To kill a Mockingbird

Inequality in the Court System
To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the 1930’s during the Great Depression in Maycomb, Alabama. Harper Lee, the author, wrote this book in 1960 based on “the Scottsboro Boys” Trial of 1931 to 1937. This trial accused twelve Negro men, which Tom Robinson represents in the book, of raping a woman that is considered white trash [Mayella Ewell]. At the beginning of the novel, Harper Lee introduces a white lawyer, Atticus Finch, who is all about equality and angel-like moral. Atticus hears about the Tom Robinson Trial, and takes matters into his own hands to defend the Negro Man to promote equality for all men, and to prove Tom Robinson innocent. At the end of the trial, Atticus’s closing statement consists of him saying, “Our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal.”Atticus’ statement is incorrect because the court of law is not equal to every man based on the facts of the extreme racist United States from the 1800’s to the 1900’s, the present day corruption in the court system, the story “Twelve Angry Men” and in Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird” that shows prejudice stems from the naïve opinions people develop in order to establish a sense of superiority. In the days past, dating back from the 1800’s, the court of law was extremely unequal towards all men. From slavery up until 1865, when the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, the court of law was at its highest form of being unequal and prejudice towards different types of men. The most commonly known is the United States being prejudice towards Negroes. Since most coloreds were ignorant most Americans thought it was easy to take them over, and become “The Slave Master.” When Negroes would go against the laws of others, they were beaten or killed but when a man not of color went against the laws of others, they were proven innocent in the court of law. All slaves lived in grueling existence, “They worked long days and often suffered whippings and beatings” (Spielvogel 498). They suffered these whippings for prejudice reasons. Slaves could never do anything right, they were always in the wrong and received unbearable consequences, as expressed in the quote, daily. Even-though slavery ended in 1865, the US was still a prejudiced society. In many ways coloreds were treated unequally in the court of the law. At this time, people still saw African Americans as not having any rights and not being treated equally. “White southerners passed laws that limited African Americans’ right, and made it difficult for them” (Spielvogel 672). This shows that Negro men could not acquire a good deed in the court of law, and they had no power in the development of the court system. This maximized the fact that no one cared about being equal to coloreds, especially in the court of law.
The present day court system has become substantially better than in the 1800’s, but there is still corruption. “An earthquake achieves what the law promises but does not in practice maintain-the equality of all men” (Silone). For example, Lindsay Lohan receives a lesser sentence than of the average “Blue collar” worker. When a celebrity is in the court, equality disappears from the court system; versus, when an average person is in the court inequality is in affect. Furthermore, celebrities are human beings like everyone else in the world, but in the court system they are treated as if they are super humans or above the law. When a celebrity is charged of the same crime as an average person, the celebrity may get lesser consequences because of fame, money resources, and place in our society. Though most celebrities aren’t serving much jail time for their crimes, the jails are still filling very fast with the average person. Since the jails and prisons are becoming full, the Wardens are beginning to get a court order to release criminals on the account of good behavior and many other reasons. “A total of 36,661 convicted criminals have been released early from jail under a government scheme to cut overcrowding in prisons” (Gray). This shows that they have been releasing horrible criminals for overcrowding of jails. The present day court system involving celebrity unfairness and early releasing of frightening criminals, shows inequality in the court of law.
In the story, “Twelve Angry Men” there is a display of prejudice in the court. The play introduces twelve men that are a part of the jury for a kid’s case, accusing him of murder of his father. The jury consists of people of different backgrounds. Before someone is appointed to the jury, they have to answer specific questions that can relate them to the case. This is done to assure that the people of the jury cannot have prejudice thoughts towards the case and its’ participants. But this is not a guarantee that there will not be prejudice towards the case, because a person can say no to any of the questions, and be in the act of a lie. This untruthfulness makes the court prejudice because of the jury. In the beginning of the deliberation, the 10th juror proves his prejudice towards the case, “you’re not going to tell us that we’re supposed to believe that kid, knowing what he is…you can’t believe a word they say. I mean, they’re born liars” (Rose 13). The 10th juror shows prejudice by using the word “they” to express a kind of person, and says you can’t believe they’re kind. Also, the jurors may have feelings towards a case that can change their thoughts on the case. The 8th juror, the only one in the beginning that thinks the kid is not guilty, has feelings about the case because of what events that have taken place in his life, “He’s had a pretty terrible sixteen years. I think maybe we owe him a few words” (Rose 13). Juror 8 shows sorrow towards the kid, which is not good for the jury in this case, because of what he has been through. The jury is the biggest deciding factor in the result of a case, and for it being corrupt, because of everyone having a prejudice thought towards something, makes the court system unequal to all men.
In Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”, there are a many forms of prejudice in the court throughout the book. Before the trial was to occur, when Atticus decides to take the case there were people who were being prejudice towards Atticus about taking the case. When Scout and Jem go to Finch’s landing they have to see their cousin Francis. Francis is influenced by his grandmother, known as Aunt Alexandra, and he says, “ Grandma says it’s bad enough he [Atticus] lets you all run wild, but now he’s turned out a nigger-lover…he’s nothin’ but a nigger-lover” (Lee 83). Francis is showing prejudice towards Atticus by calling him names and making it seem like Atticus is a horrible person for taking a case of a Negro defendant. Also, at the beginning of the trial, the white’s go in first, then it’s the blacks, “The Negroes, having waited for the white people to go upstairs, began to come in” (Lee 163). The blacks also get the bad seats in the court room, “the colored balcony ran along three walls of the courtroom like a second-story veranda” (Lee 164). They had to wait for whites and then walk a flight of stairs to get bad seats, showing inequality in the court room. Negroes were treated very unequally in the court room.
Since the 1800’s and even far beyond that until now the court system has been unequal for all men because of the extreme racist United States from the 1800’s to the 1900’s, the present day corruption in the court system, the story “Twelve Angry Men” and in Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird” that shows prejudice stems from the naïve opinions people develop in order to establish a sense of superiority. In an idealistic world there is equality towards all men in the court room, but in the Realistic world there is prejudice and unfair treatment in the court of law throughout the world. Someone can have a dream of an Idealistic world, but in reality there will always be inequality in the court of law.

Works Cited
Gray, Sadie. "Jails Release 36,600 Criminals to Ease Overcrowding." Www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/sep/30/10. Ministry of Justice, 30 Sept. 2008. Web. 25 Apr. 2011.
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1960. Print.
Rose, Reginald. Twelve Angry Men. New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.
Silone, Ignazio. "Famous Quotes and Authors." Www.famousquotesandauthors.com/authors/ignazio_silone_quotes.html. Web. 25 Apr. 2011.
Spielvogel, Jackson J. Glencoe World History: Modern Times. New York, NY: McGraw Hill/Glencoe, 2007. Print.