Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird Prejudice is a strong word. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, a black man, Tom Robinson, was accused of raping a white woman, Mayella Ewell, and was put on trial. There were distinct opinions regarding Tom Robinson's innocence, opinions influenced by prejudice. The residents of Maycomb believed in Tom's guilt while Atticus and the children believed in Tom's innocence. The residents of Maycomb knew what the verdict would be even though some of them knew deep down that Tom had not raped Mayella. "The older citizens, the current generation of people who had lived side by side for years and years, were absolutely predictable with each other: they took for granted attitudes, nuances of character, even gestures, as if they had been repeated in every generation and refined by time" (Lee page #). The citizens did not like blacks at all. They were two different types of people in their opinion, and the fact that a white man stood up for a black man in that city really upset them. "Yes, but Atticus wants to defend him. That's what I don't like" (Lee page #). The citizens saw this case as a circus. "It was a gala occasion. There was no room on the public footpath to hitch another animal, mules and wagons were parked under every available tree. The courthouse square was filled with picnic groups sitting on newspapers, which They washed down biscuits and syrup with hot milk from fruit pots" (Lee page #). This was more like entertainment for the citizens. It was fun for them to talk with friends, have lunch and joke. It was really sad that they were so prejudiced against black people. Atticus was unable to reach a fair verdict because he was in a very biased court and regardless of the evidence, the outcome would always be the same. Atticus knew that Tom Robinson would be found guilty. The victim, Mayella, had been beaten, but not by Tom. Tom Robinson would still be convicted due to the all-white jury. Tom didn't help me by saying, "Yeah, sure. I felt sorry for her, she seemed to try harder than the others..." (Lee page #). After all, blacks shouldn't have worried about whites. It would have been impossible for Tom to do to Mayella what she said he did: "Tom Robinson's powerful shoulders rippled with his right hand on the back of the chair.