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Examples Of Racial Injustice In To Kill A Mockingbird

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To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic American novel by Harper Lee was a book published in 1960 that took place in 1930s, Alabama. This story is narrated by a young girl named Scout Finch who explores themes of racial injustice. Two other important characters are; Tom Robbinson, a black man falsely accused of raping Mayella, a white woman, and Atticus Finch, the lawyer of Tom and Scout’s father.
An example of racial injustice in this book is spoken by Tom as he tries to explain what happened with Mayella, "I ain't ever hurt nobody, Miss Scout. I just try to help folks, but they don't want no help. They're scared of me because of what I look like, not who I am." This explains that Tom is an innocent man but is falsely accused of something he didn’t do just because of his skin color. These assumptions about skin color are wrong but also cause harm to innocent people like Tom. …show more content…

They're ugly, but those are the facts of life.” Atticus is acknowledging the bias in the legal system where white people are always believed against black people. Even though Atticus gave strong arguments and evidence for Tom, the all white court unfairly sided with Mayella. Throughout the trial Harper Lee shows us the clear racism and inequality deeply rooted in the people of Maycomb.
Another important quote that further emphasizes the theme of racial injustice is from To Kill a Mockingbird said by Atticus, “You never really understand a person until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”(Ch 3) This quote explains how important it is to have empathy, he teaches scout that she has to think about the perspective of others, even those who are different from her. By stepping into people who are discriminated against we get an understanding of what they might’ve felt. Only then can people change and overcome

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The central idea of To Kill a Mockingbird is that people need to see both sides of any story, throughout the story so far it’s been about seeing both sides to every argument, fight, and conflict. One of the main plot lines is that Atticus Finch has to defend a black man who is accused of raping a white girl. In chapter nine of the book Atticus’s brother and him have a late night talk about how Scout hit Francis and how he sided with Francis without seeing Scout’s side of the story and about the Tom Robinson case. Atticus speaks very much about equality and how we need to be in the other person’s skin and body.

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(100), here, Atticus knows even if everyone knows Tom is innocent and Tom’s opponent is white trash and ignorant, everyone understand that he will suffer racial discrimination and will be labelled guilty no matter the proof. Racial segregation will be the main factor as to why no one will choose a black man’s side over a white’s. No matter how much evidence there is, the mindset on blacks in Maycomb is nearly impossible to discard. “Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men’s hearts Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed” (276), it is no surprise when Tom tries to escape the prison and dies doing so, because everyone knew there was no hope for him once a white accuses him.

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Tom Robinson, an innocent, black man, is convicted for rape of Mayella Ewell by a jury made up of white men. Tom is setup to fail from the very beginning since it is his word against the word of of a white girl. In any court case, “when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins” (Lee 295). The jury is able to make their decision about the case just by looking at the color of Tom’s skin. Even his exceptional lawyer, Atticus Finch, is unable to convince the jury that he is not the guilty one.

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He explains how it is not fair to Tom that just because he is black, he is unjustly accused of something. Atticus understands and tries to point out the fact that if it was a white man in Tom’s position, the jury would have a different opinion on the situation. Atticus displays a prime example of how someone should try to achieve social justice, even when the situation is unfair. Also, while saying his statements, Atticus exclaims how Tom felt sorry for a white woman, Mayella, and that he had been forced to put his own word against two white people. Here, Atticus reinforces the thought of how this jury is unfair to Tom.

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Racial Injustices Racism in the 1930’s served as an injustice to blacks that were convicted of crimes. In the time periods of the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and The Scottsboro Boys trial, discrimination in Alabama was atrocious, and racial injustice was seen throughout this time period. The Scottsboro trial shows how discrimination played a large role in Alabama during the 1930’s. This influenced Harper Lee’s to write about the Tom Robinson case. In many ways, the Scottsboro trials were more similar to the Tom Robinson case, but at some points had differences.

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These same events happening in the novel are unfortunately events that happen in today’s society. When Tom is wrongfully convicted in the novel based on the color of his skin, I compare this to the rising number of black males that are proven innocent and getting released from prison after their original guilty verdict. With advances in the DNA system, the number of murderers being proven innocent has risen, many black males have been able to walk free because of this fact. This statement means one thing, racially biased convictions. These black men, much like Tom, were wrongfully convicted, and I feel that race had something to do with this.

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Tom’s trial is set up to fail from the beginning, having an all-white jury and a black man’s words going up against a white man’s. Atticus simply puts it, “In our courts, when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life” (Lee 295). The justice system of Maycomb is one built on racism and prejudice. Whatever Atticus proves means nothing to eleven of those twelve jurors.

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Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel that show the life of a southern state od Alabama during the “black racism” time period, where majority of the people had the mentality that (quote) with the exception of a few. To chosen to portray it from the eyes of Scout Finch, from a child’s point of view. Living in Maycomb, in the midst of a conservative society of the 1930’s and 20’s Southern America Scout Finch is an extra ordinary child.

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The novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” was written in 1960 by Harper Lee in the point of view of a young innocent girl named Scout. One of the main messages that Lee has (need a new word than – indicated or set out) is racism, it plays an important role which strongly impacts many character’s lives unfairly and changes the relationship between two. Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird” shows that it is wrong to hurt someone who does no harm to you, for example, black people are innocent but no way did they have as many rights as white people did. Black people lived hard lives because society was judgemental, irrational and most importantly, racist. As Scout and Jem grow older they learn to cope, take responsibility and are introduced to new aspects of life, one of which is racism.

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Essay In the novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, there are many important messages shown throughout the book. However the primary focus was set on racial prejudice that existed in the 1930s-1940’s in the fictional town of Maycomb County. The racism in the novel was very much a reality in 1930s-1940s America. A very good example of the racial prejudice that existed was in the courtroom during Tom Robinson’s trial, an innocent Negro man held against his will for a crime he did not commit.

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This is shown in the case against Tom Robinson, which reveals the society's unjust beliefs and attitudes. Lee conveys the idea that true justice is impossible to achieve in a community that denies the truth as demonstrated by the Jury’s initial acceptance of Mr. Ewell's claims that Tom Robinson was responsible for Mayella's injuries. “A lie as black as Tom Robinson’s skin” Atticus uses a simile to show that the colour of a person’s skin can convey the message of their whole character. As the trial progresses, Atticus presents evidence that reveals Mr. Ewell to be an abuser and the source of Mayella's bruises.

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“Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality.” a quote from the great writer Edgar Allan Poe, a brilliant man with a tarnished path (Edgar Allan Poe). The poet who was also a writer and critic, wrote in a gothic style of gloom, mystery and even death. Death was a common occurrence throughout his stories and poems happening in gruesome and even cruel ways, supposedly brought upon by themselves or even by complete accident. The tortured poet has shown throughout his literature that fear and deceit may both end in the fatality.

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All around America justice is said to be brought to everyone, and everyone has the right to a fair trial, but this is not the case for a falsely accused man named Tom Robinson. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the story takes place during the Great Depression, meaning that racism is still a common thing in many places, including Maycomb. The father of Jem and Scout, Atticus is a lawyer who is forced to take a case defending a black man of being accused of rape. Since Atticus has no choice whether is able to take the case or not, he knows that the outcome will be the same no matter what due to Tom Robinson’s race. This problem is the climax of the story due to the injustice that Tom has to deal with during his case.

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society. Lee displays that those who are ignorant will never understand equality between races. For example, when Jem is asking Atticus why did they say Tom Robinson was guilty when he obviously wasn't guilty Atticus replies with. "There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins.

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People are the cookies in life. This means people look nice and sweet but not always are. I am thankful for Norman, parents and friends I am thankful for Norman because we have been best friends for at least 7 or 8 years and we have done a lot of stuff together and helped each other out when we needed it. One example, is back in middle school we would help each other with homework and with little stuff like that.

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