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January 23
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
On Saturday morning, Manny picks Justyce up in his Range Rover. Their plan is to go hiking, but Manny is in a terrible mood because he has just learned that Jared’s father is pressing charges against him for “assaulting” Jared. Because of this, he doesn’t feel like hiking, so Justyce agrees to simply drive around with him. As they cruise through town, they listen to a new song by one of their favorite rappers. “Lace up them track spikes; get ready to run / Here comes the fun, wait for the sound of the gun,” the rapper boasts in the chorus.
Readers should recall that Manny and Jared have been close friends for a long time—they grew up together. This doesn’t stop Jared’s father from pressing charges against Manny, though, despite the fact that this is the first time the two boys have ever gotten into a fight. It’s hard to believe that Jared’s father’s decision to press charges isn’t racially motivated, especially considering how much entrenched racism his son sets forth on a daily basis.
Themes
Justyce notices at a stoplight that a white man is giving him and Manny a furious look in the car next to them. “This dude is giving me the creeps,” Justyce says over the loud music. Responding to the man’s animosity, he reaches out and turns down the music. When the light changes, though, Manny turns it up again. “I bet he’s totally profiling us right now,” Manny says. “Probably thinks we’re drug dealers or something.” When he sees that this statement has unsettled Justyce, Manny apologizes, saying he forgot what happened to Justyce at the hands of Officer Castillo. “Will you assholes turn that goddamn racket down!” the man yells at the next stoplight. “What’d you say, sir? I couldn’t hear you over the music!” Manny yells. “I SAID TURN THAT SHIT DOWN!” the man screams.
Again, the difference between Manny and Justyce’s experience with racism comes to the forefront of the novel. In this scene, Justyce becomes quite nervous because he has experienced racial profiling firsthand. Manny, on the other hand, has only ever dealt with casual, everyday forms of racism, most often set forth by his friends. As a result, he isn’t as scared as Justyce when he sees that the white driver next to them is so unnecessarily angry.
Themes
Justyce suggests that Manny should turn down the music, but Manny refuses, saying, “Man, please. This is my car. I’m done bending over backwards to appease white people.” He then turns up the music, and the man next to them screams, “YOU WORTHLESS NIGGER SONS OF BITCHES!” This astounds Manny and Justyce. “Forget that guy, Manny. Let’s just stay calm,” Justyce says, but Manny refuses, leaning over Justyce, giving the other driver the middle finger, and saying, “Hey, fuck you, man!” Justyce tells Manny to calm down, and just as he’s reaching to turn down the music, he hears Manny yell, “Oh SHIT!” and then three deafening bangs sound out from the other car.
The white driver’s wildly disproportionate response to Manny and Justyce’s loud music is yet another instance of racism. And though Manny doesn’t necessarily see him as a serious threat, it quickly becomes clear that he is ready and willing to attack the two boys, simply because they are black.
Themes
