What do various family members tell Jeremiah about his blackness?

Jeremiah has received mixed messages about his skin color his whole life. His grandmother, who is now deceased, always told him to sit in the shade, so he would not get darker. Jeremiah’s father, on the other hand, used to call him a warrior, because he was Black. Jeremiah did not know who he was supposed to fight. Now that he is older he understands that the war is around him - the current culture.