Examples Of Systematic Oppression In To Kill A Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper Lee in 1960. She sets the story in the 1930s, and in the book, Lee points to some of Americas racial problems in that period. At the time, the norms were different, and African Americans were not seen as equal to white people. African Americans are individuals with ancestors who came from Africa, and were brought to America as slaves. Seeing as slavery is a probable cause of racism, it makes sense that when slavery got abolished, racism would disappear with it. However, that is not the case.

In today’s America, there is still prejudice against people of colour. America today is known for freedom and equality, hopes and dreams. However, even though these terms are meant for everyone, not everyone
What most African Americans face today leans more toward the term “systematic oppression”. Systematic oppression is enforced by the government, the police, and the law. In To Kill a Mockingbird, one of the issues is the flawed law system. The same issue is found in the US today. However, the system is not as flawed, and the discrimination not as noticeable. Nevertheless, it still affects the victims of said prejudice and systematic oppression, especially African Americans, seeing as they are most likely to fall victim to systematic oppression. For instance, they are 80% more likely to be pulled over and frisked by the police than white people. Black men are sentenced to prison nearly 20% longer than white men, for the same crimes. Also, according to several studies, people in America generally feel sorrier and more responsible for a person that is white. Additionally, a psychological study has shown that white people, including the police, see black children as less innocent and older than white children. Furthermore, black children are also more likely to be seen as adults in court, and are given harsher sentences than white children, according to a Stanford University