Racism in the 1930's
Martin Luther King, Jr., American Baptist minister and activist, once exclaimed, “I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the quality of their character.” He explains that in the 1930s, blacks were not heard at any level. There were numerous obstacles in the way for racial equality to ever happen. The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) terrorized minorities and those of different religions to instill white supremacy. Injustice for the African Americans was practiced on a daily basis. Also, one of the most controversial trials in history, the Scottsboro Trial was the sheer definition of racism, ignorance, and inequality. Therefore, and because of these events, racism defined the everyday life for many people living in America in the 1930’s.
To start off, the KKK was an infamous hate group in the 1930’s. The KKK, also known as the Ku Klux Klan practiced hate towards minorities and those of different religions. They usually, scared, harassed, tortured, and even killed those who were not of the white race. One of their most famous forms of intimidation was to burn a cross on somebody’s property to scare them out of the area. It was common for the KKK to wear a white robe whenever they committed these acts of racism. The KKK ruled most of the streets in the USA in the 1930’s. A lot of high positioned government leaders, authority, and other influential people were part of the KKK. The KKK was nothing but familiar to everyone in the 1930’s. It was very difficult for anyone to stop these crimes and this group. “In some counties the klan became the de facto law, an invisible government that state officials could not control.” (Ku Klux Klan: A History of Racism). Those who weren’t in the clan but of authority couldn’t stop all of the hate individually. As a conclusion, the KKK defined the 1930’s due to the large amount of racism and hate towards the minorities. Moreover, there was injustice and poor treatment towards the African Americans all of the time in the 1930’s. In the 1930’s many believed that the African Americans were not equal to the whites. Many people still believed that the blacks were better off as slaves. African Americans weren’t give as many rights as the whites. Unfair legal trials, difficulties of being employed, and a giant wage gap were topped out by the massive amount of racism directed towards the blacks. During the Great Depression the whites had difficulty finding jobs. They made it so that the whites were able to take the jobs from the blacks leaving the blacks jobless. “In some Northern cities, whites called for blacks to be fired from any jobs as long as there were whites out of work.” (Race Relations in the 1930’s and 1940’s). The unfair views of the whites left many African Americans to suffer during the Great Depression. To conclude, African Americans were treated very poorly in the 1930’s. On top of that, the iconic Scottsboro trial made history as being one of the most racially controversial trials ever. In 1931, nine black boys were accused of raping two white girls on a freight train. When in court, there was overwhelming evidence that proved the accusations of the white women to be false. Not only that but one of the victims retracted her statement against the boys. The legal trial went on for years on end despite there being virtually no evidence that the black boys raped the two girls. Eventually, they accused four of the boys of the rape even though there wasn’t any evidence of it. The boys were pardoned later on the last one being pardoned 20 years after his sentencing. The Scottsboro trial highlighted the racism in the 1930’s. “As a political and social movement and a cultural symbol, however, the Scottsboro case played an immeasurable part in undermining the structures of white supremacy.” (Scottsboro Trials). To summarize, the Scottsboro trial displayed the immense racism in the 1930’s. To conclude, racism defined the everyday life for many people in America during the 1930’s. The KKK ruled the streets in racism and hate towards the minorities. The African Americans were treated like regular human beings. Also, the Scottsboro trial demonstrated the massive amount of racism in the 1930’s. Racism ruined the lives of many minorities, especially the blacks. History was made due to many events regarding racism in the 1930’s. |
Cross burning was a very common but infamous way of intimidation from the KKK.
Segregation was nothing but common in the 1930's. Not only was segregation apparent on the streets and in public places but also in places of law and order.
The Scottsboro trial marked history as being extremely racially bias not only to the victims in Scottsboro Alabama but other courts in the USA too.
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