Mrs. Rodriguez 10th Grade Advanced English Pd. 7 3 May, 2017 In 1925 to 1939 the nation’s incarceration rate increased from 79 to 137 per 100,000 residents (Eval). There was a greater imprisonments of blacks than there were whites (Eval). Between 1930 and 1936 the imprisonment of blacks rose about three times more than that of whites (Eval). Could this be because of the imprisonments that resulted from unfair treatment of blacks at this time? This was the case in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. This type of behavior was also exhibited in The Scottsboro Trials. The characters in To Kill a Mockingbird and the people involved in the trials have many similarities, including similar backgrounds, actions and personalities. On March …show more content…
Ruby Bates and Mayella Ewell come from similar backgrounds. Both girls came from poor families. Ruby Bates lived in a shack in the “worst” part of Huntsville (Linder, “Ruby”). Her family lived in poverty and her mom worked as a prostitute (Linder, “Ruby”). In the book, it states, “Their relief check was far from enough to feed the family”( Lee 208). During the trial, Atticus was able to paint a picture of what the Ewell life was like while asking Mayella questions. One of the things revealed was that the money provided by the government was not enough to take care of her big family. Ruby and Mayella also had fathers that were abusive drunks. Ruby’s father was a drunk that used to beat her and her mother(Linder, “Ruby”). Her father also used to beat her brother and was arrested for horse-whipping him. (Linder, “Ruby”). Mayella had to suffer through the same type of treatment from her father. While testifying Mayella was asked about her father’s conduct: “Do you love your father, Miss Mayella?” was his next. “Love him, …show more content…
“Biographies of Key Figures in ‘The Scottsboro Boys’ Trials.” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law. 2017, famous-trials.com/scottsboroboys/1548-biographies, Accessed 6 April 2017. ---. “Ruby Bates.” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law, 2017, famous-trials.com/scottsboroboys/1550-bates, Accessed 6 April 2017. ---. “Samuel Leibowitz.” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law, 2017, famous-trials.com/scottsboroboys/1559-leibowitz, Accessed 6 April 2017. ---. “Trial Excerpt of Victoria Price.” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law, 2017, famous-trials.com/scottsboroboys/1592-priceexcerpt, Accessed 9 April 2017. ---. “The Trials of “The Scottsboro Boys.” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law, 2017, famous-trials.com/scottsboroboys/1531-home, Accessed 3 April 2017. ---. “Victoria Price.” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law, 2017, famous-trials.com/scottsboroboys/1561-price, Accessed 6 April 2017. Ransdall, Hollace. “The First Scottsboro Trials (April, 1931).” Famous Trials, Ed. Douglas Linder, UMKC School of Law, 2017, famous-trias.com/scottsboroboys/2344-firsttrial-2, Accessed 3 April
Introduction The period of the trial was the 1910, more specifically the trial started on May 13, 1910 (pg.1). During the 1910 America was still developing into a world power, and many immigrants from other countries where attracted to t he prosperity that was available in America (Baily, S. L., 1983, pg.281). New York State specifically was one of the fastest growing states in the country with one of the best economical prosperity for native workers, and immigrants (Baily, S. L., 1983, pg.281). What is the crime in the trial?
In the story To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, it displays how many racial issues occurred in the southern part of the country during the 1930’s. An example being when Tom Robinson who is a innocent black man who is being accused of assault against Mayella Ewell. At the courthouse, every witness stated that Tom Robinson raped Mayella Ewell on November 21st and punched her in her right eye. But, Tom Robinson can’t use his left arm so there was no possible way that Tom Robinson punched Mayella Ewell. Atticus Finch attempts to prove Tom Robinson’s innocence by using strong, emotional appeals to convince the jury.
Leo Frank was a white, Jewish, superintendent of a pencil factory in Atlanta, Georgia where the body of Mary Phagan, one of the factories’ workers, was found. The murder of the thirteen year old girl prompted outrage in the city of Atlanta and around the country, and in a highly controversial trail, Leo Frank was quickly given the death sentence. Frank’s sentence would later be changed to life in prison, but while he was in a jail hospital, a mob broke in and lynched Frank on the outskirts of Mary Phagan’s hometown. The trial of Leo Frank is unique in both its ability to spark controversy up to the present day, and its ability to highlight the social tensions of America and Atlanta, one of the countries busiest cities. With a new progressive
The Ewell’s seem to have trouble with telling the truth. Mayella is lying about her story in order to hide the fact that her father most likely shouldn’t be taking care of her. Mayella comes in with injuries that she blames on Tom Robinson attacking, but everyone in the room knows that her father gets really angry when he’s drinking. Then, when Mayella is asked if her father has ever mistreated her, she hesitates before answering no. The hesitation was clearly noticeable and had to mean something.
The Scottsboro Trials and To Kill a Mockingbird In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the famous father named Atticus says “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it (Judith 2). This quote is said during a time of intense racism. “Not long after Obama took office, the National Urban League released its 2009 State of Black America report. The findings showed that racial inequities continued in employment, housing, health care, education, criminal justice, and other areas” (Buckley 1). This essay will primarily focus on the criminal justice area of this when discussing the Scottsboro trials and comparing the trials to the famous novel To Kill a Mockingbird.
Topic: Scottsboro Trials Sources: Remembering Scottsboro: The legacy of an infamous trial, The Trials of the Scottsboro boys, and Scottsboro and its legacy: The cases that challenged american legal and social justice. Thesis: The Scottsboro Trials were an important piece of history because it was a huge stepping stone of the civil rights movement and it showed the racial inequality in America which was then taken to the supreme court. (support statement) No crime in American history, produced as many trials, convictions, reversals and retrials as did the alleged gang rape of two white girls by nine black teenagers. (Supported Statement 2)
The Choice of Power Power is claimed to be a necessity when it comes to having control over a certain situation. In Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Mayella Ewell, a poor white girl who lived in the dump, claimed that she was raped by a black man named Tom Robinson. After a while, Tom was finally convicted for rape and sent to prison, while Mayella won the case. After she won the case, many people began thinking she was powerful, but unfortunately, she is not. Power is the ability to have power over yourself and others around you, and Mayella did not have that.
The book “To Kill a Mockingbird” written by Harper Lee and the article “Scottsboro Boys Trial” both contain controversial court cases. For “To Kill a Mockingbird” a black male named Tom Robinson was accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell. In the “Scottsboro Boys Trial” nine young black men and teenagers are accused of raping two white females named Victoria Price and Ruby Bates. Both cases transpired in the 1930s in Alabama. This is bad for the accused as racism was at an all-time in the 1930s especially in the deep south.
Proper Protection Most people think of a small town as a peaceful and quiet place, where everyone knows each other. Quarrels and disagreements rarely disrupt their tranquil lives. However, this perception could not be further from the truth in Alabama 1930’s.
How is the racial problem of the southern states of USA in the 1930s portrayed in To Kill a Mockingbird? INTRO In the 1930s the Southern states of America suffered from a strong discrimination and racial hatred towards colored people. They had no rights, no respect and were not allowed to go places white people went. In other words they were segregated from the rest of the society.
In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Lee took the minor character of Mayella Ewell and made her into a sympathetic role to her readers in a latent way. Mayella's life at home is told through the story's background and foreshadowing references. This is how Lee made Mayella memorable enough to the reader to know who she is and her family situation without needing her point of view of her side of the story. Once Mayella enters the storyline, her actions will become understandable to the reader and generate sympathy. One way Lee makes Mayella a sympathetic character is how before entering her into the story, one of Mayella's younger siblings was introduced.
Her desires were stronger than the code she was breaking. When she tried to put the evidence of her offense away, instead of being honest, she had put a man’s life in danger. However, Mayella is not a criminal. She is simply a woman who carries a heavy burden with no one to support or respect her. Mayella is a victim of abuse and
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee Hadrien Olinger Newspaper Article Report on the death of Tom Robinson Maycomb country Tom Robinson, accused of rape People involved in this trial: Atticus Finch, lawyer of Tom Robinson Mayella Violet Ewell (19) - says she got raped Judge Taylor- the judge Mr Gilmer- lawyer of Mayella Ewell Tom Robinson (27)- accused of rape Tom Robinson gets shot dead a few hours after his trial. Had no hope left in him and decided to go for the run. He was accused of raping a white girl.
Essay In the novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, there are many important messages shown throughout the book. However the primary focus was set on racial prejudice that existed in the 1930s-1940’s in the fictional town of Maycomb County. The racism in the novel was very much a reality in 1930s-1940s America. A very good example of the racial prejudice that existed was in the courtroom during Tom Robinson’s trial, an innocent Negro man held against his will for a crime he did not commit.
How did the time period of the novel (30’s) affect how black people were treated? One of the main themes in To Kill a Mockingbird is racial discrimination. Examples of racism and prejudice against black people can be seen throughout the novel. There are several reasons as to why people segregate dark people and they are mostly the important events happening in the 30’s. The time period of which the book was written is the 1930’s