In Chapter 26, Cecil Jacobs speaks about how Hitler is persecuting the Jews in Europe during a current events activity in Scout's third-grade class. Scout's teacher, Mrs. Gates, tells the class that Hitler can get away with persecuting the Jews because he runs the government. She proceeds to explain that Germany is a dictatorship and America is a democracy. She then makes the comment, "Over here we don't believe in persecuting anybody. Persecution comes from people who are prejudiced" (Lee 151). Mrs. Gate's comment is both hypocritical and false. Scout recognizes Mrs. Gate's flawed reasoning because she realizes that African Americans are segregated and discriminated against in her own community. Scout recalls hearing Mrs. Gates make a racist comment about black people while she was leaving the courtroom, and questions Jem about how people can criticize Hitler when they are essentially doing the same thing. Mrs. Gate's hypocrisy illustrates how racist community members overlook their prejudice and do not recognize the inequality and injustice in their home town.
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