Let the Mockingbird Sing
Billy Graham the evangelist once said, when asked about the effects of racism in the world, that “racism and injustice and violence sweep our world, bringing a tragic harvest of heartache and death.” All throughout history, violence and inequality has taken many shapes, mostly notably in the form of racism. Evidently, slavery has been the most obvious example of racism, as well as segregation in America during most of the 20th century. Over the years, many authors have attempted to illustrate the injustices blacks in the United States have faced, including writers like Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, is one such writer. Throughout To Kill A Mockingbird, the
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Tom, a black man, powerless, suffered injustice, and eventually died at the hands of whites in power all because of the color of his skin. Unjustly accused of raping the daughter of Bob Ewell, Atticus, the lawyer defending him, reasonably and effectively proved Tom’s innocence. However, the jury, “even if they were reasonable men in everyday life, saw something come between them and reason,” which prevented them from ruling Tom innocent (Lee 252). Even honorable, thoughtful men, Atticus says, can be totally transformed by something like racial discrimination, and end up giving in to it, even if they may not be doing the right thing. Similarly, as Tom attempted to flee his prison, the guards shot him seventeen times instead of capturing or simply wounding him. Undoubtedly, racial prejudice caused something as horrible as Tom’s death since the guards would have most likely wounded or captured a fleeing white prisoner. As evidenced by Tom Robinson’s court case and death, Harper Lee’s novel displays racism in a very powerful