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Chapter 16
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
Several days later, Justyce visits Quan. Sitting across a small table, Quan talks to Justyce about Manny’s death. “Yo, when I saw that cop’s face on the news—” he begins, but then he says, “Nah, never mind, never mind.” Curious, Justyce urges him along, and Quan tells him that Garrett Tison was Officer Castillo’s partner on the police force. “Tison was there the night I…uhh…,” he says. “The night you shot Castillo,” Justyce offers. “Allegedly,” Quan replies. This information profoundly unsettles Justyce, who can’t help but wonder if what Quan did made Tison more likely to kill Manny. “Who’s to say Garrett Tison’s quickness to pull the trigger wasn’t caused by seeing his partner killed by a black kid?” Justyce wonders.
During this exchange, Justyce has to confront the uncomfortable fact that there are people—like Quan—whose behavior actively contributes to the racist stereotypes surrounding young black men. This makes him justifiably upset, since he feels as if he can see a direct link between Quan’s violence and Officer Tison’s racism. Of course, bigotry is very complicated, and it’s unlikely that Tison was so hateful toward black people simply because of one incident. Nonetheless, Justyce grapples with this idea—an idea that makes it hard for him to resist resenting young men like Quan.
Themes
Justyce asks Quan why he killed Castillo. Quan is hesitant to answer, since he doesn’t want to admit to having actually murdered Castillo. Still, he eventually says, “Aiight, listen up: where I come from, resistance is existence, homie. Every day I woke up in my hood coulda been my last. You wanna survive? Get wit some niggas who won’t turn on you, and y’all do whatever it takes to stay at the top, you feel me? My dudes…they’re like family to me. They’ve got my back as long as I have theirs. Somebody tells you to make a move, you make a move. No questions asked.” Justyce disagrees with this sentiment, saying that he grew up in the same neighborhood as Quan but hasn’t resorted to a life of violence. “Last I checked, your way got you capped and Manny killed,” Quan replies.
Quan outlines why a young black man like himself would be compelled to join a gang in the first place. What he says most likely resonates with Justyce, even if he doesn’t agree with the violent undertones of Quan’s message. Justyce has been experiencing a sense of social and cultural isolation, so Quan’s idea of joining a “family” likely makes sense to him. To add to this feeling, he can’t deny that his “way” of handling racism has led to Manny’s death, though it’s worth acknowledging that the incident with Officer Tyson most likely would have happened even if Justyce were in a gang.
Themes
Quan urges Justyce to “face reality,” saying that he wanted to talk to Justyce after what happened because he knew Justyce would understand what it’s like to face racism. Quan has a counselor in juvenile detention, he says, but she’s white, so he doesn’t think she understands. “You know what, Quan? I feel you,” Justyce says. Quan then tells a story about a white guy he met in juvenile detention. This boy woke up one night and stabbed his dad eight times. Because he had a good lawyer, though, he was only charged for assault and spent a mere 60 days at a “youth development campus” before being released. “Meanwhile, they locked my ass up for a year on a petty theft charge,” Quan says. “I think that was prolly the moment I gave up. Why try to do right if people will always look at me and assume wrong?”
Slowly, Justyce begins to agree with Quan’s ideas. In particular, he relates to the feeling of being misunderstood by white people. He also probably connects to what Quan says about privileged white people receiving special treatment. “Why try to do right if people will always look at me and assume wrong?” Quan asks, a sentiment that stands in stark opposition to Doc and Mr. Rivers’s notion that young black people have to do their “best” in the face of adversity.
Themes
Quan tells Justyce that he needs “a crew to roll with.” Telling him that there’s “strength in numbers,” he urges Justyce to call Martel Montgomery, the leader of the Black Jihad. Before Justyce leaves, Quan gives him Trey’s number, saying Trey will put him in touch with Martel. And though Justyce says he doesn’t want the number, he makes sure to remember it on his way out, and even enters it into his cellphone when he returns to his car after leaving the juvenile detention center.
Justyce knows he shouldn’t join the Black Jihad, but he can’t keep himself from flirting with the idea. After all, the notion of having a support network comprised of people who know what it’s like to face discrimination appeals to him, especially since this is something he’s craved ever since his encounter with Officer Castillo.
Themes
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