Ruby Mccollum's Case Study

Improved Essays
I’m drawn to conversing with Ruby McCollum in her hospital room at Florida State Mental Hospital in Chattahoochee, Florida. I have always been fascinated with how the legal system has affected African Americans and women and I am particularly drawn to her story because of how complex it truly was.
McCollum’s white family doctor, who overpowered her in numerous regards, raped her over many years. In the South during the 1950s, it was common for white men to avoid legal penalties for raping Black women. In fact, any legal repercussions would make McCollum’s case an anomaly in the Jim Crow South. As a result of her victimization, McCollum murdered her rapist.
I would converse with McCollum about her rape, her feelings of being silenced as a Black

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