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Racial profiling amongst police officers in America
Tom Robinson before the trial
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The recent case of Tom Robinson was a quite intense case to many people. The case personally outraged me and many of my colleagues due to the irony of some of the people who were involved in the case. Only a portion of people agree with the verdict, I am not one of those few people. In my defense Tom Robinson is as innocent as anyone walking freely around this town today, and everything that was said in that courtroom proves it. It may not be very noticeable , but that specific case changed many things in Maycomb County , and it will continue to do so for generation unless something is done about the situation . During the entire court case everything was purely based on the color of Tom Robinson’s skin, which made the situation much worse. As many have said previously “When it’s a white man's world against a black man's, the white man always wins". Ms. …show more content…
Mayella was a lonely girl with a drunken father and a urge to call upon those who she thought less of , Tom. Mr.Robinson was a generous soul who would help anyone that asked and on November 21st it was Mayella. During the case it was clear to see that she wasn’t even aware of what happened given the fact that she couldn't answer simple questions and sobbed of remorse every few minutes. In the beginning of the court case Mayella vaguely claimed she was choked,attacked, and sexually assaulted. It was also said that the bruises that were on Mayella were clearly made by someone who were able to punch with their left arm. There was no way possible Tom could have caused that type of damage due to the fact that his left arm was clearly paralyzed in a cotton gin accident years ago.Later it was proven that Bob Ewell was ambidextrous and was perfectly able to have hitten her given the fact that he was drunk also. Tom honestly described his experience in every detail possible. He stated that she called on him to help her very often and spoke on a daily basis Mr.Robinson said that she was the aggressive attacker, attempting to kiss him aggressively as he tried to leave. I personally understand why he ran away from the house when Mr.Ewell arrived ,clearly to prevent situations of being falsely claimed as he was. Any black man with normal sense would have ran in the situation. People tend to get rid of things they are displeased with and the Ewells tried as hard as they could to get rid of the fact that Mayella attempted to kiss a black man, so they decided to get rid of him the best possibly way they could, even if it meant the death of him. In the court of law or anywhere , everyone should be treated , talked to , and respected equally no matter what skin color they are.
Not only was Tom falsely accused, he was also disrespected multiple times during the court case. Why do we have to deal with things this severe?When are we going to have to deal with another death of an innocent who was falsely accused? We can only rise up and raise our voices so they have no choice but to listen to our viewpoints and opinions. Each one of us are important to this community and it’s about time that we protest and show everyone how important Tom was and always will be to us. Tom Robinson was a prime example of how cruel and biased our legal system can be to not only African Americans ,but just about anyone. To the readers of the Maycomb Tribune, we are all in this together, that case affected us all ,and us voicing our opinion to the injustice of our legal system will bring us all together no matter what race, skin color, or sex each one of us are. In the future people will soon understand that “All Lives Matter” and that will forever live in each one of our hearts
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...uth to fully understand that it is typical to act superior to those with colored skin. All Dill sees is a man being rude to another, just because of his skin color. While Atticus clearly shows everyone in the court that it was almost impossible for Tom Robinson to have beat Mayella, he still loses the case just because he was a black man against a white woman. Lee includes, “Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed.” (Lee 323) This enforces how it didn’t matter what Tom was really doing or why Mayella was screaming, but just by the way Tom looked they were able to essentially pin the rape and the beatings on Tom. Of course this was not true and he did not receive the justice he deserved, but that didn’t matter to Maycomb. All that mattered was the color of his skin and what the teenage white girl named Mayella Ewell said about him.
Tom Robinson was a victim of racism, which is an ongoing issue. The simplified definition of racism is hating someone because they are different. Hate can cause someone to do inhumane things, like murder, as did the KKK. African Americans were assassinated because of their
Tom Robinson was negatively affected by racism because it lead to his death after an unfair trial. Atticus says “Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewells opened her mouth and screamed”(Lee 323). Since Tom, a black man, was accused of raping Mayella, a white woman, Tom wasn’t going to win the court case because he was a black man against a white woman. Tom Robinson said ”Mr. Finch, if you was a n…. like me, you’d be scared too.”(Lee 261). This quote proves that Tom believed that he didn't think that he wasn’t going to win the trial, and that's why he tried to run from jail so he had somewhat of a chance. Tom Robinson’s life was ruined by racism was.
“…and on the charge that the prisoner did with others to conspire to destroy the lives of soldiers in the military service of the United States in violation of the laws and customs of war-Guilty” were the words that soared out of Wallace’s mouth at the end of the trial. It was then that Henry Wirz was found guilty. Why? Why was he found guilty? This decision was based on the emotional aspect of the witnesses, and not by the actual guilt. Not only my defense, but also the defense of Wirz’s attorney, Baker, the testimony of the defendant, Henry Wirz, shows that Wirz should not have been found guilty.
This shows a man?s racism and inhumanity towards another man. Tom Robinson hasn?t done the community any wrong but is a social outcast for being black which is not his fault.
Nearly the whole last half of the book is about racism. The attitude of the whole town is that Tom Robinson, because he is black and,"…all Negroes lie,…all Negroes are basically immoral beings,…all Negro men are not to be trusted around our women…"(Lee 207), will be found guilty regardless of how good a case Atticus makes for him. There was substantial amount of evidence that suggests his innocence. Even the prosecution's two witnesses' stories contradicted each other. The jury did not give a guilty verdict it gave a racist verdict. Not a verdict based on fact, but a verdict based on the color of a man's skin. This is important because the author was not making this racism up; it was what it was like in those times. She is trying to show how ignorant and blind people can be just because of differences between them, as well as how society treats racial minorities.
the job of proving the innocence of a negro man, Tom Robinson who is unfairly tried in
In the story Tom Robinson was discriminated based on the color of his skin. He was accused of sexually abusing Mayella Ewell. Thus the truth was he was a victim of discrimination. Over taken for his kindness of always trying to help. The story was told that one day walking home, from work he saw that Mayella needed help with some chores so he went and help her. Not long after Bob Ewell walked in and started screaming, which led to Tom Robison running out of perhaps his life. The next day he was accused of raping her. Thus she was beaten up and probably raped. But not by Tom but by her father. Tom Robinson was married to Helen and had kids. While Bob Ewell was an alcoholic who wasn't able to create living for his children. Even though in the story, it was told that the bruises found around Mayella’s neck and the bruised right side of her face could only have been made by a man with two strong hands. Thus Tom had a crippled left arm which made it impossible of taking such action. Overall, he was called guilty of the crime. Thus the truth was and still is that society has undermined it’s justices of the truth. Such as todays racist and injustices crimes. When a police has a free right to shoot another person and get away with
...ir if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life” (295). From the very beginning of the trial, the jury was going to find Tom Robinson guilty since it was a black man's word against a white man’s word. The all-white jury never wanted to see a black person win against a white person. After he is found guilty, Tom is sent to a prison where he tries to escape but is shot to death by the prison guards. Mr. Underwood writes an editorial in which he compares Tom being shot to death to hunters shooting mockingbirds. Like a mockingbird, Tom never caused any harm to anyone. Tom is “shot” by the jury when they assume that he is guilty because he is a black man and his alleged victim is white. In the end, an innocent man was found guilty because of the color of his skin.
The Scottsboro Trial and the trial of Tom Robinson are almost identical in the forms of bias shown and the accusers that were persecuted. The bias is obvious and is shown throughout both cases, which took place in the same time period. Common parallels are seen through the time period that both trials have taken place in and those who were persecuted and why they were persecuted in the first place. The thought of "All blacks were liars, and all blacks are wrongdoers," was a major part of all of these trails. A white person's word was automatically the truth when it was held up to the credibility of someone whom was black. Both trials were perfect examples of how the people of Alabama were above the law and could do whatever they wanted to the black people and get away with it. In both trials lynch mobs were formed to threaten the black people who were accused. Judge Hornton tried many times to move the case to a different place so that a fair trial could take place and not be interrupted by the racist people. Finally was granted to move the case even though the lynch mobs threatened to kill everyone who was involved in the case if it were to be moved. In this essay the bias and racism in both trials are going to be clarified and compared to each other.
Tom Robinson should not have tried to escape prison for three reasons. He would not have lost his life, he would have proven himself innocent, and he would have made a statement of how it’s wrong how white people treated black people.
Tom was sent to jail for doing absolutely nothing wrong, except being black. He never had the luxury to grow into old age, as his life was taken from him when he was shot seventeen times during his attempt to escape from jail. Tom Robinson’s life would have been completely different if he had not been black. The discrimination would not have occurred and the accusations would not have been leveled or believed.
I think that Tom Robinson was innocent, but there is no way I would say something crazy like that in the town of Maycomb. People would get the wrong idea and I don’t need that to happen. So, I’m just keeping my mouth shut until this whole thing goes over and something else happens.
Following the charges that were brought against Roy and J.W., they were detained, “ … and put on trial, journalists from around the world flocked to the courtroom. Thus, the whole world heard when the all-white jury returned a verdict of not guilty” (Squires). The trial and the aftermath of it’s disputable verdict, sent an explicit and paralyzing message about racial oppression and justice in the South during the Jim Crow Laws Era. A year after the proceedings, “Bryant and Milam sold their story to Look magazine for thousands of dollars, recounting exactly how they kidnapped and lynched Till” (Squires). Despite disclosing to publications the felony they committed in exchange for wealth, the acquitted duo was free from all criminal charges. Even after all the chaotic and influential events that occurred, as well as all the years that passed, “The legacy of Emmett Till and the piercing truth of the long life and struggle of Mobley still scream out to this day to demand justice and equality for black America and all those who have been victimized and oppressed by racism and injustice” (Chavis Jr.). Similar to Emmett’s time, there are multiple victims now that parallel with the tragedies that befell Emmett Till and the discrimination he
In the court, the director leaves out the systemic racism that Harper Lee claims is the reason Tom Robinson is convicted of rape (Dave). The racist community, and a mob of white men, make up the deciding factor of the court. However, for someone watching the movie it would not be understood that the hatred expressed towards Atticus is for supporting a black man ("Overview: To Kill a Mockingbird"). The only reason Tom loses the case is because he is black and the movie underplays this as the reason.