Racism in American Schools

778 Words2 Pages

Even though extraordinary changes have been made in the past to achieve racial equality, America is still racist, especially in schools. In the novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” written by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is criticized for defending a black man accused of raping a white woman. During the 1930s, the time this novel took place, America was a very segregated country. At the time when Harper Lee wrote "To Kill a Mockingbird," America was fighting a civil rights movement. The events of racism in “To Kill a Mockingbird” reflect the time period. Atticus Finch does not let anyone else's opinion affect what his beliefs are. In chapter eleven of "To Kill a Mockingbird," Atticus explains to Scout what a "nigger-lover" is. He tells Scout, "It's hard to explain-ignorant, trashy people use it when they think somebody's favoring Negroes over and above themselves. It slipped into usage with some people like ourselves, when they want to use a common, ugly term to label somebody" (Lee 113). Obviously, Atticus doesn't believe the term is funny or clever. The southern town of Maycomb, Alabama had adopted this term as a racial slur. All throughout the trial of Tom Robinson, racist white people judged Atticus for defending a black man. This racism has now been transferred into schools across the country. To get an idea of where racism started in schools, we first have to look at the past. Just three years after the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling that segregated schools was unconstitutional, nine African American students enrolled in Little Rock Central High School. On their first day of high school, the nine students were forbidden to enter due to the fact the Arkansas National Guard was blocking the entrance to the school. The first day... ... middle of paper ... ...color of their skin, then America will have a huge problem on its hands. Although racism in America is not as strong and hateful as it once was, it clearly has not disappeared nor will it ever. Harper Lee demonstrated the struggles of African Americans back in the 1930s, and unfortunately, some of those struggles are still present today. Works Cited Lee, Harper. "Chapter 11." To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Harper & Row, 1960. 113. Print. "Little Rock Nine: Photos of a Civil Rights Triumph in Arkansas, 1957 | LIFE | TIME.com." LIFE. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. Resmovits, Joy. "American Schools Are STILL Racist, Government Report Finds." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 21 Mar. 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. Young, Molly. "Shocking Racist Tweets Follow High School Basketball Win by All-white Team." MLive.com. N.p., 17 Mar. 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Show More
Related

  • How Does Atticus Show Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1095 Words  | 3 Pages

    Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, Harper Lee's, To Kill a Mockingbird takes readers to the roots of human behavior, to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, and the struggle between blacks and whites. Atticus Finch, a lawyer and single parent in a small southern town in the 1930's, is appointed by the local judge to defend Tom Robinson, a black man, who is accused of raping a white woman. Friends and neighbors object when Atticus puts up a strong and spirited defense on behalf of the accused black man. Atticus renounces violence but stands up for what he believes in. He decides to defend Tom Robinson because if he did not, he would not only lose the respect of his children and the townspeople, but himself as well.

    Read More

  • Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

    1491 Words  | 3 Pages

    To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper lee in 1960. The novel tells the story of Atticus Finch, a white lawyer, and Tom Robinson, a black servant, accused of raping a white female. Finch defends Robinson in court arguing lack of evidence as his main point. However, the judge and jury still believe the woman’s testimony and orders Robinson to be killed. The novel has been praised for its outstanding literature since its publication. However, it remains a banned book by the American Library Association for its use of racial slurs and profanity. Due to it being banned, many high schools have reconsidered the notion of teaching it to their students. Two prominent authors wrote articles pertaining to this piece of literature: Angela Shaw-Thornburg wrote an article on her re-reading of the novel and her opinions on it; while Malcom Gladwell wrote an article comparing Atticus Finch to a state governor liberalist, James Folsom, and the restraints of liberalism in the south. In addition, Rebecca Best contributes her thought on how the novel should be taught by introducing the idea of “the other.” Regardless of the modern day political arguments surrounding this piece of literature, this novel contains a large insight into the time period of the 1960s which is an influential topic that should be taught to young high school students.

    Read More

  • Tulsa Race Riots

    1511 Words  | 4 Pages

    There have been traces of racism throughout America since the country was founded. Blacks, along with other races, were constantly fighting to be treated equally. Even though the slaves were freed in 1863, they still faced many racial and prejudice issues. However, in the early 1900s, it seemed as if African Americans were flourishing in the town of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The thought of African Americans prospering disgusted most whites to the point they wanted to do something about it. These thoughts and actions caused a horrific event known as Tulsa Race Riots that not only affected everyone in the time period, but will continue to affect us and live in our memory.

    Read More

  • Judging People in To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee

    1186 Words  | 3 Pages

    Martin Luther King said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Racism is still an issue that can be seen in the twenty-first century. Although, tons of progress has been made over the last century, some still hold on to racist beliefs. The majority of classic American literature demonstrates the racism that was present in the early twentieth century. By looking at the theme of race in the American classic, To Kill a Mockingbird, it is clear that people are quick to judge others based on their own opinions and feelings.

    Read More

  • Racism and Discrimination in America

    958 Words  | 2 Pages

    While browsing through articles on the internet, I came across many related to the topic of racism. I am beginning to feel as if I am surrounded by stories of racism. From the KKK’s aggressive campaign against immigrants, to the police violence against black people in cites throughout our nation, racism and discrimination continue to be problems. One story stood out to me and continues to make me uncomfortable. Malachi Wilson, a five year-old boy, could not attend his first day of kindergarten in Seminole, Texas. What could he have done to warrant the principal’s rejection? His hair was simply too long.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird And Racism

    367 Words  | 1 Pages

    Racism has been evident all around America, even before this country was officially created over two hundred years ago. Prejudice and racism are not uncommon words in American history, because many disputes, such as war and protests, have emerged from the topic of race. This has been a common practice in the past, and is still a common practice today. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the effects of racism are shown in Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930’s. The effects of racism were very cruel during this time, and Harper Lee reflected this through characters, such as Atticus, Jem, Scout, Mrs. Dubose, Aunt Alexandra, and Calpurnia in To Kill a Mockingbird.

    Read More

  • Melba Pattillo Beals', Warriors Don't Cry

    2530 Words  | 6 Pages

    In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Brown vs. The Board of Education that schools needed to integrate and provide equal education for all people and it was unconstitutional for the state to deny certain citizens this opportunity. Although this decision was a landmark case and meant the schools could no longer deny admission to a child based solely on the color of their skin. By 1957, most schools had began to slowly integrate their students, but those in the deep south were still trying to fight the decision. One of the most widely known instances of this happening was at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. It took the school district three years to work out an integration plan. The board members and faculty didn't like the fact that they were going to have to teach a group of students that were looked down upon and seen as "inferior" to white students. However, after much opposition, a plan was finally proposed. The plan called for the integration to happen in three phases. First, during the 1957-1958 school year, the senior high school would be integrated, then after completion at the senior high level, the junior high would be integrated, and the elementary levels would follow in due time. Seventeen students were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be the first black teenagers to begin the integration process. The town went into an uproar. Many acts of violence were committed toward the African-Americans in the city. Racism and segregation seemed to be on the rise. Most black students decid...

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird and the Little Rock Nine

    1535 Words  | 4 Pages

    Their story started in 1954 when Brown v Board of Education ruled that segregation in schools was unconstitutional. It was the first legal decision that opposed the ‘separate but equal’ doctrine that had become standard since the Plessy v Ferguson case in 1896 which propagated segregation: “'separate' facilities provided for blacks and whites were legally acceptable provided that they were of an 'equal' standard” (Kirk, “Crisis at Central High”). Little Rock, Arkansas, was on...

    Read More

  • Perspective on Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird

    1379 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York, New York: Grand Central Publishing, 1960. Print.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird Essays: Discrimination and Prejudice

    1388 Words  | 3 Pages

    The novel TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee has numerous accounts of racism and prejudice throughout the entire piece. The novel is set in the 1930's, a time when racism was very prevalent. Although bigotry and segregation were pointed in majority towards blacks, other accounts towards whites were also heard of, though not as commonly. There are acts that are so discreet that you almost don't catch them, but along with those, there are blatant acts of bigotry that would never occur in our time. Lee addresses many of these feelings in her novel.

    Read More

  • Racism in To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    “To Kill A Mockingbird” is marvelous and unforgettable novel. Not only show how dramatic, sad in and old town – Maycomb be like, but through her unique writings, some big conflicts about politics and critical is going on through this tired old Southern town. Not just in general like education, friendship, neighbors but also pacific in individuals like family and the people’s characteristics themselves. In one book yet can covered with such many problems, Harper Lee must have been experienced a lot and deeply understanding that time. That is why the book lives, becoming literature and get the love from the audiences a lot. One of the problem and mostly run along with the story and interest me is racism between white people and black people socially.

    Read More

  • Education and Racism

    807 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...types about people like themselves, and the message that they are inferior and cannot achieve, and their coming to believe or internalize those stereotypes and messages" (201). This turns into a loss of self-esteem and extreme hatred towards oneself and members of their group. In the school systems, teachers tend to pay less attention to students of color, or else don't encourage them as much as they do the white children. Also, the students themselves can make cruel comments to their peers and all of this can lead to internalized racism. Teachers need to watch their own actions as well as those of their students to make sure this isn't happening. The teachers should accept, learn, and believe the fact that we are all one. There is not two, three, or ten human species, there is one. If this is stressed enough in schools, children can grow up free of racism.

    Read More

  • Racism In Schools

    295 Words  | 1 Pages

    As previously mentioned, racism in schools has existed ever since segregation began. Now in the year 2017 it continues in ways that should have been renewed years ago. Way too often are there incidents occurring today regarding discrimination of minority groups in the U.S. Whether it is from student to student or citizen to citizen these confrontations occur regularly in our communities. One example showcasing racism in a school setting is in a dorm at Michigan State University when a group of Black students found derogatory language written on their name tags. The ‘n’ word was written under their names on tags as they returned to their dorms. This act was not only categorized as an act of vandalism but also of hate. These actions are not new

    Read More

  • Racism And Discrimination In Schools

    1530 Words  | 4 Pages

    Chapter four talks about Ebonics and how it exists even though some of us agree with it and others disagree. It used with Native people and how they communicated with their child like baby talk which is vital for the child development. Teachers really push the children to pronounce words correctly which does not produce fluency but silence and resentfulness. As students grow from 1st grade to 4th grade their English changed from the dialect of mainstream society to their own community dialect. That happened through becoming aware of new knowledge or even just home and community environment. Recording the children conversation really helps them understand how they are communicating in English and own native language. Teachers including the majority teachers constantly categorize the minority children as incompetent and most likely to fail due to

    Read More

  • The Existence Of Racism In School

    149 Words  | 1 Pages

    For a prosperous, seemingly well-educated, and religiously zealous county brimming with ethnic diversity, I assumed that racism was a chapter left in the history books. However, for years, I personally witnessed numerous falsehoods. Just this year, my friend’s well-respected parents banned her from attending a party. The reason was the birthday girl’s skin color. In school, I hear daily, harsh remarks aimed at Hispanic students demanding they leave the country. I’m utterly surprised that in 2017 blatant prejudice still exists. Sadly, the reason racism still prevails is continual, cyclic ignorance from my community. I openly speak out against this bigotry and encourage others to do the same. I sincerely try to contribute my support and friendship

    Read More

More about Racism in American Schools

Open Document