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Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

Decent Essays

For hundreds of years, white men spurned African Americans and viewed them as inferior. Africans led poor, humble lives, for they remained enslaved, while many Caucasians enjoyed comparatively wealthy and prosperous lives. Although the thirteenth amendment abolished slavery over fifty years before the Great Depression ensued, the time period surrounding To Kill a Mockingbird, prejudice against those with different skin colors remained evident. Black people continued to work for white people, and many looked with disdain upon individuals who stood up for African Americans. Also, the bias toward Caucasians resulted in unjust court outcomes. Racism exists as a prominent theme throughout Harper Lee’s masterpiece, To Kill a Mockingbird, as demonstrated by the lifestyle of the African Americans, the partiality opposing those who defended them, and the instance of the Tom Robinson case. African Americans in To Kill a Mockingbird experience lives that demonstrate many white people view them as inferior. From their employment to their homes, the view of Africans as lesser remains evident throughout the novel. Their source of employment exists as an example of this; Calpurnia works for the Finches as the cook, and Tom Robinson works for Mr. Link Deas (Lee, 6, 195). Despite that black people served white people, no African American ever employed a Caucasian, demonstrating people viewed them as unequal. Africans dwelling in a separate section of town, without mingling their homes with

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