TKAM chapter 18 and 19 journal response

I the book To Kill A MockingBird by Harper Lee, the character Link Deas is an example of  the essential question :when do people stand up for what they believe in? When Tom Robinson is about to be  crossed examined by Mr. Gilmer, Link Deas announces from the crowd saying " I just want the whole lot of you to know one thing right now. That boy's worked for me eight years an' I ain't had a speck o'trouble outa him. Not a speck"(195).Mr. Deas claim shows that he stands up for what he believes in when his beliefs are being violated. At first Link Deas might have been confused of what his beliefs were in terms of what he thought about Tom Robinson. However after hearing Tom's side of the story Link might have found that he thought Tom was innocent. When the courtroom didn't seem to be in Tom's  favor he took matters into his own hands by saying how Tom never did anything wrong when he worked for him. Link wanted to court to see that Tom was a good person who couldn't have done anything  wrong. The society of Maycomb might have interfered with Deas's beliefs since almost everyone in town thought Tom was guilty, making Link believe that Tom must be guilty. However when Link was faced with the truth he soon found that Tom was innocent and decided to stand up for his own beliefs and not follow the crowd.

When Tom Robinson is giving his side of the story he says to Atticus, " Mr. Finch, if you was a nigger like me, you'd be scared too"(195). At first I was confused at what he meant when he said you would be scared too. Tom Robison is a crippled person who must have to be on alert at all times since he is most likely taken advantage of by white people due to his color of skin and his disabilities. When one always has their guard up they tend to get paranoid and scared. From Tom's story he appears to be a kind person who helps others and one could infer that he doesn't like confrontation. When Mr. Ewell comes in the room , Tom runs off because he doesn't want to get hurt or have to hurt others. When Tom Robison says the quote to Atticus he is saying that if one was like him with disabilities and discrimination of color one would be scared of Mr. Ewell since he has the power to arrest someone or frame one for a crime.