Tom Robinson’s Conviction in Harper Lees To Kill A Mockingbird Essays

Tom Robinson’s Conviction in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is an almost faultless representation of how the â€Å"white† word dominated the â€Å"black† word in the South. The novel shows that a white person’s word, no matter how faulted, was more readily accepted than any black person’s word. Allowing a â€Å"Negro’s† word to be accepted over â€Å"white† word would make southern society less secure in its assumed superiority. The southern â€Å"superiority† over Negroes had existed since the time of the slave trade and continued after the emancipation, out of fear. As long as Negroes were considered â€Å"property,† they were protected by their â€Å"value.† Following the abolition of legal slavery, their economic protection vanished, and the southern white population feared their infiltration with society. Out of fear came hate in the white southern community. Organizations reflecting their hate were created, such as the Ku Klux Klan. Lynchings, unjustified convictions, and severe economic oppression were all part of Negro-life in the south between 1925-1935. With the Stock Market Crash in October of 1929 the United States suffered severe economic depression. With the closing of many mills and plants, unemployment skyrocketed. The economic collapse was painful to all communities, but to the blacks of the South who were already severely oppressed, it was devastating. Farming communities, which were already in a depression before the crash, went hungry and rarely had surplus crop to sell for profit. Crop prices fell nearly 50% between 1929 and 1930. During the depression it was nearly impossible for blacks to find work because unemployed whites were chosen over blacks no matter what their qualific... ...ession, and Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is an accurate example of how the historic South treated blacks with severe prejudice. Works Cited Carter, Dan T. Scottsboro: A Tragedy of the American South. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1969. Chalmers, Allan K. They Shall Be Free. Garden City: Doubleday & Company, 1951. Lee, Harper. To Kill A Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Warner Books, 1960. Ransdell, Hollace. "The First Scottsboro Trials (April, 1931) ." The First Scottsboro Trials (April, 1931). 27 May 1931. American Civil Liberties Union. 11 March 2001. <http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/FTrials/scottsboro/SB_HRrep.html#REPORT ON THE SCOTTSBORO, ALA.>. Vassel, Olive. "The Scottsboro Boys." The Scottsboro Boys. . AFRO-Americ@. 11 March 20001. <http://www.afroam.org/history/scott/scotts.html>.