To Kill a Mockingbird In our society, the 21st century, racism continues to exist but is not as prominent as in the 20th century. In the 20th century, caucasians were expected to be racist towards not just African-Americans but everyone who was not white. Looking back at race relations in the 20th century, cohesive relationships between different races was for the most part non-existent. Each race was considered separate; segregation was not only expected but was the law. in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many examples of racism in the 20th century. The Tom Robinson case in itself is a tragedy against the black man. The author further details separation between blacks and whites in the courtroom during the trial and goes even
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Around the world, during the 19th century whites treated the African-Americans like property and not as people, that was until slavery was abolished in The United States in 1865 (History.com). Going into the 20th century even though slavery was abolished, segregation was still present. Not only did the African-Americans have to go to different schools and churches but they also had different water fountains, restrooms, buses, and even restaurants. Now racism is unacceptable and is even frowned upon to be racist towards anyone. However, racism still exists not only in The United States but all over the world. Looking at racism in the 20th century, some strong examples that it exist are obvious in To Kill a Mockingbird, the trials of the Scottsboro Boys and the Emmett Till murder. The deaths of Michael Brown and the Trayvon Martin show how race relations in the 21st century have evolved but is still a continuing struggle in society. All of these tragedies are obvious examples of the struggles of race relations in the …show more content…
The entire case against Tom Robinson screams out racism at every turn. Tom Robinson was a black man, accused of raping a white girl named Mayella Ewell. Mayella said, she asked Tom to help her chop an old chiffarobe and she would pay him a nickel. She claims that when she went to retrieve the nickel Tom attacked and raped her(Lee). With no evidence or witness to show that Tom was guilty of the actions he was being accused of, he was likely to be found not guilty. However, it was her word against his. In Tom’s testimony he said that she was the one trying to kiss him. When Mr. Ewell saw them, Tom ran away because he was scared of what would happen next (Lee). From the beginning of the trial, an obvious bias was against not only Tom Robinson but all African-Americans. The blacks were forced to sit in the balcony and only white people were allowed on the jury(Lee). It was apparent from the start that Tom Robinson was not going to have a fair and unbiased trial. When it came time to decide the verdict the all white jury voted Tom guilty mainly because he was black. In Chapter 21 Scout said, “I shut my eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the jury: “Guilty . . . guilty . . . guilty . . . guilty . . .” (Lee 282). This quote shows that the whole jury said and agreed that Tom Robinson was guilty. With no evidence and no witness other than the alleged victim, Tom Robinson’s life was
Around the world, during the 19th century whites treated the African-Americans like property and not as people, that was until slavery was abolished in The United States in 1865 (History.com). Going into the 20th century even though slavery was abolished, segregation was still present. Not only did the African-Americans have to go to different schools and churches but they also had different water fountains, restrooms, buses, and even restaurants. Now racism is unacceptable and is even frowned upon to be racist towards anyone. However, racism still exists not only in The United States but all over the world. Looking at racism in the 20th century, some strong examples that it exist are obvious in To Kill a Mockingbird, the trials of the Scottsboro Boys and the Emmett Till murder. The deaths of Michael Brown and the Trayvon Martin show how race relations in the 21st century have evolved but is still a continuing struggle in society. All of these tragedies are obvious examples of the struggles of race relations in the …show more content…
The entire case against Tom Robinson screams out racism at every turn. Tom Robinson was a black man, accused of raping a white girl named Mayella Ewell. Mayella said, she asked Tom to help her chop an old chiffarobe and she would pay him a nickel. She claims that when she went to retrieve the nickel Tom attacked and raped her(Lee). With no evidence or witness to show that Tom was guilty of the actions he was being accused of, he was likely to be found not guilty. However, it was her word against his. In Tom’s testimony he said that she was the one trying to kiss him. When Mr. Ewell saw them, Tom ran away because he was scared of what would happen next (Lee). From the beginning of the trial, an obvious bias was against not only Tom Robinson but all African-Americans. The blacks were forced to sit in the balcony and only white people were allowed on the jury(Lee). It was apparent from the start that Tom Robinson was not going to have a fair and unbiased trial. When it came time to decide the verdict the all white jury voted Tom guilty mainly because he was black. In Chapter 21 Scout said, “I shut my eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the jury: “Guilty . . . guilty . . . guilty . . . guilty . . .” (Lee 282). This quote shows that the whole jury said and agreed that Tom Robinson was guilty. With no evidence and no witness other than the alleged victim, Tom Robinson’s life was