To Kill A Mockingbird Essay Ever since people of different nationalities first came into contact with each other, there have been conflicts. Whether it be the Holocaust, Armenian genocide, white supremacy in the 18th century, ethnic cleansing in Africa, Manifest destiny, or the Balkan situation, they all have one thing in common: race. People have inexplicably not been able to see past their physical differences. They associate others’ race with their attributes, traits, and characteristics. This common denominator is still prevalent and is the source of many conflicts today. The novel To Kill A Mockingbird showcases these racial conflicts through the trial of Tom Robinson. During the 1930s, The Scottsboro Trials occurred and they portrayed
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These trials’ outcomes are closely related to that of the Tom Robinson trial. During a train ride in 1931, 9 boys were charged with assault, and later, rape after they stopped in Paint Rock, Alabama (Linder “Scottsboro”). Victoria Price and Ruby Bates made the accusations and soon after, an angry mob of one hundred people almost lynch the boys (Linder “Scottsboro”). The fact that the mob had no factual evidence that the boys were guilty of the accusations and still wanted to lynch them, shows the widespread racism. Eight of the nine boys were almost instantly convicted and sentenced to death; subsequently, the ninth boy, Roy Wright, was tried again and resulted in a death sentence (Linder “Scottsboro”). In a letter to Earl Streetman in 1932, Ruby Bates denies that she was raped (Linder “Scottsboro”). Several other trials persisted and even with the letter in mind, they were still guilty. One Decatur lunch proprietor even said, “There shouldn’t be any trial for these damn niggers-- thirty cents worth of rope would do the work and wouldn’t cost the county as much (Goodman 211). This man was suggesting that instead of granting the Scottsboro boys one of their most basic rights, they should skip straight to hanging
These trials’ outcomes are closely related to that of the Tom Robinson trial. During a train ride in 1931, 9 boys were charged with assault, and later, rape after they stopped in Paint Rock, Alabama (Linder “Scottsboro”). Victoria Price and Ruby Bates made the accusations and soon after, an angry mob of one hundred people almost lynch the boys (Linder “Scottsboro”). The fact that the mob had no factual evidence that the boys were guilty of the accusations and still wanted to lynch them, shows the widespread racism. Eight of the nine boys were almost instantly convicted and sentenced to death; subsequently, the ninth boy, Roy Wright, was tried again and resulted in a death sentence (Linder “Scottsboro”). In a letter to Earl Streetman in 1932, Ruby Bates denies that she was raped (Linder “Scottsboro”). Several other trials persisted and even with the letter in mind, they were still guilty. One Decatur lunch proprietor even said, “There shouldn’t be any trial for these damn niggers-- thirty cents worth of rope would do the work and wouldn’t cost the county as much (Goodman 211). This man was suggesting that instead of granting the Scottsboro boys one of their most basic rights, they should skip straight to hanging