Scottsboro Boys Research Paper

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Pages: 3

In 1931, nine African-American boys illegally boarded a train in an attempt to find work during the Great Depression. Little did the boys know, they would become internationally known as the “Scottsboro Boys”. A few of the boys had a fight with a group of white teens who reported the fight as assault to the police. When the train was stopped and the boys stepped off, two white females, Victoria Price and Ruby Bates, accused all nine of them of rape. Eugene Williams, a 13 year old African-American child from Chattanooga, Tennessee was not guilty of rape. Admittedly, Eugene Williams was guilty of hoboing, however Eugene Williams was not guilty of rape. In the trials, the testimonies of Victoria Price and Ruby Bates often differed on key pieces of evidence. This suggested …show more content…
Price and Bates were prostitutes, which Price denied. The Mann Act states that it is illegal to take across state lines “any woman or girl for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose". Price and Bates were moving across the lines to engage in prostitution which allowed them to be persecuted. To divert police attention from themselves, Price and Bates accused the boys of rape. This furthers the innocence of Williams and the other eight boys. Most importantly, the doctor’s report by Dr. Bridges maintains the innocence of all nine of the Scottsboro Boys. Bridges examined the women two hours after alleged incident. He found there to be no indications of rape in either Price or Bates. There was no vaginal tearing and the semen found in the women was non-motile and over at least 12 hours old. This can be justified due to the fact that Price and Bates were prostitutes and were found to have engaged and sexual intercourse the night before the train ride. This completely maintains the innocence of Eugene Williams and the eight other falsely accused