The Scottsboro Boys trials, one of the most notorious and tragic chapters of the South’s racial history caught the attention of people around the world. Nine black men suffered after being wrongly accused and convicted of beating eight white men and sexually abusing two white women. The trials of the Scottsboro boys ruined the lives of the men from there on out. The whole ordeal was seemed to be one big white smiling face. On March 25, 1931 the Southern Railroad's Chattanooga to Memphis freight with
during this time; I can’t even begin to fathom what it would be like being black seeking a job. Many blacks sought hoboing as a common pastime seeing it as an adventure to get them from one small job to another. And this is where the story of the Scottsboro Boys begins. Aboard a southern railroad car was a young black youth named Haywood Patterson. He clutched to the side of the car as it careened back and forth over the rusty tracks. Across the top of the car walked a young white man. Every time this
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
Stories of Scottsboro. By James E. Goodman. (New York: Vintage Books. c.1994. pp. 274. $16.00) Currently in the United States of America, there is a wave a patriotism sweeping across this great land: a feeling of pride in being an American and in being able to call this nation home. The United States is the land of the free and the home of the brave; however, for the African-American citizens of the United States, from the inception of this country to midway through the twentieth century, there
The Scottsboro Boys’ Trials The racial discrimination of African-Americans in the United States became very prominent in the 1930s. Up to this point, racial segregation had always been an issue, but during the Dust Bowl, the discrimination and prejudice increased exponentially. This was displayed precisely in the Scottsboro Boys’ Trials. The Scottsboro Boys’ Trials were a crucial example of the racial discrimination and inequity towards African-Americans that was displayed in the southern region
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. The unfair trials that the Scottsboro boys received are the results of the institutionalized racism in the South; this case revealed the injustice that prevailed
of a crime he never committed. This was the life of those with a different skin color in the 1930s. In To Kill a Mockingbird and the Scottsboro trials, racism not only affected those involved, but also the town of where it was held. It would even affect the chances of those accused, which led them to try escape from a penitentiary during this time. The Scottsboro trials all began on a train crossing the Alabama border on March 25, 1931. Haywood Patterson, one of nine black males involved, had his
Clarence Norris, and Ozie Powell were brought to the Scottsboro jail, and charged with the rape of two young white women, also hoboing, Victoria Price and Ruby Bates (Patterson 13-17). They were tried for rape, convicted, retried, convicted again, retried again, and convicted a third time (Patterson 9). These trials and retrials of these nine young men, who became know as the “Scottsboro Boys,” were not fair. The original trials of the Scottsboro Boys, presided by Judge Hawkins, were unfair. Haywood
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
The Scottsboro Trials were a very important historical event that took place in May of 1931 and changed many racial prejudices and rules forever. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, many similar cases are exhibited. To Kill a Mockingbird is said to be based on the Scottsboro trials. As a child, Harper Lee was influenced by the Scottsboro Trials which is clearly reflected in her book ("Scottsboro Boys"). The major points of the trials are that two white women, Victoria Price and Ruby
The Scottsboro Boys saga was a travesty at the time and remains an indelible mark on America’s social, cultural and judicial history. Their plight became a symbol of the oppression faced by black Americans in an America where white supremacy reigned as an accepted fact of life. Now something of folkloric proportion, this example of pervading southern prejudice and gross injustice captures a moment in America’s law and order environment. The Scottsboro Boys trials to this day highlight the climate
particular was so controversial that the government was still trying to resolve it in 2013. These nine boys were guilty in the eyes of the south. Although, this time period was known for racism, there were some whites who believed these boys. The Scottsboro Trials were very controversial because these nine boys were convicted with no solid evidence, they were simply in the wrong place, at the wrong time, with the wrong color of skin. March 25, 1931 would change these boys’ lives forever. These boys
It can be argued that Harper Lee was influenced based on the Scottsboro trial because both cases involved rape. They also both happen in Alabama and both cases had a white woman/women, black man/men asscused of rapeing these white girls. Another reason that Harper Lee was influenced based on the Scottsboro story, is that when Victoria Price and Mayella Ewell told their story, it was similar because how they were scared to answer the questions. They were nervous because they knew what they were
Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird and the Scottsboro Case On March 25 1931 a group of nine boys were charged with raping two girls aboard a train traveling from Paint Rock Alabama across the state’s border. The trial of these boys had become collectively known as the Scottsboro case. Several years later Harper Lee wrote her famous novel To Kill a Mockingbird. In this story a young male Tom Robinson is charged with raping a white female. It is by understanding the parallel between Tom Robinson’s
The Scottsboro and Maycomb trials took place in the 1930s, where the trials both have identical causes with the same conclusion, though its a tragedy event that happened however it have influenced the world today. The resemblance between Scottsboro and Maycomb leads the people into thinking about the Great Depression and the most infamous case that took place in Scottsboro, relating to Maycomb. Though there are no reasonable causes or hateful affairs between opposing characters, yet it seems like
fiction in American Literature. Although To Kill a Mockingbird is classified as a work of fiction, there is evidence to support the claim that To Kill a Mockingbird was modeled after the Scottsboro Trials of 1931. There are many parallels between the trial of Tom Robinson and the Scottsboro Trials. The Scottsboro Boys were nine, young, African American men who were falsely accused of raping two white women while illegally riding a train in Alabama. Harper Lee was also about six years old when these
the trials of the Scottsboro Boys, a famous case from this time period. Most of the main characters associated with both trials share similar traits, experiences, and backgrounds. Before jumping into the comparisons, the story of the Scottsboro Trials is needed to know what is being compared.
In the 1930’s the case of the Scottsboro boys caused a large amount of talk among the United States citizens. The book To Kill A Mockingbird was written by Harper Lee and has many connections to this case. Harper Lee showed many similar characteristics between the people involved in the trial and characters in the book such as Mayella Ewell, Tom Robinson, and Atticus Finch. Mayella Ewell is similar to the accusers in the Scottsboro trial because she is shy, hostile, and emotionally unstable. In
During the years of the 1930’s, the Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson went to court due to an alleged rape of a white female. Throughout the events that took place in both cases, Harper Lee repeatedly presented examples of racism and prejudice. Between the court cases of both Tom Robinson and “The Scottsboro Boys,” many of the featured characters’ actions and reactions were similar in responding to the weak evidence. In the story of the Scottsboro Boys, the boys were arrested due to a brawl with
1931 9 teenage boys were arrested for a crime that never happened. This essay will talk about what happened to the boys, how this impacted American society, and how it changed America forever. This boys were forced of the train they were riding in Scottsboro, Alabama and they were met by men with guns, arrested, and sent to jail with minor charges. Until, 2 girls hidden in the train were forced to say they were raped by all of the boys with knives and pistols they were put in court with a full white