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Racism in the american justice system
To kill mockingbird study guide
Racism in the american justice system
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To Kill A Mockingbird Research Paper In previous eras, anti-Black sentiment was widely acknowledged and sometimes encouraged in the United States. Black litigants have endured a long history of racist attitudes and inequality in the criminal justice system To this day, it is impossible to determine if jurors present an unbiased trial for the defendants regardless of their racial background. Although the undercurrent of racism may continue to be present in modern juries, racial prejudice in the modern legal system is certainly less flagrant as many. Mockingbird Trial As To Kill a Mockingbird indicated, the legal system in courtrooms was affected by the pervasive racial injustice and stereotyping of the premodern era. Despitethis overwhelming evidence that had unarguably proved their innocence Tom Robinson, who had been of raping a white woman, was “a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed” And even Atticus Finch’s final plea that “In the name of God, do your duty,” the failure of the jurors from completing this moral obligation and achieving an impartial verdict was because the jury was not a full representation of Maycomb. Although the novel establishes that the town of Maycomb had women and minorities, the jury itself was monochromatic and only consisted of twelve white men. It was due to this absence of diversity that inhibited the Maycomb jurors from granting Tom Robinson with his right to a fair and impartial trial. The Scottsboro Boys In another similar case, nine black teeanagers from ages thirteen to nineteen were arrested, falsely accused, and initially sentenced for raping two white women, Victoria Price and Ruby Bates, on a train in Scottsboro, Alabama in 1931. The young boys were also tried ... ... middle of paper ... ...elps assists the objective of providing defendants and the public with an unbiased and honest system. Conclusion Revisiting the issues brought up by Harper Lee in To Kill a Mockingbird, it seems clear that majority of Americans do not live in a racist society as the one portrayed in Maycomb. After centuries of facing prolonged struggles of activism and change, open hatred and prejudice against Blacks has become unacceptable and often taboo in today’s society. Even though there may still be underlying tendencies of prejudice that could affect jurors decisions in present-day trials, the heavy cascade of anti-Black sentiment and overtly racial norms that had previously prevailed in America has greatly diminished. Black defendants by far have an improved opportunity of receiving a more fair and impartial verdict in the modern legal system than they did in the 1930’s.
The purpose of this essay is to compare three very similar cases, the Scottsboro Trials, Brown v. Mississippi, and the fictional trial of Tom Robinson in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird; and to prove why the defendant of the third trial never had a chance. Each took place in the rural South in the 1920’s and 30’s and involved the unfair conviction of young black males by all-white juries pressured by the threat of mob violence. Each lacked the evidence sufficient for conviction, most especially for the death penalty. Last, heroes emerged from each trial and made small but solid steps towards equal justice for all.
“The New Jim Crow” is an article by Michelle Alexander, published by the Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law. Michelle is a professor at the Ohio State Moritz college of criminal law as well as a civil rights advocate. Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law is part of the world’s top education system, is accredited by the American Bar Association, and is a long-time member of the American Law association. The goal of “The New Jim Crow” is to inform the public about the issues of race in our country, especially our legal system. The article is written in plain English, so the common person can fully understand it, but it also remains very professional. Throughout the article, Alexander provides factual information about racial issues in our country. She relates them back to the Jim Crow era and explains how the large social problem affects individual lives of people of color all over the country. By doing this, Alexander appeals to the reader’s ethos, logos, and pathos, forming a persuasive essay that shifts the understanding and opinions of all readers.
Despite the efforts of lawyers and judges to eliminate racial discrimination in the courts, does racial bias play a part in today’s jury selection? Positive steps have been taken in past court cases to ensure fair and unbiased juries. Unfortunately, a popular strategy among lawyers is to incorporate racial bias without directing attention to their actions. They are taught to look for the unseen and to notice the unnoticed. The Supreme Court in its precedent setting decision on the case of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), is the first step to limiting racial discrimination in the court room. The process of selecting jurors begins with prospective jurors being brought into the courtroom, then separating them into smaller groups to be seated in the jury box. The judge and or attorneys ask questions with intent to determine if any juror is biased or cannot deal with the issues fairly. The question process is referred to as voir dire, a French word meaning, “to see to speak”. During voir dire, attorneys have the right to excuse a juror in peremptory challenges. Peremptory challenges are based on the potential juror admitting bias, acquaintanceship with one of the parties, personal knowledge of the facts, or the attorney believing he/she might not be impartial. In the case of Batson v. Kentucky, James Batson, a black man, was indicted for second-degree burglary and receipt of stolen goods. During the selection of the jury the prosecutor used his peremptory challenges to strike out all of the four black potential jurors, leaving an all white jury. Batson’s attorney moved to discharge the venire, the list from which jurors may be selected, on the grounds that the prosecutor’s peremptory challenges violated his client’s Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment rights to have a jury derived from a “cross-section of the community”(People v. Wheeler, 583 P.3d 748 [Calif. 1978]). The circuit court ruled in favor of the prosecutor and convicted Batson on both counts. This case went through the courts and finalized in the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Scottsboro Trial and the trial of Tom Robinson are almost identical in the forms of bias shown and the accusers that were persecuted. The bias is obvious and is shown throughout both cases, which took place in the same time period. Common parallels are seen through the time period that both trials have taken place in and those who were persecuted and why they were persecuted in the first place. The thought of "All blacks were liars, and all blacks are wrongdoers," was a major part of all of these trails. A white person's word was automatically the truth when it was held up to the credibility of someone whom was black. Both trials were perfect examples of how the people of Alabama were above the law and could do whatever they wanted to the black people and get away with it. In both trials lynch mobs were formed to threaten the black people who were accused. Judge Hornton tried many times to move the case to a different place so that a fair trial could take place and not be interrupted by the racist people. Finally was granted to move the case even though the lynch mobs threatened to kill everyone who was involved in the case if it were to be moved. In this essay the bias and racism in both trials are going to be clarified and compared to each other.
A creepy house that invokes the mystery through children and the discrimination of blacks in court develop the historical characters: Scout, Atticus, and Boo Radley. Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird, takes the point of view of Scout, a young girl living in a small town, who watches racial situations and society changing in front of her. Through Scout telling her stories about her father and small town, Harper Lee develops characters, themes, and life lessons that are enjoyed and read about every year. Atticus Finch develops himself through pleading a case for a black man who pleads innocent. The town turns into despair when Atticus Fitch supports this man who ends up being guilty, even though he was innocent. From small town lawyers, comical pop culture, and people identifying themselves with a character, To Kill a Mockingbird remains know and mentioned around the world fifty years later.
A study of race and jury trials in Florida published last year in the Quarterly Journal of Economics, found that “conviction rates for black and white defendants are similar when there is at least some representation of blacks in the jury pool.” But all-white juries are a very different story—they convict blacks 16% more often than they convict whites (2).
"To Kill a Mocking Bird" by Harper Lee is a book that touches on some difficult topics. The story takes place in the small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s (Tom's trial takes place in 1935). The story is narrated by a young girl who goes by the name of "Scout" Finch. Scout's real name is Jean Louise. The story takes place during the depression, but the Finch family is better off than many in this small town, as Atticus, Scout's dad is a successful and respected lawyer. Tom Robinson is a poor African-American field hand who is accused and tried for rape. In the process of defending Robinson, Atticus is able to provide evidence that the young man is innocent. But, because of the racist nature of white society in that time and place, the young man is convicted.
put yourself in other people’s shoes, 2. don’t kill mockingbirds, 3. keep fighting even if you know you’ll lose, and 4. the world is unfair. While this might not make sense now, it will soon. In this story, Atticus is the voice of reason for the children and for most of the town. As one of the supporting characters in the book said, “… this town… they’re perfectly willing to let him do what they’re too afraid to do themselves.” Atticus is far from racist like few people in the town of Maycomb. For this, when Tom’s case arose, Atticus was runner up for defending Tom Robinson. The judge knew no other lawyer was going to defend a black man in court, even less if they were fighting against such an accusation. African Americans are portrayed as criminals, dangerous, aggressive, liars, and competent of rape, apparently. Given that the author was, Lee broke that stereotype in her book by writing Tom as a gentleman, innocent, and respectful African American man. Even though proven innocent, no white jury in Maycomb, Alabama was going to let a black man accused of raping a white woman walk out of their court house innocent, regardless of the evidence acquired. This was total discrimination. Consider that segregation was over now. Blacks might have been on the bottom most tier and whites at the top, but now they were equal. In chapter 3 of Affirming Diversity, discrimination is defined as, “(whether
Racism is pervasive throughout the town of Maycomb, Alabama, with nearly the entire population practicing the injustice. These racist acts are apparent in To Kill a Mockingbird through the characters of Bob Ewell and Mrs. Dubose, as well as the jury for Tom Robinson’s case. They dehumanize the blacks arrogantly and ignorantly, believing they are superior due to their skin color, Even though it is an immoral act, the society separates by skin color and the population is forced between either agreeing or disagreeing with this prejudice. In conclusion, racism is a major factor intertwined in the novel, and it is executed excessively even though it is known to be wrong; however, it won’t be altered due to fear of being judged or segregated.
The significance of Tom Robinson's trial in To Kill a Mockingbird is integral for readers to understand the grasp of how Maycomb handled racial and social prejudice. Lee utilizes Robinson’s case as an approach to explicitly reveal the trial’s hidden motives and layers of harsh irony. The fact that Atticus evidently proved Tom’s innocence yet was still deemed guilty of his ‘crime’ shows the degree of racist attitudes that prevailed throughout American society. Along with the blatant contradictions found in their respective cross-examinations, Robinson’s injustice in the court system with unfair treatment, and Bob Ewell’s lies to protect his pride; the trial uncovered hidden hypocrisy
A man born black or white shouldn't determine his character or innocence in a legal court, but in the case of Tom Robinson, the jury couldn't allow a black man's truth overcome a white man's accusations. Tom Robinson’s pure intentions with Mayella brought him an undeserved fatein trial where eyes diluted at him in pure disgust and scruting soley on his skin color. Because the white residents of Maycomb can not and will not accept a colored man to be anything but sinful and inferior, they damge the “one human institution (Lee 274)” where “all men are created equal (Lee 274)”. Thus, Tom Robinson captures the picturesque flaw of Maycomb’s “blind spots” and proves that with the white community’s inability to look past Tom’s racial origins, they ultimately destroyed the purpose of a legal jury system as well as allowing Tom to serve a punishment for a crime that Bob Ewell most likely committed. They allowed a guilty, alcoholic and most likely abusive man escape the law, and imprisoned an innocent black man who ultimately ran to his death knowing that no one could save him from an unjust jury verdict. Boo Radley resembled a ghost that haunted the town of Maycomb,
“To Kill a Mockingbird is a book about courage.” To what extent do you agree with this statement?”
Humans exist in an irrational universe and despite our circumstances, we continue to venture to make rational decisions. Everyone's meaning of life is distinct from the next. We create our own meaning through the freedom of our existence and choice. In the novel The Stranger written by Albert Camus and TMI (The Meursault Investigation) written by Kamel Daoud both authors attempt to answer the question of the purpose of life through their main characters actions by focusing on questioning human existence, and the feeling that there is no purpose or explanation at the core of existence. Meursault and Harun's actions help define and create the self they desire to become (public self). We witness both characters struggling to detect the meaning
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, To Kill a Mockingbird was a beautifully written story. The
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird unfairness is the main theme that is reflected towards many characters. Many characters are treated unfairly based on race or their attitude towards the society they live in. The town of Maycomb becomes very unfair when Atticus defends Tom Robinson, an African- American who has been accused of rape. unfortunately,