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 writes in his diary. “He’s gone. Never did anything to anyone, and now Manny’s gone. I can’t do this anymore.”
In this brief chapter, readers learn that Manny has died. It’s important to note that Justyce goes out of his way to say that Manny “never did anything to anyone,” ultimately emphasizing just how unfair it is that an innocent boy like Manny has been killed simply because of the color of his skin.