Examples Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

Racism today is considered a terrible thing, but if we go back a few years to the 1930’s racism was considered normal. Racism is defined as “A belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race” (Merriam Webster Dictionary). One of the main themes in “To Kill a Mockingbird” is Racism: we see this in he way the whole community resents Atticus for defending Tom Robinson, in the outcome of Tom’s court case, and in the way Bob Ewell harasses Helen, Tom’s wife.

Racism starts to show it’s ugly face when the community becomes aware of the fact that Atticus is planning on defending Tom. Scout experiences this first hand in the school yard. “Cecil Jacobs …announced in the school yard the day before that Scout Finch’s daddy defended niggers”(99). Scout immediately contradicted him, but had no idea what he meant. Atticus asked Scout and Jem not to be offended if people made fun of him, but that didn’t stop scout from being defensive. As time went on the the trial came closer, many people from the community stepped down to the level of bully to make fun of Atticus and his negro friends.

The Negro’s aren’t even allowed to sit with the whites. The Judge knows that Tom is in the right, and not being racist he is biased in Tom’s favor. However, even after Atticus gives a stirring speech, people see Tom’s c rippled arm, and the evidence from the prosecutor doesn’t 100% match up, the jury remains racist. “A jury never looks at a defendant it has convicted, and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson…guilty… guilty… guilty... guilty…” (282) Even when it is obvious that Tom was in the right, the racist jury announced him guilty. In this instance, racism trumped justice in a place where it was claimed that justice trumps