Context – WJECSegregation, voting and the justice system

Segregation laws

Segregation laws in the south meant that black people were kept separate from white people. Black children went to separate schools, black people worshipped in their own church and lived in their own separate housing estates. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Calpurnia the Finch family’s housekeeper worships in a church just for black people. When Atticus is away one Sunday she invites Scout and Jem to visit her church, asking Scout, How’d you and Mister Jem like to come to church with me tomorrow?

The black inhabitants of Maycomb live in their own ‘quarter’, an area of housing put aside for black people. Segregation did not mean equality. The housing used by black people was generally rundown, and the schools for black children were not well equipped with mainly second hand and out of date books. In To Kill a Mockingbird the black people of Maycomb live in wooden cabins, rather like large sheds which were often rundown. The area in which they live is also near the town dump and therefore far from the middle class area of town.

Voting rights

In order to register to vote everyone needed to pass a literacy test. Many black people were given exceptionally difficult tests that they failed due to the poor education they had received. Others passed the test but were told they had failed so they could be kept from voting. Some black people were threatened and abused as they tried to register so that they too were finally prevented from voting.

The justice system for black people

One of the worst aspects of life for black people during this period was the way they were treated by the courts of law and the justice system. This is something Harper Lee was particularly keen to highlight in To Kill a Mockingbird. It was unfortunately very common for black people to be accused of a crimes which they are not guilty of committing. Many white people assumed that black people were guilty of committing crimes and did very little to ensure they got a fair trial. This is why Atticus is so courageous when he defends Tom Robinson. He actually believes in Tom’s innocence and does all he can to prove that Tom should not be found guilty. Many lawyers would not have bothered defending Tom in this way.

Some white people did not even wait for a black man or woman to be sent to trial but instead took the law into their own hands. An example of this can be seen in Chapter 15 of To Kill a Mockingbird. Tom Robinson is in jail waiting for his trial to begin and a group of men known as a lynch mob arrive fully intending to kill Tom before his trial even starts:

He in there, Mr Finch?a man said. (Member of the lynch mob to Atticus)

However, they had not realised that Atticus would be brave enough to wait with Tom in order to protect him.