Local News Update
Hailie Wilson, Chase Joseph, Kayla Simon
Tom's Trial
The trial is now halfway over; Mayella has just given her side of the story, explaining to all of us how she remembers it happening. She seemed to often not really know what she was talking about. She would stutter and stammer, unable to make eye contact with Mister Atticus Finch on more than a few occasions. Almost as though she were lying about the entire thing even happening.
Her father, Bob, has said some words as well. Of course, he was more than happy to go up in front of everyone and try to get Tom Robinson lynched. He even seemed to get a little bit violent, especially when Atticus began to question the relationship that he held with his daughter. He was very defensive; I know for a fact that it made many people in the audience begin to wonder who was telling the truth and who was not.
Everyone is very anxious to see what Tom Robinson has to say next, nobody is sure how things will turn out. Will his story be the same as Mayella’s? Will he be charged with rape? In my opinion, anything can happen. But I know that by the look on Mayella’s face when she was up there that her father definitely trained her to answer Atticus’s questions as best as she could, not wanting to hint at anything but the story of Tom raping her. The story that could possibly be made up.
Rex Theatre For Colored
This picture was taken in Leland, Mississippi. It was in the delta area on June 1939. This picture was taken by Marion Post Wolcott. This was only one of many black people theaters in the country. This picture represents how segregated our country was during this time period.
This theater was obviously only for black people. This picture is showing that they have their own theater and other things. For example they had resturants as well that were for only colored or only white.No Beer Sold to Indians
This picture shows that not only black people were segregated against. In this picture it has a sign that say “Positively no beer sold to Indians.” This was not uncommon during this time. If you were not white this sort of thing happened to you a lot and if you did want a drink or etc. you may have to of gone to another place that sold beer to you.
During this time being any color other than white was frowned upon basically. The sign in this picture was made also for other colored people. Restaurants also used signs like these that said no blacks allowed. Signs like this were very common during this time period.White Only Trade Shop
This picture was taken in Lancaster, Ohio. August 1938 by Ben Shahn. This picture is another example of discrimination. Trade is another example of things blacks and other colored people were not allowed to do at some places. Therefor trade was also a problem for some colored people.
Signs that said no blacks here were very popular during this time frame. Other signs that were against other colored people were also popular. In this time frame signs of segregation were as I said were very popular.Dear Editor,
I have several complaints concerning the “Jim Crow’s Laws”. It is awful for such things to be made and to discriminate against another human being just because they have a different skin color. Every person should be given the same rights to live by.
My first complaint is about the signs currently hanging over all of the water fountains, restaurant doors, etc. Why is it that blacks and whites are unable to drink out of the same water fountain? Why should they not be able to eat in the same restaurant and in the same room? The fact that there are now laws telling blacks that they aren’t allowed to even eat in the same room as a white person is truly ridiculous. It isn’t like they’re going to be eating at the same table with them; they’re just in the same room. They aren’t harming anyone.
Second of all, why is there a law saying that black people are not allowed to be buried in the same cemetery as a white person? Imagine if you went to bury your sister or your father and they turned you down because of the color of your skin. Not only would they be grieving their loss, but they would also be searching for another place to lay their loved one to rest. No matter what, the people lain in that area are no longer living. People should be able to put to peace when it comes to the death of a close friend or family member, they should not have to worry about being turned down.
What I am trying to say is that it is so utterly and terribly wrong to be treating these people like animals just because they’re different. It is just like if someone were to treat you differently because you have brown eyes and not blue or green eyes; it is not right. They are all people that work hard for what they have and it is not only disgusting but sad to treat them like this.
Sincerely yours,
Kayla SimonDear Mrs. Roosevelt,
I believe that we should be taking action in the lynching topic. We all know it is wrong so why not do anything about it? A person, no matter the race, is a human being. Therefore, they should not be getting treated the way they are. Lynchings are not right. We should be putting more of an effort to do something instead of sitting around and letting it happen. It should not of happened in the first place.
Nobody should be treated differently because of race. Blacks should be equal to whites. They are people too. Blacks are getting lynched for no reason now. The president should be stepping in with the lynchings and trying to stop them. The government should be doing the same thing.
By not stopping the lynching we are just allowing people to take control and do what they want to do by not following the laws. Lynching should of been taken care or the minute it started, but by us letting it go it is getting out of control. We need to bring lynching to a stop.
“The government has only been allowed to do anything about kidnapping because if its interstate aspect, and even that has not yet been appealed so they are not sure that it will be declared constitutional.” I don't agree with this statement. Lynching is sometimes more serious than kidnapping. Yet we are not taking actions on the lynching topic.
“The president feels that lynching is a question of education in the states, rallying good citizens, and creating public opinions so that the localities themselves will wipe it out.” Localities won't wipe out lynching. People have to wipe it out.
Sincerely yours,
Chase Joseph