Robinson's Legacy To Kill A Mockingbird
Harper Lee, the author of "To Kill a Mockingbird," left behind a massive legacy. Her book sold more than 40 million copies since it was published in 1960, and Americans rank it among the most influential books they've read. But after more than 50 years and millions of classrooms lessons, some of its central lessons still, at least at times, go unheard. the same racial prejudices that led to Robinson's conviction are thriving, if in more subtle ways, in courtrooms today. It is not unknown that black defendants are more likely to be convicted of crimes than white defendants, and that people found guilty of murdering white victims are significantly more likely to be sentenced to death than those who murder blacks. Defendants with more stereotypically
black features – a broad nose, thick lips and darker skin – were more likely to receive a death sentence in crimes against a white victim. These results have a lot to do with a lack of diversity on judicial benches and juries, which tend to be white, male and older, as the jury in "To Kill a Mockingbird" was. Though racial discrimination in jury selection is illegal, it has a long history in the U.S. When a jury is selected today, the judge will first strike jurors he or she deems incapable of being impartial. Then lawyers for both the prosecution and defense can ask that a certain number of jurors be removed, a practice called peremptory challenges. In “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Atticus Finch says, “A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the men that make it up.” (Lee, 274) An article from lithub.com states, “In ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ Lee seemed to make it her personal mission to vindicate upstanding Southern citizens by passing the baton of guilt along to another—in her case, poor, lower-class, ‘white trash’ Southerners.” These two quotes reveal the state of America’s society and justice system in the 1940s and in 2017.
black features – a broad nose, thick lips and darker skin – were more likely to receive a death sentence in crimes against a white victim. These results have a lot to do with a lack of diversity on judicial benches and juries, which tend to be white, male and older, as the jury in "To Kill a Mockingbird" was. Though racial discrimination in jury selection is illegal, it has a long history in the U.S. When a jury is selected today, the judge will first strike jurors he or she deems incapable of being impartial. Then lawyers for both the prosecution and defense can ask that a certain number of jurors be removed, a practice called peremptory challenges. In “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Atticus Finch says, “A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the men that make it up.” (Lee, 274) An article from lithub.com states, “In ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ Lee seemed to make it her personal mission to vindicate upstanding Southern citizens by passing the baton of guilt along to another—in her case, poor, lower-class, ‘white trash’ Southerners.” These two quotes reveal the state of America’s society and justice system in the 1940s and in 2017.