"In the Heat of the Night" Reaction

 In "In the Heat of the Night", we are shown a black Philadelphia police detective who was suspected of murder. Virgil Tibbs, the black detective, was taken to the police station because of his race and nothing else. In this movie, we see the hostility of a town in Mississippi on the subject of racism. 

Virgil is judged the moment he came into this town. He was forced to work with the racist police station in order to figure out who the killer was. Over time in the movie, he is constantly looked down upon and even attacked by men from the town. However, the police chief ends up changing, as he is working with Virgil. 

The police chief ends up protecting Virgil, and he even begins to follow and listen to what he has to say. I believe this movie perfectly portrays that even in the worst places, you can find good people. In the movie, the police chief goes from extremely racist to the exact opposite. The chief is even questioned by people in the town when he begins to take Virgil's side in disputes. 

As the movie continues, Virgil begins to be respected by a small amount of people, but because this movie is set in the South, most of the people in the town still reject and hate him. 

I really liked the ending of this movie. Virgil puts the pieces of this case together and gets attacked by a mob of people from the town. The killer was one of the men's friend, who also impregnated his 16 year old sister. There ends up being a shootout between the men and the case is solved. 

Overall, The movie perfectly displays the racist South and how people can change. The emotions of the chief and Virgil were both brought out and the case was solved in a neat and interesting way. 

Brown v. Board of Education Reflection

 Because I was not present in class for the mock trial, I am going write about some research that I have done on Brown v. Board and also my own speech defending Linda Brown. I am choosing the side of Linda Brown because I believe it is the right thing to do. 

No child should suffer from oppression at a young age just because of their race. Segregation effects children even more than adults because their brains are still developing. Instead of having an inclusive mindset, they are introduced to racism and hatred at a young age. This is outright wrong and was thankfully overturned in Brown v. Board of Education.

Not only does giving separate education harm the children's minds, but it also gives the white kids a better education than the African Americans. If they get a better education, then this will harm the economy because only half of the citizens in the U.S. are contributing to the country to the fullest that they can. If they all receive the same education, then they will rise together and boost the economy for the better and turn America into a brighter place overall. 

Linda Brown and other African Americans were denied education at a public school in Topeka. Segregation was getting to a point where it needed to be put to a halt. After World War 2, segregation had no place in the United States. During World War 2, African Americans were putting their lives on the line for their country and had to come home to being treated unjustly. No one should ever choose to put their life on then have their own country despise them, only for the color of their skin.

Link 1 

Justice Harlan's Dissent Reflection

 Judge Harlan did not believe in the "separate but equal" principle. He believed that every person in this country is equal. He states himself, in his dissent, that "the constitution is colorblind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes between citizens."

In respect to the law, Judge Harlan knew the amendments and constitution very well, as much as the meaning behind them too. He would not only look at the words of the amendments, but he would find deeper meaning between the lines and interpret them correctly. 

One thing that sticks out for me when reading his dissent on how he severely insists that everyone is equal under the law. This sticks out to me because he was once a slave owner. To be speaking in the tone that he does in his dissent toward African Americans means that he has come an extremely long way from before the war.

If Judge Harlan came this long of a way from being a slaveowner to defending slaves, there is no doubt that this would be able to sway the others and go through with his dissent. 

Link 1

Brown v. Board of Education Speech

 In Brown v. Board of Education, Linda Brown was denied admittance to a certain public school in Topeka because of her race. This was taken to court and was ruled that the segregation of children in schools, based on their race, is unconstitutional. This case overruled the "separate but equal" principle based on the Equal Protection Clause in the 14th Amendment.

"In the 1950s segregation laws in many states prohibited African American children and white children from attending the same schools. Linda Brown, an African American girl, could not attend a less-crowded white school a few blocks from her home in Topeka. This is unacceptable for our children to have to deal with this at such a young age. There are instances where adults have put their differences aside and came together for the betterment of this country. Children and their education should not be segregated either, so all our children can receive the same education and grow up the same. In 1948, President Truman signed Executive Order 9981. This Executive Order creates the President’s Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services. This order also mandated the desegregation of our military. President Truman stated “It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin.” At many bases in the Jim Crow South, the Air Force ignored local segregation laws, operating integrated housing, schools, stores, and recreation facilities for the airmen and their families. If we can have communities that are not segregated for our African American soldiers, and these same communities did not result in any problems, we should be able to do the same for all America. We should not have to be in wartime for segregation to end temporarily. If they can die together for our country, they should be allowed to work together and have equal resources outside of wartime. If these kids grow up together, go to school together, and create friendships with each other, we are teaching our generation to stray away from the norms of segregation before the war and create new generations of change in this country."

This is my speech defending Linda Brown.