Pain of Prejudice and Racism

The theme PAIN OF PREJUDICE is first introduced in Chapter 1 when a young black girl in Catholic school experiences the pain of not being noticed by Sister Evelyn. A white girl asks to cheat off the black girls tests and, intending to thank the little girl and offer a compliment, indicates the black girls’ features are different than that of black people, saying she looks 'almost white'. The black girl wonders if that comment is supposed to be a compliment. Sister Evelyn never notices the white girl who is cheating.

Throughout the book the author describes events where prejudicial statements are made in the presence of blacks and among friends speaking freely. Each verse in the book is perceived to have a racial basis and conveys PAIN OF PREJUDICE and RACISM. A close friend is frustrated about being told to hire a...