Throughout the 1830s and 40s, Rice was well known for a song-and-dance act he performed. The act was aimed toward making fun of black slaves. He darkened his skin and spoke with an exaggerated imitation of African American Vernacular English. He also acted in a “stupid” manner, as to show that blacks were not smart. He toured both England and the United States, performing this act which made him the most popular white entertainer of his time. “Jim Crow” became a common stage character among white comedians, and was very well known by all whites during that time period. Rice was known as the “Father of Minstrelsy”. It is unclear how, but when the laws against blacks were passed, the famous name Jim Crow became the nickname for the laws. Most think that since the stage persona was used as a means to ridicule Blacks, it was fitting that the laws, which were made by those who were against blacks, took the name of the well-liked character. For decades, while the Jim Crow Laws were still in place, blacks were treated horribly by whites. It wasn’t until the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that equality was brought back. The Civil Rights act, enacted on July 2nd, 1964, outlawed any law that discriminated any person based on race, religion, colour, sex or national origin. This banned any sort of racial discrimination, and targeted the Jim Crow Laws. All separation in public facilities between the two races was stopped and employment discrimination was banned. Blacks were no longer treated as lesser than whites. …show more content…
The novel is based on a young girl named Scout in the 1930s whose father had been chosen to defend a black man in court, after being accused of assault on a white woman. The defendant, Tom Robinson, was believed to be innocent by Scout’s father, Atticus, but because of the colour of his skin, he was not treated fairly in court, which led to devastating events in the