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Chapter 1
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Dear Martin, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Privilege, Entitlement, and Implicit Bias
Appearances and Assumptions
Support, Acceptance, and Belonging
Opportunity and Upward Mobility
The Media and Public Discourse
Summary
Analysis
“Dear Martin,” Justyce begins, addressing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in his diary. He tells the deceased civil rights activist that he doesn’t mean to “disrespect” him by calling him Martin—it’s just that he studied him as a sophomore and now feels like it’s “most natural” to address him “as a homie.” Going on, he introduces himself, explaining that he’s a seventeen-year-old full-scholarship student at Braselton Preparatory Academy, which is in Atlanta, Georgia. He’s ranked fourth in his class, has high SAT and ACT test scores, and is the captain of the debate team. Furthermore, he feels destined for a bright future, “despite growing up in a ‘bad’ area.” However, he writes, “literally none of that mattered” the night before, when he was violently arrested by Officer Castillo.
When Justyce introduces himself, his impressive accomplishments confirm that Officer Castillo jumped to unwarranted conclusions about him the night before. Just because Justyce was a black man walking at night with a hoodie doesn’t mean he was about to commit a crime, nor does it mean that he’s a “punk.” In fact, Justyce is a high-achieving young man with the test scores and accolades to prove his intelligence and discipline. The fact that “literally none of that mattered” when Castillo descended upon him, though, is a dispiriting idea, one that makes Justyce feel like his hard work and determination are all for nothing.
Themes
Justyce tells Martin Luther King, Jr. that he was only trying to “do a good deed” by helping Melo. However, Officer Castillo thought he looked “menacing” in his sweatshirt, so he arrested him. When Mr. Taylor—Melo’s father, who’s a black man and a former professional football player—arrived, Justyce thought Castillo would release him, but Mr. Taylor was unable to convince him to do so. Because of this, Mr. Taylor called Mrs. Friedman, who is a white lawyer and also happens to be the mother of Justyce’s friend and debate team partner, SJ. After a long time, Mrs. Friedman managed to convince Castillo to free Justyce, and now Justyce isn’t sure “what to feel.”
Mr. Taylor’s inability to convince Castillo to release Justyce is yet another disheartening element related to this entire incident. After all, Justyce clearly feels disillusioned by the idea that Castillo assumed the worst about him because of his race. Now, the fact that Castillo won’t listen to Mr. Taylor—a clearly respectable man—only emphasizes the notion that he distrusts black people. Indeed, it takes SJ’s white mother, Mrs. Friedman, to finally convince Castillo that Justyce should be set free. Because of this, it’s hard not to wonder what would have happened to Justyce if no white people were there to stand up for him.
Themes
Justyce tells Martin Luther King, Jr. about a recent incident in Nevada involving an unarmed black teenager named Shemar Carson. “The details are hazy,” he admits, “since there weren’t any witnesses.” That said, Justyce explains that it’s quite clear that a white police officer shot and killed Shemar without just cause. “[…] This cop shot an unarmed kid,” Justyce writes. “Four times. Even fishier, according to the medical examiners, there was a two-hour gap between the estimated time of death and when the cop called it in.” Justyce notes that he didn’t pay much attention to this story before his run-in with Castillo. Now, though, he can’t stop thinking about it. Shemar was apparently a good student and overall respected young man, but the police officer insists that he found Shemar stealing a car and that, when he tried to stop him, Shemar reached for his gun.
Nic Stone presents the story of Shemar Carson’s death as a way of illustrating that such cases are often playing out in the United States. She implies that it’s all too easy for people to ignore these incidents, which is exactly what Justyce has done until he found himself in a similar situation. Suddenly, he’s capable of relating to what happened to Shemar. Like him, Shemar was a good student, but this didn’t help save his life in a moment of unexpected violence.
Themes
Justyce mentions in his diary that he has seen pictures of Shemar Carson. He admits that he never thought he himself would have to worry about police brutality, noting that Shemar “did have kind of a thuggish appearance.” Justyce, on the other hand, doesn’t “come across as ‘threatening.’” To illustrate his point, he says that he doesn’t wear baggy or oversized clothes. He also goes to a prestigious prep school, so it never occurred to him that someone might see him as a threatening criminal.
Justyce’s consideration of his own clothing suggests that he has already given some thought to the fact that police officers sometimes jump to hasty conclusions about black people who dress in certain ways. What’s most unfortunate about this, though, is that he seems to have internalized the idea that a person’s “appearance” matters when it comes to policing. Rather than reminding himself that it’s unfair for police to assume the worst about anyone—regardless of the way they present themselves—he acknowledges that Shemar looked “thuggish,” as if this could possibly justify the boy’s death. In turn, he inadvertently participates in the same kind of stereotyping that leads to racial profiling in the first place.
Themes
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Justyce writes in his diary that his encounter with Castillo has altered the way he sees the world. “I need to pay more attention, Martin,” he writes. “Start really seeing stuff and writing it down. Figure out what to do with it. That’s why I’m writing to you.” Going on, he points out that Dr. King went through all kinds of discrimination but still remained hopeful and strong. This, Justyce says, is the kind of strength and patience he himself wants to embody. “I wanna try to live like you,” he writes. “Do what you would do.” Signing off, he explains that his wrists are hurting him because of how tightly Castillo fastened his handcuffs the night before.
In this section, Justyce clarifies why he’s writing to Dr. King. The fact that he is composing letters to Martin Luther King, Jr. despite the fact that the reverend is dead suggests that he is looking for ways to navigate an unjust world. Having just come face to face with the fact that there are people who will gladly subjugate him based on the color of his skin, he wants to learn how to “live like” Dr. King, who was famous for his resilience and strength, in addition to his peacefulness.
Themes
“Dear Martin,” Justyce writes in his diary. “Welp, I’m here. The illustrious Yale University.” He explains that he and SJ have driven all the way to Yale together. SJ has been helping him get settled, and when they finish they’re planning to drive her to Columbia, where she’s going to be starting school. Justyce says he’s been rereading his past “Dear Martin” letters and wondering what, exactly, he was trying to “accomplish.” Sitting in his dorm room, he can’t help but feel “crazy outta place” at Yale. His roommate, unfortunately, is a pompous white guy who is rather cold when interacting with Justyce, clearly uncomfortable with the idea of rooming with a black person. “Martin, I just—It never ends, does it?” Justyce writes. “No matter what I do, for the rest of my life I’m gonna find myself in situations like this, aren’t I?”
Yet again, Justyce grapples with the idea of withstanding racism everywhere he goes. No matter how hard he works, he will seemingly always face adversity and doubt because of the color of his skin. This, it seems, is why Mr. Rivers and Doc have encouraged him to focus on what he can control—namely, the type of person he chooses to be.
Themes
Thinking once more about what he wanted to get from his “Be Like Martin” experiment, Justyce wonders if he was trying to “get more respect” or be “more acceptable” or find a way to avoid “trouble.” These days, he thinks a lot about something Doc asked him: “If nothing ever changes, what type of man am I gonna be?” Now, Justyce thinks that his “experiment failed” because he was asking himself what Dr. King would do, when in truth he should have been spending his time trying to figure out who he is and what he believes in. Despite the fact that he doesn’t know the answer to these questions yet, Justyce is vaguely hopeful, because he realizes that he still has time to figure out how to navigate an unjust world.
As Dear Martin draws to a close, it’s useful to keep in mind that it is a coming-of-age novel. In keeping with this, Justyce makes peace with the fact that he doesn’t have everything figured out yet. He doesn’t know exactly who he wants to be, but he recognizes that he has time to come to such conclusions. By allowing himself the patience it takes to grow into oneself, he increases the likelihood that he’ll be able to become the sort of person who does well in the face of adversity.
Themes
