Sec2 Lessons Review

Montgomery Bus Boycott and Scottsboro trails

1) State the specifics of each trail and why they were significant

--On December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks, a 40 year old black seamstress, was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on the bus. "...the only tired I was, was tired of giving in," says Rosa Parks. She was also part of an organization, called the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.) The NAACP played a huge role in trying to stop segregation. The NAACP was looking for someone that would stand up to the court system in a test case. Before Rosa Parks was chosen for the test case, there were two women before her that were arrested for not giving up their seats, and the NAACP tried to use them for a test case as well. Neither of these women proved to be suitable candidates for the test case that would end segregation. The day Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat; the NAACP knew that she was the perfect test case.
(taken from http://l3d.cs.colorado.edu/systems/agentsheets/New-Vista/bus-boycott/)

--During the Great Depression of the 1930s, poor people would ride in railroad freight cars, trying to get to a town that might have work. In 1931, two white women were riding the trains along with two groups of men: one white and another black. A fight broke out between the two groups of men. The blacks won and threw the whites off the train. The whites reported this to the local sheriff, and the train was stopped in Scottsboro, Alabama. Everyone on board was arrested. Victoria Price was in serious trouble because her friend, Ruby Bates, was a minor. It's a federal crime to take a minor across state lines for the purpose of prostitution. In order to get out of trouble, Victoria and Ruby said that the black men had raped them. In 1931, rape was punishable by death. Considering the races of the accusers (white) and accused (black), the normal response would have been a lynching (hanging someone who is suspected of a crime). But the people of Scottsboro held a trial, instead. Of course, the result had been decided before the trial began. The Scottsboro Boys were convicted and sentenced to death - at the first trial.But that was only the beginning. The Scottsboro Trials - we will examine two of them - dragged on for six more years and resulted in two Supreme Court rulings.
(taken from http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/FTrials/scottsboro/SB_acct.html)

2) How is the scottboro trail related to the trail in the novel?

In both trail, the white girls claim that they were being raped but evidently not. However, the innoncent men were punished to death plainly because they are black.

3) In what way are these trails similar?

Both are biased. The black is going against the white and white against the black. But the Black always lose.