Though most of the people in Maycomb were racist in some way, many of those people knew Tom Robinson was innocent. Still, many people didn't feel comfortable with the idea of standing up for a black man, no matter how innocent he was. When Miss Maudie says, "Whether Maycomb knows it or not we're paying the highest tribute we can pay to a man. We trust him to do right it's just that simple" (Lee 236), she shows that the town treated Atticus as a leader. He showed the sheltered, little town that just because a person is colored, that does not mean they are guilty of whatever crime a white man had accused them of.
Angelou also states, “If Joe lost we were back in slavery and beyond help. It would all be true, the accusations that we were lower types of human beings”. With this statement she describes the mistreatment of African Americans that was ongoing at that time; even though slavery no longer existed many white people still treated African Americans as inferiors. Louis needed to win in order to eliminate all the false accusations once and for all. In the last paragraph, once it is revealed that Louis won the fight, Angelou once again addresses the racial conflicts.
Atticus did not only defend a black man but he had the courage and strength to try and defend him. All other lawyers would have either not taken the case or would have, but not tried at all and let an innocent man die. But Atticus was different; he was one of the few white people that believed that black people are equal to white people. The black community thought of Atticus as a great man, and he was very much respected in the black community. After the court case when Atticus was leaving, the community of black people rose in respect of his heroic actions in which he presented in defending Tom.
During the time period in which the story takes place, black people were not considered equal to white people and were treated horribly as if they were weak and naive. Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, describes the racism and prejudice towards black people and how she makes a good diction against it. The black people in the novel are strong-willed for not succumbing to white people for they have their own volition. They are treated like they are naive or ignorant but they have their own intelligence and experiences that proves their strength. Everybody deserves the same justice that everyone else is given in a court of law, no matter if someone is better than them.
Because of this racism and prejudice, the decision of Atticus’ to defend this man (who would certainly be killed without a lawyer because he is black and the accuser is white) is widely discussed in the town. Atticus seems to take all the criticism and name-calling well and sticks to his belief. Atticus also seems to want to influence his children’s thoughts and attitudes towards colored people by hiring an African-American maid, Calpurina. He pays her a normal wage, one that a white maid would receive, and treats her with the same respect he
Harper Lee shows the racist social values that most of the inhabitants of Maycomb County follow are one of the factors that cause Atticus Finch’s defense to fail. In Maycomb, hating black people is a never-ending trend. Even though almost everyone follows it, Atticus does not. He is one of the only characters in the novel that has good social values and does not judge one by his or her skin colour. Although he has a feeling that he is not going to win the case, he still does the right thing by
The Novel created by Harper Lee, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” contained much courage. African Americans, Calpurnia and Tom Robinson, faced many troubling obstacles in their racist hometown of Maycomb. The two characters were the most courageous in the story because they protected others and stood up for themselves. In “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Tom Robinson is a very courageous character. For example, when he stood up for himself to Mr. Gilmer when saying “I was jus tryin to help her out, suh.” (196) It showed that Tom speaks the truth and is obviously courageous.
Black people only get poorest jobs and hardest jobs. They are made fun of, not being respected. They don’t receive education and have the same rights compared with other. Perhaps one of the stronger examples of racism in the novel is the lynch mob. It is quite obvious that Robinson was not guilty, but he is still convicted anyway.
Segregation dominated Montgomery in the 1950’s, as well as Jim Crow Laws. (Tyvela) Blacks apart from whites, and whites apart from blacks. Everything was separate; bathrooms, waiting rooms, and even drinking fountains. Whites, though, were treated with respect and had the finer things, while blacks were uncared for and thought of being unintelligible. All of these actions occurred due to the color of people’s skin.
This shows that perhaps some blacks still hold a grudge against whites for all they have put them through in the last century. The fact of the matter is; however, that in saying only white people are racist, they are being racist themselves, therefore disproving their statement. To say that racism is a “white person’s disease” is also factually incorrect. All of us, as humans, discriminate; it is a natural instinct which we all share. Psychologist Larry A.