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Quotes
Willie Johnson
Willie Johnson lives on Mars with his wife, Hattie, and their three children. Their community is populated entirely by black people who fled widespread racism and cruelty on Earth twenty years prior. Willie…
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Hattie Johnson
In contrast to her husband Willie’s thirst for vengeance, Hattie Johnson does not see the white man’s arrival as an opportunity to exact revenge over the cruelty and racism that the Martians experienced…
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The White Man
The old white man, who is never named, steps out of the rocket to tell the Martians why the Earth people have come to Mars: a nuclear war has rendered Earth uninhabitable, and there are…
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Hattie and Willie’s Children
Hattie and Willie’s three young boys are excited about the white man’s arrival. Yet, having been born on Mars (where there are only black people), the boys do not understand the deep-rooted racism…
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Minor Characters
Mr. Brown
Hattie and Willie’s kindly neighbor on Mars who takes his children to see the white man.
The Mayor
The mayor of Hattie and Willie’s town on Mars. He opposes Willie’s idea to create racial segregation laws that target white people and tells Willie that he’s behaving no better than racist white men on Earth.
Dr. Phillips
A racist white man in Greenwater, Alabama, who hanged Willie’s father and shot his mother with help from Mr. Burton.
Mr. Burton
A racist white man who, with help from Dr. Phillips, hanged Willie’s father on Knockwood Hill and shot Willie’s mother.
