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Nine Scottsboro Boys Essay

1367 Words6 Pages

In the 1930s, African American men were believed to have strong sexual desires towards white women so extreme that they couldn’t even control themselves, that whenever they saw white women they would rape them right then and there. The Tragedy of the nine Scottsboro Boys was rumored as “Negros are going to beat up the whites”. When the train got to Jackson County on March 25, 1931, dozens of armed white men rounded up with ropes and weapons in order to beat the nine black youths, and during the time of this chaos, two white women raised their voices, claiming that they had been raped by the nine scottsborro boys. At that time in Alabama, whenever black people saw a group of white men, they feared and knew they were in a lot of trouble due to the fact that Alabama was one of the most aggressive and violent states towards African Americans. …show more content…

Even though Leibowitz realized the unfairness within the trial of Scottosboro case, Wright kept his onslaught. By arguing that Ruby Bates’ statement about the jury of her trip in New York City wasn’t understandable since some parts were explained in the Jew Language, he kept consequent comments for denying Leibowitz’s motion for a mistrial. Even he said that because he had been prosecuting cases in the Alabama court for long enough to know that he could use sectionalism in the court. People from outside of the region reacted different ways, such as NAACP and the I.L.D, Internaitonal Labor Defense. Sectionalism of south that was structured by the South’s regional culture definitely made this Scottsboro case to be a tragedy. 4. What What role did the Great Depression play in the case of the Scottsboro Boys? a. Who were Victoria Price and Ruby Bates? How did the socio-economic background of the accusers shape the events of the case? b. How did the socio-economic background of the defendants shape the events of the

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The article The Trials of “The Scottsboro Boys,” by Douglas O. Linder speaks about, “an alleged gang rape of two white girls by nine black teenagers on a Southern Railroad freight run on March 25, 1931.” The trial was closed when the boys were pronounced guilty in court. Some of the boys were sentenced to death and some were sentenced to life in prison. This conflict is similar to a quote from, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” that says,"My folks said your daddy was a disgrace an' that nigger oughta hang from the water-tank!” (chapter 9.

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During the mid nineteen thirties there was ample prejudice from whites towards African Americans. This prejudice was greatly depicted in one particular case of nine young black men. The Scottsboro Boys were labeled as outcasts and faced a considerable amount of prejudice during their trials for a crime they had not committed; although some of the nine Boys were exonerated during the trials, the last of the Scottsboro Boys were not redeemed until decades later. On March 25, 1931, during the height of the Great Depression, a group of nine black boys, later known as the Scottsboro Boys, was traveling on a train towards Memphis, Tennessee, in search of work.

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During the second trial of Haywood Patterson in March 1933, Victoria Price was again questioned as a witness, but her testimony was slightly different than in the original trial; she reacted to the questioning and accusations against her with “angry defiance” (1). Price’s testimony was further weakened after Ruby Bates testified. She denied that any of the Scottsboro boys had attacked or raped them at all, explaining that Price told her to make up a story to avoid charges being put against them (7). However, her testimony was not considered by the jury, and Patterson was sentenced to death, like in the original trial. In June 1933, a few months after Patterson’s second trial, Judge James Horton ordered a new trial for the case.

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