Hypocrisy In To Kill A Mockingbird

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In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, there were many references to major institutions, one of which was church. Church was very different between Blacks and Whites during the 1960s. Even though many Black and Whites both worshiped the same God, no one could get past their racist views in order to worship in the same church. Though not every White person was racist against Blacks, racism was rampant among the White population, and became one of the main topics of conversation and controversy in the 1960s. Churches were not immune to the effects of this discrimination.
There was a lot of hypocrisy in To Kill a Mockingbird, especially in the way certain characters regard Blacks. “‘Hypocrites, born hypocrites’ Mrs. Merriweather was saying ‘At …show more content…
“The Reverends Martin Luther King Jr., Andrew Young, Fred Shuttlesworth, Wyatt T. Walker, Joseph Lowery, and Jesse Jackson were just a few of the gifted religious figures who played a national leadership role in the movement” (Taylor “African”). These men tried to focus on the hardships Black people faced, in doing so they were able to get masses of people to make strides toward racial justice. The reverends were able to use their voices to portray the strong meaning of their messages; a good example would be Martin Luther King Jr's “I have a Dream" speech. In this speech King kept the repetition of I have a dream in order to stress its importance.
To Kill a Mockingbird portrays many examples of racism in the 1960s, one of the most telling of which was Scout and Jem's trip to a Black church. Churches were a place of solace for many people, and during a time of intense racism, Blacks often went to church to feel peace and solidarity. It was within these Black churches that reverends rallied followers to speak against inequality. These protests, as well as speeches by some of the most famous Black church leaders, led the country into its first steps toward racial
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