Group 2: The Scottsboro Boys
Group 2,
Your job is to become an expert on the Scottsboro Boys. Click on the links below to learn about their story, the reports on the case, and society's reaction to this event. When you are finished, answer the questions provided to you. Be sure to read carefully because you will be teaching your classmates everything you know about the Scottsboro Boys.
Links:
http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scottsboro/sb_acct.html
http://library.thinkquest.org/12111/scottsboro/scottsbo.htm
http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scottsboro/newspapr.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/scottsboro/index.html
Questions:
1. Who were the Scottsboro Boys? What were they accused of?
2. List at least three ways in which the trial was unfair. How did these injustices affect the outcome of the trial?
3. What role did the NAACP and the Communist Party play in the trials? How did the South perceive the Communist Party, and how was it similar to the perception of blacks?
4. What ended up being the fate of the Scottsboro Boys? What was society's reaction to this fate?
5. Read the testimonies of Victoria Price and Ruby Bates. How do these testimonies add to the unfairness of the trial? Do the testimonies seem consistent? What character assumptions can we make about the two women based on their testimonies?
6. Browse through the newspaper articles that discuss the Scottsboro trials throughout the decade. Notice the language that is used. How are blacks and whites referred to? How does the language portray the societal view of blacks and whites in the South during this time period?
7. The Scottsboro Boys' trial took place during the childhood of To Kill A Mockingbird's author, Harper Lee. Make a prediction about how this trial might be an important influence for the book. Since a court trial also takes place in the novel, what connections might be made between the two?
Your job is to become an expert on the Scottsboro Boys. Click on the links below to learn about their story, the reports on the case, and society's reaction to this event. When you are finished, answer the questions provided to you. Be sure to read carefully because you will be teaching your classmates everything you know about the Scottsboro Boys.
Links:
http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scottsboro/sb_acct.html
http://library.thinkquest.org/12111/scottsboro/scottsbo.htm
http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scottsboro/newspapr.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/scottsboro/index.html
Questions:
1. Who were the Scottsboro Boys? What were they accused of?
2. List at least three ways in which the trial was unfair. How did these injustices affect the outcome of the trial?
3. What role did the NAACP and the Communist Party play in the trials? How did the South perceive the Communist Party, and how was it similar to the perception of blacks?
4. What ended up being the fate of the Scottsboro Boys? What was society's reaction to this fate?
5. Read the testimonies of Victoria Price and Ruby Bates. How do these testimonies add to the unfairness of the trial? Do the testimonies seem consistent? What character assumptions can we make about the two women based on their testimonies?
6. Browse through the newspaper articles that discuss the Scottsboro trials throughout the decade. Notice the language that is used. How are blacks and whites referred to? How does the language portray the societal view of blacks and whites in the South during this time period?
7. The Scottsboro Boys' trial took place during the childhood of To Kill A Mockingbird's author, Harper Lee. Make a prediction about how this trial might be an important influence for the book. Since a court trial also takes place in the novel, what connections might be made between the two?