Jeffrey
Real World Connection
Source:
Obeidallah, Dean. "Racist Oklahoma Frat Founded by Racists." The Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2015.
Summary (brief) of Current Article on Racism:
A group of racist white University of Oklahoma students - most of which are in the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon. They sang the words, "There will never be a nigger in SAE. You can hang him from a tree, but he will never sing with me." Singing about "niggers" being lynched is horribly wrong.The history of the fraternity is racist and they brag that they were formed in the "Deep South".

Story elements that relate to the book—Similarities AND Differences
One similarity of the article and the novel is they both used the n-word. This shows that the harshness of racism is very similar in that they both despise black people. Another similarity is the fraternity and Wallace family(night riders) were both organized groups of racists. This means that in both the novel and article racism occurs in groups of white people. A difference between the two is that during the time period of the novel, racism was accepted by many whites, but during the time of the article, racism is looked down upon by many. Another difference is that during the Great Depression, actions were much more violent that how verbal they are now.

How has racism changed since the 1930’s?
Racism has become much more looked down upon now than it was in the 1930's. During the Great Depression, many whites were racist and it was viewed as a way of life. Now, it is more shamed upon and the consequences for racist actions are much greater. Another way it has changed since the 1930's is that it has become more verbal rather than hangings or lynchings. Back then, whites threatened and carried out hangings, lynchings, and whippings. Today, racists typically use verbal language to express themselves rather than physically abusing a certain race. In all, racism has changed from physical to verbal abuse, but is still somewhat common in certain places.

Notes: Sharecropping
  • "Sharecropping." Fact Monster. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2015.
  • system of farm tenancy once common in some parts of US
  • in US, sharecropping arose at the end of Civil War out of plantation system
  • planters had ample land but little money for wages
  • most former slaves uneducated and impoverished
  • solution was sharecropping system
  • continued the workers in routine of cotton cultivation under supervision
  • economic features of system extended to poor white farmers
  • cropper brought own and his family's labor
  • most other requirements-land,animals,equipment-were provided by landowner
  • landowner also advanced credit to meet living expenses of cropper family
  • croppers worked under close direction of landlord
  • landlord marketed crops and kept accounts
  • croppers received a share of the money(1/2)
  • from this share was deducted the debt to the landlord
  • high interest charges, emphasis on production of a single cash crop, lack of care when accounting and cropper irresponsibility were abuses of the system
  • Farm mechanization and reduction in cotton land virtually put end to system