A Time to Kill: the Story of Struggle from Racism
The Struggles with Racism
A Time to Kill demonstrates how much racism, inequality, and segregation was going on in the early to mid 1960’s. The movie shows how African Americans were divided from white people in every circumstance. Inequality was very common for African Americans, and they were shut off from the rest of the public because of the color of their skin. Racism has always been a major conflict and it still remains with us in our society today. A Time to Kill really unfolds how hard it was for people of different races to get along. In the movie, A Time to Kill, a ten year old black girl is raped and almost murdered by two southern, racist white men. The only reason she was attacked and near death was because the two men were drunk and they loathed different races other than their own. In retaliation to this tragic event, the young black girl’s father, Carl Lee Hailey, kills the two white men out of deep anger. He is then put on trial for murdering the two men. Normally a black man had no chance in winning such a case; however, his lawyer, Jake Brigance, who was white, searched for justice. Jake Brigance completely understood how Carl Lee Hailey must have felt. As the movie proceeds, justice is barely found and Carl Lee Hailey is set free. Many people who were involved in the trial and who were on Jake Brigance and Carl Lee Hailey’s team were put in harm’s way. Jake Brigance’s family, work partner and friends were threatened and sometimes attacked by the KKK. Jake Brigance almost lost his wife, daughter, and friends because they did not understand his sympathy for Carl Lee Hailey. Jake Brigance stood up for what he believed in and justice prevailed. (A Time to Kill) Even though it can be extremely difficult to fight for what’s right, it is always necessary. Racism has always been a major issue and it will remain a constant barrier for some people. During the mid 1800’s, slavery was at its peak and there were about 385,000 slave
A Time to Kill demonstrates how much racism, inequality, and segregation was going on in the early to mid 1960’s. The movie shows how African Americans were divided from white people in every circumstance. Inequality was very common for African Americans, and they were shut off from the rest of the public because of the color of their skin. Racism has always been a major conflict and it still remains with us in our society today. A Time to Kill really unfolds how hard it was for people of different races to get along. In the movie, A Time to Kill, a ten year old black girl is raped and almost murdered by two southern, racist white men. The only reason she was attacked and near death was because the two men were drunk and they loathed different races other than their own. In retaliation to this tragic event, the young black girl’s father, Carl Lee Hailey, kills the two white men out of deep anger. He is then put on trial for murdering the two men. Normally a black man had no chance in winning such a case; however, his lawyer, Jake Brigance, who was white, searched for justice. Jake Brigance completely understood how Carl Lee Hailey must have felt. As the movie proceeds, justice is barely found and Carl Lee Hailey is set free. Many people who were involved in the trial and who were on Jake Brigance and Carl Lee Hailey’s team were put in harm’s way. Jake Brigance’s family, work partner and friends were threatened and sometimes attacked by the KKK. Jake Brigance almost lost his wife, daughter, and friends because they did not understand his sympathy for Carl Lee Hailey. Jake Brigance stood up for what he believed in and justice prevailed. (A Time to Kill) Even though it can be extremely difficult to fight for what’s right, it is always necessary. Racism has always been a major issue and it will remain a constant barrier for some people. During the mid 1800’s, slavery was at its peak and there were about 385,000 slave
Cited: "America unmasked: the KKK of 2009." The Sydney Morning Herald. 28 Feb. 2009. Web. Davis, Ronald L.F. "From Terror to Triumph: Historical Overview." The History of Jim Crow. New York Life. Web. 9 Nov. 2009. Dove, Rita. "Rosa Parks." Time100. Web. 9 Nov. 2009. "Rosa Louise Parks Biography." Rosa and Raymond Parks. Institute for Self Development. Web. 9 Nov. 20009. A Time to Kill