E.J. Character Analysis

Jade’s uncle; E.J. is Mom’s much younger brother. Since E.J. is only 20, Jade feels as though he is more of a sibling than an uncle. E.J. is an aspiring deejay, but in Jade’s opinion, he has been in a tough spot since his best friend, Alan, was murdered sometime before the novel begins. In the last year, E.J. dropped out of college and lost his job, and he now sleeps on Mom’s couch. He deejays gigs and says that he’s looking for another job, but Jade doesn’t believe this—and she also doesn’t believe that E.J. is fine, even though E.J. insists he is. Jade finds E.J.’s current crop of friends troubling, especially since E.J. assures her and Mom that he doesn’t join his friends in activities that Mom and Jade wouldn’t approve of. Despite E.J.’s faults and difficult circumstances, he’s still an involved, supportive, and loving uncle to Jade. He’s goofy and he teases her, but he also gives his real, unfiltered opinions about things such as the police brutality that Natasha Ramsey experiences. He insists that praying is silly and for poor people who have no other way to make a difference; instead of praying, he suggests, the black community needs to protest and contact their police chiefs and other elected officials. E.J. is also fiercely loyal to his sister and so he speaks poorly about Dad whenever he has the opportunity. He sleeps on the couch in the living room, which is both a source of shame for Jade and a source of humor throughout the novel—he can and does sleep through everything going on in their tiny house.