Mashaal - Tom Robinson is a mockingbird.

Although the evidence clearly proved Tom Robinson's innocence (the one arm, his respectable personality, and his class difference) in the court case in which he was accused of raping Mayella Ewell (Her father actually did it), the town would not allow Tom Robinson to be set free, because of the town's racist mentality. Tom Robinson was black.This is an example of racism in the book. A mockingbird is a harmless bird that makes the world more pleasant. In To Kill A Mockingbird the mockingbird symbolizes Boo Radley and Tom Robinson, who were both peaceful people who never did any harm. To kill or harm them would be a sin. Scout's father, Atticus, tells Scout and Jem, "I'd rather you shoot at tin cans in the backyard, but I know you'll go after birds. Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."(p.69) Throughout the trial, Tom is looked upon as an animal in this manner because of the racist mentality of the people in Maycomb. Even though there is a huge amount of proof which shows he did not commit the crime, Tom is a black man who will be denied justice. Atticus reinforces this idea when he tells Jem, "in our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins." (p.220) Generally, this was the mentality of most Americans at the time.