“From the 1880’s into the 1960’s, a majority of American states enforced segregation through “Jim Crow Laws…” (pbs.org). This is a sad but true quote. Children were separated in schools by their race, not allowing them to interact with other races. Throughout this time period people were segregated due to their skin color, going as far as having different bathrooms and water fountains. This is a big issue for Americans, even now. It has created a state of mind that some people are inferior to others and deserved to be treated that way. Many people of different races were abused and continue to be discriminated against due to this belief. It has created a lot of tension between races, some people even feel uncomfortable just being near to another race and that can be traced back to Jim Crow laws. All of this needs to be fixed and it’s very obvious why. No one should fear or hate someone else just because of the color of their skin. Racism is hurting Americans, and it won’t be easy to fix.
During this time period a lot of the country was segregated. Either colored or white. Bathrooms, restaurants, sports, schools, and almost every public place had different sections for white and colored people. The cause of this issue was the belief that the color of your skin determines your worth and social class. Many whites believed that they were born to be better than colored people and this was mainly caused by the need for slaves. People of all races were used as slaves, even whites, but the majority was people with colored skin. One of the best examples is the amount of hate crimes committed each year. “For the 2012 time frame, law enforcement agencies reported 5,796 hate crime incidents involving 6,718 offenses” (fbi.gov). Those statist...
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"Annual Report Shows Slight Decrease." FBI. FBI, 25 Nov. 2013. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2013/november/annual-hate-crime-statistics-show-slight-decease/annual-hate-crime-statistics-show-slight-decrease Cafferty, Jack. "How Racially Divided Is the United States Today?" Cafferty File RSS. CNN, n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014.http://caffertyfile.blogs.cnn.com/2012/04/09/how-racially-divided-is-the-united-sates-today/
Jaworski, Nichole. "Racism In America: Racial Bias Within The Criminal Justice System - CBS Charlotte." CBS Charlotte. CBS Charlotte, 20 Apr. 2013. Web. 25 Apr. 2014. http://charlotte.cbslocal.com/2013/08/20/racism-in-america-racial-bias-within-the-criminal-justice-system/
"Arrests by Race, 2011." FBI. FBI, 26 Sept. 2012. Web. 24 Apr. 2014.
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011/tables/table-43
Equality is something that should be given to every human and not earned or be taken away. However, this idea does not present itself during the 1930’s in the southern states including Alabama. African Americans faced overwhelming challenges because of the thought of race superiority. Therefore, racism in the southern states towards African Americans made their lives tough to live because of disparity and inhumane actions towards this particular group of people.
Sometimes, people discriminate one thing, but strongly oppose the discrimination of another thing. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, this issue is very much expressed throughout the story. This thought-provoking story takes place in Maycomb, Alabama during a time when there’s a rape trial against a falsely accused African American named Tom Robinson. There is also a discrimination, of sorts, towards a man named Boo Radley, by three young children named Jeremy “Jem” Finch, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, and Charles “Dill” Baker Harris. Both Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are similar in their own ways through their inherent goodness.
Most Americans were extremely racist during this time period. The predominant culture in the country was white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants, aka WASPs. They scorned the now free black people and all European immigrants that came to our nation. They gave anyone with the slightest differences a very hard time, whether they were citizens of America or not. If they did such things to their fellow countrymen, their reactions to foreigners was considerably magnified. They criticized Europeans on their foreign
The social conditions throughout the era were extremely poor. Legal discrimination was around and African Americans were denied democratic rights and freedoms. The southern states would pass strict laws to normalize interactions between white people and African Americans. For example, Jim Crow signs were placed above regularly visited places by everyone, such as water fountains, public facilities, door entrances and exits, etc. Even the most basic rights such as drinking from a water fountain was taken away from African Americans. They would also have separate buildings for African
African Americans suffered from racism during Jim Crow system for many years. “Racism is the belief that the physical characteristics of a person or group determines their capabilities and that one group is naturally superior to other groups”(United Nations Human Rights). On other words, racism means anyone has different physical characteristics such as color skin or gender is lower than the majority or another group. Slavery in the United States began after English colonists settled and continue for many years (Kenion, 1912). During slavery years, The Americans transferred African men and women to the US to work in farms, housekeeping and serve white people. After many years, the African Americans demanded for their freedom and equality with white people. As a result, the white Americans created Jim Crow system. The Jim Crow laws were racial segregation laws and used from 1876 to 1965 in the United States. The laws used to organize life between African Americans and white people. The system was dealing with African Americans as second level citizenries and withe people as first citizenries. African American could not get the simple rights such as qualified education and health care. For example, North Carolina schools were racially segregated because Jim Crow system say’s that, African American and white students should study in separate and equal schools. In fact, schools in North Carolina were separate, but not equal. By 1875, “public education in North Carolina was a legally ordained system” (Kenion, 1912). Every thing was separate such as facilities, teachers, resources, and students. In North Carolina, African American and white students had been attended segregated public schools. However, the schools were unequal. The whi...
The story To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee portrays many different scenarios of racial discrimination. Discrimination occurs in the book and many people are affected by the racial slurs and other occurrences. In the story, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, Atticus Finch, and Tom Robinson are all people that are discriminated against or are affected by discrimination. Racial discrimination is a major part of To Kill a Mockingbird.
“Jim Crow was more than a series of rigid anti-black laws. It was a way of life.” (“What was Jim Crow?”). The laws created a divided America and made the United States a cruel place for over 70 years. The Jim Crow Laws caused segregation in the education system, social segregation, and limited job opportunities for African Americans.
According to americanhistory.si.edu there was a law in Nebraska in 1911 that stated “Marriages are void when one party is a white person and the other is possessed of one-eighth or more negro, Japanese, or Chinese blood.” Laws like these were harsh on African Americans and this law was passed as Jim Crow Laws were coming to an end. These weren’t just laws to the people of that time, they were a way of life. The Jim Crow Laws undermined multiple amendments and through the Unite States into turmoil and riots.
In a desperate attempt to save his client, Tom Robinson, from death, Atticus Finch boldly declares, “To begin with, this case should never have come to trial. This case is as simple as black and white” (Lee 271). The gross amounts of lurid racial inequality in the early 20th century South is unfathomable to the everyday modern person. African-Americans received absolutely no equality anywhere, especially not in American court rooms. After reading accounts of the trials of nine young men accused of raping two white women, novelist Harper Lee took up her pen and wrote To Kill a Mockingbird, a blistering exposition of tragic inequalities suffered by African Americans told from the point of view of a young girl. Though there are a few trivial differences between the events of the Scottsboro trials and the trial of Tom Robinson portrayed in To Kill a Mockingbird, such as the accusers’ attitudes towards attention, the two cases share a superabundance of similarities. Among these are the preservation of idealist views regarding southern womanhood and excessive brutality utilized by police.
One of the widely recognized controversies in American history is the 1930s, which housed the Great Depression and the post-civil war, the ruling of Plessy versus Ferguson and the Jim Crow Laws, and segregation. While textbooks detail the factual aspect of the time there is only one other literature that can exhibit the emotion experienced in the era. To Kill a Mockingbird is the acclaimed novel that displays the experiences of the South, through inequality and segregation, social class differences and the right to fairness. The novel’s experiences are narrated through a grown Scout, who appears as a little girl in the novel, offering her innocent views on the happenings in Maycomb County. The most observed aspect of the novel is race and racism; with Tom Robinson’s trial being the prime focus of the novel, the issue of race is bound to be discussed throughout the novel is race, racism and segregation; with Tom Robinson’s trial being the focus of the novel, the issue of race is heavily represented throughout the novel. With Mockingbird being a common book among English Language Arts and Literatures classrooms, the topic of race is bound to surface amid a young, twenty-first century group of student of students with the inevitability of this discussion, the question remains on how to approach the conversation as an educator. As an educator, one should seek to establish the context of the times, prepare the students for the conversation and examine the other characters and situations similarly to race. Educators must also be introspective before examining their students’ feelings, so that they are not surprised by their emotions and can also express their feelings to their students. The discussion should target a goal, one of examin...
Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, published in 1960, is a novel which explores the theme of challenging racial prejudice. Within this novel, Lee has portrayed unintentional racial prejudice through the characters Atticus Finch, Link Deas and Scout Finch. With these characters, and their roles in exploring the theme of racial prejudice, Harper Lee has set unintentional boundaries for readers, as result, racial prejudicial thinking from contemporary perspective, in comparison to historical views, is challenged to a small extent.
“To Kill A Mockingbird” is marvelous and unforgettable novel. Not only show how dramatic, sad in and old town – Maycomb be like, but through her unique writings, some big conflicts about politics and critical is going on through this tired old Southern town. Not just in general like education, friendship, neighbors but also pacific in individuals like family and the people’s characteristics themselves. In one book yet can covered with such many problems, Harper Lee must have been experienced a lot and deeply understanding that time. That is why the book lives, becoming literature and get the love from the audiences a lot. One of the problem and mostly run along with the story and interest me is racism between white people and black people socially.
Racism presents itself in many ways in the town of Maycomb. Some are blatant and open, but others are more insidious. One obvious way that racism presents itself is in the result of Tom Robinson’s trial. Another apparent example is the bullying Jem and Scout had to endure as a result of Atticus’s appointment as Tom Robinson’s defense attorney. A less easily discernible case is the persecution of Mr. Dolphus Raymond, who chose to live his life in close relation with the colored community.
Despite cultures and conflicts, the fundamental bonds remain: We all belong to a common family. The book, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is a timeless classic about coming of age in a small southern town in the 1930’s. The book follows Jem and Scout, two siblings, who must face the harsh realities of life. Hypocrisy and racism together make the two most important themes.
'Democracy,' she said. 'Does anybody have a definition?' ... 'Equal rights for all, special privileges for none' (Lee 248).