just explains how vague the police and FBI searched to really find out what had happened. There were witnesses to the kidnapping (Emmett’s Family) but, they still did not find the men guilty due to lack of evidence. The trial was a two week speedy trial and the men were never convicted of anything (Gale Student Recourses). Adding to the fact that the trial was speedy, there was a decent amount of evidence to tie the men to kidnapping but, with the all-white jury there was really no chance of justice
While segregation of the races between Blacks and Whites, de facto race discrimination, had been widespread across the United States by the 1930s, nine African-American Scottsboro Boys whose names are Ozzie Powell, Eugene Williams, Charlie Weems, Willie Robeson, Olen Montgomery, Roy and Andy Wright, Clarence Norris and Heywood Paterson were accused of raping two young white women named Victoria Price and Ruby Bates in Alabama in 1931. Along with the dominant influences of the Scottsboro cases on American civil rights history, the landmark case has substantial impacts on the U.S. Constitution primarily in that U.S. Supreme Court ascertained a defendant’s right to effective counsel.
On March 25, 1931, Victoria Price, a known prostitute, and Ruby Bates accused nine Negroes of raping them on a train in Northern Alabama. The trial took place in Scottsboro, amid much anti-black sentiment. An all white jury sentenced eight of the nine to death, despite the fact that one was blind and one could...
On March 25, 1931 nine African American youths were falsely accused and wrongfully imprisoned for the rape of two white girls. Over the next six consecutive years, trials were held to attempt to prove the innocence of these nine young men. The court battles ranged from the U.S Supreme court to the Scottsboro county court with almost every decision the same---guilty. Finally, with the proceedings draining Alabama financially and politically, four of the boys ...
The use and repetition of the word “nigger” suggest both physical and psychological boundaries for Griffin, which, of course, also extend to the black population of the mid-twentieth century. In identifying himself with the term, Griffin becomes overwhelmed by its dehumanizing and de-individualizing effect: “I knew I was in hell. Hell could be no more lonely or hopeless, no more agonizingly estranged from the world of order and harmony” (66). Griffin’s internalization of discrimination and his repression as “Other” allows Griffin to convey the “wrong-doing” by the white middle class, forcing a truthful realization of the detrimental effect of racism on the
One examples is, even before his surgery was complete and he had not made the full transition from white to black yet, he was startled at what he heard from his doctor. At the time of his surgery, he spoke with the dermatologist who was changing his skin color, and found out that even this man had prejudices over black people. The doctor was insistent that the “lighter-skinned Negroes” were more ethical and more sensible than the darker-skinned ones. This man, with a high intellectual IQ and much schooling, also claimed that, as a whole group and race, blacks are always violent. Griffin, horrified that he let this man be in charge of his operation, was utterly and completely appalled that a liberal man could indulge in such hateful fallacies. Not only before and during his surgery does Griffin find himself being appalled by white people, but also during his time as a black man in the south he experienced many harsh and unfriendly situations, he never would have experienced if he was a white man. For example, on his first day as a black man he goes into a drugstore forgetting his skin color and that he now, since he is black, he forbidden from ordering a fountain drink, but after a few mean and disgusted looks from the white workers he realizes, he wasn’t even allowed in the store. His first day hit him hard when he figured out that everywhere he went whites seemed to look at him with suspicion and hostility. Also, after having the word nigger seem to never escape his ears its implications almost became unbearable. Hearing this really made me think about all of the black people in the south that have had to put up this and even worse things every day of their lives and how strong they all were; a white man has been through this one day and can barely take it; how have these people put up with this for so
However, the prosecution in the case raised some difficult to repute. The black man that was reported to be seen running from a fire and the coals found under hay in a barn (even though the coals were out before the fire started). Not to mention Mary Burton's eyewitness testimony.
Another fear the White Southerners had was the fear of black men exploiting white women. This fear led to many imprisonments and murders of falsely accused African American men. On March 25th, 1931, nine young African American boys were accused of raping two young white women on a train. These nine eventually became known as the Scottsboro Boys, named after the town where they were arrested. Although the boys had a lawyer fighting for them, the trial was over and the guilty verdict came automatically due to the Jim Crow mindsets of the citizens of Alabama.
Mr. Griffin was a middle age white man who lived with his wife and children. He was not oriented to his family. He decided to pass his own society to the black society. Although this decision might help most of the African Americans, he had to sacrifice his gathering time with his family. “She offered, as her part of the project, her willingness to lead, with our three children, the unsatisfactory family life of a household deprived of husband and father” (Griffin 9). Leaving Mrs. Griffin and his children would deprive them of the care they needed. Even though he was not oriented to his family, he was full of courage. He was willing to discuss topics that people hesitated to talk about, trying new ideas that people were afraid to do. After turning back to his own skin color, he attended most media conferences and also wrote books about what he had gone through. During those interviews, Griffin was very considerate. He requested Wallace, a reporter, to report carefully so that he would not hurt his African American friends. “Please… Don’t mention those names on the air.
Soon after, Bates disappeared. In 1933 she appeared as a surprise witness for the defense. She then testified that there was no rape and the sexual activity examination from her and Price was from the night before. Ruby Bates said, "I want to tell you that the Scottsboro boys were framed by the bosses of the south and two girls. I was one of the girls and I want you to know that I am sorry
This is yet another example of why I believe Griffin has fully experienced what any black man in the South has and can fully understand and
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”-Martin Luther King Jr. This quote shows how racism is like darkness and hate and love and light are the only way to drive racism out. The story takes place at the time of the great depression. Scout lives in a very racist and judgement city in the south. A black male is accused of raping a white woman. Scouts dad Atticus gets appointed to be the defendant's lawyer. Racism is an antagonist in To Kill A Mockingbird because the white people of Maycomb discriminate the blacks and make them feel lesser. The theme racism can be harmful to everyone is shown by many characters throughout the book.
It started when a white woman from Sumner said that she was assaulted by an African American. Her name was Frances Taylor. Fannie was 22 years old and her husband James Taylor was 30 years old in 1923. James was a millwright and he was working for Cummer and sons in Sumner. Fanny wasn’t the most social girl in the town barely anyone knew anything about her. People say that all she did was clean her floors with bleach to keep them stone white and take care of her two young children. On January 1, 1923 Fannies neighbor said that she heard screaming and grabbed a revolver to go investigate. She found Fanny on the ground beaten with marks all over her body. Fanny told the neighbor to go check on the baby because an African American had bust open her door and beaten her and that the African American was inside the house. Fanny original report said that the African American just beat her and didn’t rape her. But rumors started going all over the town and people believed he did rape her. Philomena Goins said that she saw John Bradley with Fanny and she said that they were together and that day they got into a fight and he beat her. Then when John Bradley left Fanny house he went to
He was wrongly accused because he and his friend fit the description of the killers, which was “two negroes in a white car.” In the North, such as New Jersey, racial segregation was becoming more intense in the end of the 1940s. Schools were becoming segregated and they were starting to enforce anti-miscegenation laws, which wanted racial segregation of marriage and relationships.... ... middle of paper ...
He is a bully undercover. Griffin is a rude person, an example of him being rude is when a teacher’s dog died, and he said, “Stupid animal, I’m glad it’s dead, The world is a better place now.” (44) Show rude that is! It was rude because he was happy a person’s dog died because he hated the dog, that is very rude to say because a dog is like a family member to the teacher. Another time when he was rude was when on page 141 when Eric, said something about Cody, and then Cody punched Eric. He was rude because he just stood there watching and cheering on, that was rude because he did not defend Eric, and Eric got hurt. That was rude of Griffin, and we know Eric would never do anything like that! Griffin is also deceiving. One example Griffin is deceiving is that he is on page 8 he was the one to cover David Hallenbeck with ketchup and then after that, he acted so nice to Eric. That can show Griffin deceiving because he did something that was not very nice then he acted like a completely different person. Another example that he is Deceiving is that Griffin says in the book, “I walk dogs to”(42) That can show Griffin is deceiving because Griffin is acting like a nice person by so-called walking the dogs even though he did not! See how different Eric and Griffin are, but what are there