Tay Character Analysis in Dear Justyce

Tay is Quan’s counselor while he’s in prison. She’s a Black woman and is much easier for Quan to connect with than his last white counselor was. This is in part because she seems genuinely interested in helping Quan process his emotions and learn coping mechanisms to get him through his episodes. These episodes, Tay realizes, are actually panic attacks and are the result of clinical anxiety and PTSD. She also identifies Quan’s sleep paralysis (nightmares from which Quan can’t wake up). Her willingness to diagnose all of this impresses upon Quan that Tay actually cares about him and empathizes with his situation.

Tay Quotes in Dear Justyce

The Dear Justyce quotes below are all either spoken by Tay or refer to Tay. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

What if it wasn’t me? What if it was a kid

LIKE you? One with your exact history?

Quan had to think then. But not for long. Because that answer was obvious too. “I’d still invest.”

Invest what?

“Time. Energy. Resources...” The next word shocked him as it popped off his tongue; it bounced around the room in an echo-ish way the others hadn’t: “Belief.”

Belief?

“Yeah. Everyone should have somebody who believes in ‘em. Like no matter what they’ve done. Somebody who won’t give up on them.”

Then:

“No strings attached.”

He did get the point then. HE was willing to do for someone else what was being done for him. At no cost and with no strings. It was the right thing to do.

Period.

Related Characters: Quan Banks (speaker), Tay (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 225-226

Explanation and Analysis:

Tay Character Timeline in Dear Justyce

The timeline below shows where the character Tay appears in Dear Justyce. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Identity, Support, and Community Theme Icon

...he mentioned his “episodes” to Doc. Quan got a new counselor, a Black woman named Tay, and Tay thinks Quan suffers from panic attacks and PTSD. Some of the things that... (full context)

...to Justyce that he hasn’t told anyone else. He’s been tempted lately, especially yesterday when Tay explained that earning membership to a group “through mental or physical hardship” creates a sense... (full context)

...knows he won’t push any further. (Quan knows he’ll have to talk about this with Tay now, though.) Justyce tells Quan to ditch his lawyer and assures him he won’t lose... (full context)

Even though Liberty and Tay prepared Quan for Mama’s visit, Quan still feels like he’s going to be beheaded. Whatever... (full context)

Quan thinks back to the prep meeting he had with Liberty and Tay. Their desire to protect his mental and emotional health shook him. Liberty explained that Mama... (full context)

...sister when Mama came. Quan knows he’ll be working on his “unresolved ‘mommy-issue’ shit” with Tay for weeks to come, but what Mama said was so bad that Quan had a... (full context)

Doc asks if Quan has been talking to Tay. He hasn’t, but he says he has. Quan knows that Doc doesn’t believe it. Dollar... (full context)

...if he owes Martel that kind of money, he must also be in debt to Tay, Attorney Friedman, Liberty, Doc, and Justyce. The ledger makes Quan ask his least favorite questions:... (full context)

Survival, Poverty, and Violence Theme Icon

...kid who’s deep in debt. He’s not a worthwhile investment. In his head, he hears Tay telling him to flip the script: would he invest in her if their situations were... (full context)

...breathe—but something’s different. He hears a voice say that it’s not sure what’s going on. Tay puts a hand on Quan’s arm and tells him the paralysis will pass, and she’ll... (full context)

Justice, Racial Bias, and Growing Up Theme Icon

Suddenly, Quan can breathe and he sees Tay and Attorney Friedman leaning over him. This is embarrassing, and he asks what day it... (full context)

Quan gulps and sweats, but Tay and Attorney Friedman smile at each other. They have news: they heard back on the... (full context)