What Was The Scottsboro Trial Of 1931

Ever thought about the rough path that was created in order to establish equality amongst the blacks and whites? Or all the people who were accused of unjustly due to racial prejudice? The Scottsboro trial of 1931 showed not only the racial prejudice against African Americans, but also showed the changing attitude that occurred from the nation’s reaction to such a trial, providing an opportunity for change. 1931, a time filled with racial discrimination, began the unfortunate circumstance for nine African Americans. On March 25th of that year, four African American male teenagers, Haywood Patterson, Eugene Williams, and Ray and Andy Wright, headed to Southern Alabama in search of work. On the same train were white passengers, including two white teenage females, Victoria Price and Ruby Bates. The trouble started when a white male stepped on Patterson's hand which then escalated into a fight between a couple of white male teenagers and nine African American males, (the additional five included Ozie
Powell, Clarence Norris, Charlie Weems, Olen Montgomery, and Willie Roberson). The nine African Americans ended up pushing the white boys off the train, who, being upset, reported the incident to the local sheriff in the town of Stevenson, causing all the passengers to be arrested in Scottsboro, Alabama (Martin, Scottsboro). Victoria and Ruby, who feared of being arrested, made up the lie of being raped by the nine African Americans, which opened the door to racial prejudice wide open.
At the first trial. All but the youngest were found guilty and received death sentences. (Kaplan, Scottsboro) There we see extreme prejudice by the court based on the lies of the white females and no evidence for the rape of ever occurring. Since the defendants did not have proper access to a legal counsel, a retrial was called for. In the second trial, Ruby Bates told truth, denying the rape, but leaving the African Americans still guilty. The sentence, however, was a death sentence for one of the nine boys and the rest received seventy-five to ninety-nine years in prison. Again, there was no evidence, just the words of a white female. In 1995 though, the judge ordered a new trial based on the fact that there were no African Americans who sat on the grand or trial juries (Kaplan,
Scottsboro). This trial stirred various reactions from multiple people eventually leading to a change. Some reactions were based on prejudice, for example, when the local farmers heard of the accusations toward the African Americans, they would surround the jail demanding the accused to be released so that they (the farmers) could lynch (murder) them (Magill, Great). Other reactions were more positive and subject to change. The International Labor Defense (ILD) lead a march in Washington where several thousand people attended, protesting the injustice of the Scottsboro Trial. Through these trials, the U.S. Supreme Court established precedents, that adequate council must be appointed in capital cases and that African Americans cannot be excluded from juries (Kaplan, Scottsboro). “The case attracted national and international controversy because it demonstrated the blatant inequities and racial discrimination operating in the Southern criminal justice system.” (Scottsboro, Magill) Through the portrayal of racial prejudice, the victims of the Scottsboro trial paved a way for change. The trial opened the eyes of people from other states, and caused the Supreme Court to act, creating a change to bring equality for the African Americans.