How Does Miss Maudie Use Abuse Of Power In To Kill A Mockingbird

"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a Mockingbird." This is a quote by Miss Maudie, a character in To Kill a Mockingbird. In this quote, the author Harper Lee explains that mockingbirds are innocent, as they do nothing to conflict with others. Because of this, these birds shouldn’t be shot. However, they still are by those with abusive power. In this analogy, the mockingbirds represent the innocent people in society that are often victimized due to an injustice use of power. To prevent limitless power among the government and the citizens, America has put checks on

The Indian Removal Act of 1830 and the treatment towards the American Indians from the beginning of the settlers’ history proved abusive power is inhumane, vicious, and cruel. According to the book Cherokee Nation v. Georgia by Victoria Sherrow, when the settlers first arrived and became a more established society, they passed treaties with the American Indians. These treaties allowed the American Indians to keep their own lands, and to stay an independent nation. However, as the years passed, the United States broke these treaties. For example, Georgia refused to respect the treaties and the American Indians as an independent nation. They forced the American Indians to follow their state laws since they lived within the state boundaries. Because of this, the Cherokees believed they were being denied their basic human rights listed under the United States Constitution, which led to conflicts. President Andrew Jackson stated that the solution to these conflicts was for the American Indians to move or become a part of the states. Andrew Jackson insisted that Congress pass the Indian

In the case of Worchester v. Georgia, presented in 1832, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Cherokees. As the Chief Justice said, the states’ actions towards the Cherokees were “repugnant to the Constitution, law, and treaties of the United States.” However, Andrew Jackson and the states ignored the ruling. As a result, in 1838 the American Indians were forced out of their homes and shoved into diseased stockades. After years of fighting and struggling for their rights, the Cherokees lost everything due to a misuse of power. This misuse of power is only one example of what happens when there aren’t any checks on power. This abusive power from the states and Andrew Jackson caused the American Indians to suffer greatly. To illustrate, the American Indians did nothing to negatively influence the settlers, but they were still punished. This is because there were no checks on power to prevent Andrew Jackson and the states from abusing their power over the American Indians. This resulted in the United States lying to these innocent