1. To Kill a Mockingbird Introduction
CHC 2DI
S. Todd

2. Historical Context
Slavery existed in the United States of America in the 18th and 19th centuries
The United States was polarized over the issue of slavery, with some slave states and some free states
The rapid expansion of the cotton industry from 1800 in the Deep South led to the Southern states to depend on slavery as integral to their economy

3. Slavery is Abolished
July 31, 1865: The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolished slavery in the United States

4. So, by 1865, black and white people
were now equal???

5. Jim Crow Laws
After the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in America, racial discrimination became regulated by the Jim Crow laws
These laws mandated strict segregation of the races

6. Jim Crow Laws
The origin of the phrase "Jim Crow" has often been attributed to "Jump Jim Crow", a song-and-dance caricature of blacks performed by a white actor in blackface, which first surfaced in 1832
"Jim Crow" eventually became a derogatory term synonymous with "Negro“
When racial segregation laws were passed at the end of the 19th century, these became known as “Jim Crow Laws”

9. Jim Crow Laws
Mandated the segregation of public schools, public places and public transportation, and the segregation of restrooms, restaurants and drinking fountains for whites and black
The U.S. military was also segregated, as were federal workplaces

10. Civil Rights Movement
In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the “separate but equal” doctrine that formed the basis for the Jim Crow laws
But racism and discrimination were still rampant in American society
The African-American Civil Rights Movement ( ) involved social movements to seek an end to racial segregation and discrimination against black Americans

11. Historical Context
“ I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
-Martin Luther King Jr., 1963

12. So, where does this novel fit into all of this?
To Kill a Mockingbird was written by Nelle Harper Lee and published in 1960
The novel was inspired by the racist attitudes she observed as a child in Alabama
The story is inspired by the irrational attitudes about race and class in 1930s southern United States

13. Harper Lee video clip (3:04)

14. Discuss controversy surrounding Go Set a Watchman and policies about “spoilers”