When writing the novel The Help Kathryn Stockett was influenced by what had occurred in America during the 1960’s. During this time, America’s South was witnessing severe segregation in the South. Whites and Coloreds were not allowed to share water fountains, bathrooms, school, libraries, restaurants, cabs, and so much more. In addition to simply not being able to share these items, other things like public transportation, such as a public bus, were segregated with whites in the front and coloreds in the back. Coloreds were subjugated to whites and treated like second class citizens. An example of whites subjugating coloreds was lynching mobs. Lynching is defined as “executing without due process of law”. Lynching mobs would execute coloreds
