The Civil Rights Movement and To Kill a Mockingbird

The beginning of the Civil Rights Movement era corresponds with the time that Harper Lee was writing about Scout Finch and her brother Jem. They live in the very state that events like the Montgomery Bus boycott would take place. The fictional town of Maycomb is in Alabama, the same state where Martin Luther King Jr. would rise to be the voice of African Americans aching for equality. The actual movement may have started in 1960 but that is the same year that To Kill a Mockingbird was published and huge events were rupturing the south, throughout the novel readers can see the attitude of a want and need for equality in characters and some events. The civil rights movement was introduced to national headlines in the 1950s and 60s†¦show more content†¦Later, due to the events of the boycott, Martin Luther King Jr. emerged and was the movement’s â€Å"most effective leader† (Clayborne Carson). He is known for his nonviolent tactics and his ‘I Have a Dreamâ⠂¬â„¢ speech. Martin Luther King Jr. was also a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and later became the president of the SCLC in 1957 following the Montgomery Bus Boycott. To Kill a Mockingbird was written and published in 1960, â€Å"in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement† (Carolyn Jones). This time was just a few years after events like the murder of Emmett Till, a fourteen year old boy accused of whistling at a white woman, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the ruling in Alabama that segregation on buses is unconstitutional happened (PBS African American World). This goes to show that the time period had some effect on Harper Lee at the time. To Kill a Mocking bird takes place in the fictional town of Maycomb deep in the south. This town â€Å"clings to its ideals, its traditions†¦ People, especially blacks and poor whites are †¦ expected to remain in their places† (Carolyn Jones). The town sticks to what it believes and that is that African Americans, and poor whites, are lower than all the others residing in this tired town. Throughout the novel the reader sees events that can be tied to things happening at the time Lee was writing. For instance, Tom Robinson, a black man, is accused andShow MoreRelatedCivil Rights Movement in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee1013 Words   |  4 PagesTo Kill a Mockingbird was a 1960’s novel written by the author Harper Lee from Alabama during the Civil Rights Movement which inspired the theme of her book; racism. The book is set in the 1930’s in Maycomb which is a very poor town. The book is written in the view of Jean-Louise ‘Scout’ Finch a 6 year old girl who is the son of lawyer Atticus Finch and has a brother called Jem. They are close neighbours to the dreaded Radley family and especially Boo Radley the son who they are terrified of. 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