Racism

At its heart, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is a story about the tragic effects of racism on the black and white citizens of the rural area near Strawberry, Mississippi, during the Depression. Racial segregation is clearly illustrated in the opening chapters. The black children attend a shabby, dismal school in a group of four ill-heated and weather-beaten houses where classrooms are separated by curtains. The crabgrass lawn is forage for the caretaker's cow. The children walk as much as 3-and-a-half hours each way to attend school, often barefoot, wearing faded, patched, threadbare clothing. They're thrilled to receive books, until they realize they've been given the white children's castoffs, texts that are 12 years out of date.

The white children, by contrast, attend Jefferson Davis County School, a long, white building with expansive lawn, flowers, and a large sports field. They study from new books and wear nice...