Shendaj, 1

Fadi Shendaj
Ms. Randolf
10
th
Grade Academic Literacy
June 3, 2014
Racial Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lees novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is based on the Scottsboro trial. It follows the
lives of the denizens of Maycomb and the racial dilemmas they face with each other. The most
prevalent theme presented in Harper Lees, To Kill a Mockingbird, is the persecution of the
black community stemming from the prejudice held by the majority of Maycombs white
population.
In the 1930s the southern part of the United States was predominantly racist. That
included everyone from the elderly to the children in the schoolyard. This can be explicitly seen
from these two quotes: He announced in the schoolyard the day before that Scout Finchs daddy
defended niggers (99). that is, Mrs. Dubose would hound Jem for a while on her favorite
subjects, her camellias and our fathers nigger-loving propensities; she would grow increasingly
silent, then go away from us (Lee, 144). Because of people like that, people who were black
would never be able to be treated fairly. The racist people in the community didnt only harass
people who were black; they would also torment those who wanted to treat everyone fairly.
The prime victims of this torment were the Finches. They were only antagonized by the
whites in Maycomb because they werent racist and their ideas didnt conform to mostly
everyone elses. An example of this is when Jem and Scout couldnt go a day without Ms.
Shendaj, 2

.Dubose delivering them their daily dose of her viscous vitriol, usually about Atticus and the fact
that hes defending a black man. Atticus, I said one evening, what exactly is a nigger-lover?
Atticuss face was grave. Has somebody been calling you that? No sir, Mrs. Dubose calls you
that. She warms up every afternoon calling you that (Lee, 144). So, basically, just because
Atticus was willingly going to put forth all of his effort and exercise all of skills to defend a
black man, the racist people of Maycomb thought that that warranted verbal and sometimes
physical abuse against him and his family. The surprising things about stuff like this, is that they
were white and they were ill-treated to this extent, imagine what would happen if they black in a
city like Maycomb.
More times than not, as one could probably guess, they were treated much worse than
just a white person who treated a black man a fairly. That was due to the fact that their skin color
was different, which was obviously not their choice. Tom Robinson, who was a black man, was
not given a fair trial due to this mundane reason. He was unfairly accused, tried, and found guilty
because they had an aversion to someone who had a skin color that did not match their own even
though they were men whom could be considered to have morals
How this could be so, I wondered, as I read Mr. Underwoods editorial. Senseless
killingTom had been given due process of law to the day of his death; he had been
tried openly and convicted by twelve good men and true; my father had fought for him all
the way. Then Mr. Underwoods meaning became clear: Atticus had used every tool
available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of mens hearts
Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth
and screamed (Lee, 323)
Shendaj, 3

In fact, most people were racist to the extent that they couldnt even careless if a black
man lived or died and would kill them if they had the chance. Or so that what is seemed
when they used a force that was beyond what was necessary and it was just excessive
against Tom Robinson Seventeen bullet holes in him. They didnt have to shoot him that
much (Lee, 315).
The most prevalent theme presented in Harper Lees, To Kill a Mockingbird, is the
persecution of the black community stemming from the prejudice held by the majority of
Maycombs white population. The racism that came from the white supremacists affected more
than just black people. It affected anyone who had any affiliation with them that wasnt a
master-slave relationship. They were subjected to an abuse that was similar, but not to the
same extent. So for people who were black it was much worse, they were persecuted to the point
where it was like they werent even human.








Shendaj, 4

Works Cited
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York, Grand Central Publishing.1960.