How does racism affect the children's lives in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Racism,
Maycombs usual disease," affects every
aspect of the childrens lives. Althoughraises them
to be accepting and loving
and to see the good in everyone, racist attitudes are shown to the
children
in their daily activities. , , and Dill do not succumb to the pressures from
their
neighbors but instead are disturbed, outraged, and spurred to action.
Their attitudes come from
their deep respect for Atticus but also from their
interactions with other .

Maycombs residents can be
shockingly ignorant. They participate in mobs bent on killing
an innocent man
before he has even gone to trial. They use racist terms and really believe
that
skin color makes a difference in morality. They treat people as servants
or second-class
citizens because their skin is black. One even commits a
heinous crime and blames an innocent
manBob knows he can blame Tom because
people will believe a drunken, sleazy white man over a
decent, hard-working
community member who is a black man.

Seeing and hearing

all of this has a great effect on the children, yet they hold to their morals because
they have
positive role models in their lives. To combat the racist
attitudes, there are many good people
who seek to overturn ignorance. Atticus
is the most vocal in fighting for Tomboth in and out of
the courtroom. He
does everything he can to help Tom, and even though its not enough to save

him, Atticus has a profound impact on his children, Jem vows to grow up to fight
too.

Heck Tate is the one who appointed Atticus, the best
attorney, to defend Tom; his
action at first goes unnoticed by the children
until it is pointed out to them. They realize
that sometimes fighting behind
the scenes can help. Miss Maudie is a vocal supporter of
morality, and she is
also fighting behind the scenes. Her influence on the children combats the

negative influence of people like Aunt Alexandra.

Therefore, Scout,
Jem, and
Dill may see the evils of racism in their neighbors and even in
family members, but they luckily
have a balancing force in people who are
level-headed and moral.