Warriors Don’t Cry: Chapter 11 Summary & Analysis

Melba becomes so overwhelmed with the task of keeping herself safe that she falls ill. It appears to be flu, but she thinks it is sadness. Still, Melba forces herself to attend school the next day to participate in a talk with segregationist student leaders, organized by the Norwegian reporter, Mrs. Jorumn Rickets. Ernie, Minnijean, and Melba sit down with Sammy Dean Parker, who was in the newspaper hugging Governor Faubus, thanking him for keeping the Little Rock Nine out of school, and two other students. While Ernie insists that all they want is an education, the white students raise fears of intermarriage and being overtaken by black people. Later, in an interview with The New York Times, Parker says that she thinks that the Little Rock Nine also do not want to go to school with them but are being paid by the NAACP, a comment which strikes Melba as absurd.

An announcement in the newspaper reads that half of the 101st will return to their base in Kentucky. Melba realizes that she can only depend on herself for protection and adopts the attitude of a warrior. She keeps her muscles “steely” in response to abuse and strains her mind to focus. By mid-October, there are very few 101st soldiers and few national guardsmen.

Mrs. Huckaby tells the students to notify their parents of an upcoming meeting with School Superintendent Virgil Blossom. At the meeting, Blossom does not address any of the students’ or parents’ concerns but tells the students not to respond to their attackers. When Mother Lois asks if he has “any specific plans” to protect the children, Blossom rudely tells her that it is none of her business and ignores her while he continues to make “his meaningless comments.” Mother Lois is angry and embarrassed but finally takes her seat. It upsets Melba to see her mother disrespected and it bothers her that the others, especially the black men present, do not stand up to defend her.

Minnijean Brown goes to Melba’s house in November to show a picture of Melba in Life magazine. The two of them also appear in other publications. Minnijean is becoming deeply affected by her ostracism and comes to believe that she can convince the white students to like her if they hear how beautifully she sings. She commits to finding an opportunity to sing onstage in a school program, despite the Mothers’ League’s plan to exclude her. The other students have also changed. Melba notices that they are more solemn and withdrawn.

Melba is surprised when she is invited to give a speech to students who attend chapel services. The chapel is “a fairly safe corner of the school.” Grandma India eases her fears that the students will throw things, for, at the very least, they “aren’t heathens.” When Melba speaks, she insists, they will know that they all worship the same Lord.

For Thanksgiving, the Pattillo family has a tradition of sorting through their things and giving up things they do not need or use, as well as two things very dear to them. Grandma India asks Conrad to give up his train, which he insists on keeping, and uses Melba’s example of giving up “her favorite blouse” to encourage him. He responds by saying that “Melba likes suffering and doing without,” which is why she attends Central. He heard this from his friend, Clark, who repeated it from his parents. Grandma India says that Melba is at the school because she made a promise to God that she intends to keep. She also says that if Conrad does not “ante up,” he will not get any Thanksgiving dinner and no one will play Monopoly with him for a week. He lets go of his train’s engine to put in the gift box.

According to the Arkansas Gazette, Little Rock authorities’ agreement to maintain order allows for a deal with the federal government not to prosecute segregationists. Minnijean remains focused on trying to perform in the Christmas show. When Minnijean tries to register, Mrs. Huckaby lies and says that tryouts have passed. Minnijean is wounded, for the school officials had not been “sincere about offering Minnijean the opportunity” and, therefore, were not clear about the terms of participating. Melba and Thelma try their best to console her.

On Monday, November 25, Melba prepares to speak to 250 students gathered for Central High’s early morning chapel service. At first, she garbles some of the words then speaks calmly. The students are impressed and a couple approach her afterward to congratulate her and to ask where she got her “Northern accent.” Mother Lois is pleased to hear this and tells Melba to tell the students that her mother is an English teacher and that they only speak the King’s English in their home. Melba confirms that there were no “flying objects,” as she had originally feared, and that, during the service, she felt that the students shared a love of the Lord in common. Grandma India insists that, someday, the white students will have the courage to be nice outside of the chapel. Melba does not think so, but her grandmother is sure that things will not always be as they are presently.

The Little Rock Nine gather at Daisy Bates’ house for an “official” Thanksgiving dinner on Tuesday evening. There is a news conference. Mrs. Bates asks if the students want “white meat or dark meat” and, speaking without thinking, Melba says that it is “an integrated turkey.” Mrs. Bates and Mother Lois get an annoyed expression on their faces and the reporters snicker. While driving home, Mother Lois tells Melba that she will regret her statement.

The day before Thanksgiving break, Danny breaks the rules by coming up close to Melba and telling her to take care of herself and be careful. She realizes that he will soon leave her, though he will neither confirm or deny it. On Thanksgiving Day, she experiences feelings of “peace and joy,” but reads a headline in the Gazette confirming her fear: the last of 225 GIs will leave the school. When Melba returns to Central on December 2, someone asks if “all niggers eat integrated turkeys,” then puts his foot out to trip her. She steps hard on his foot, pretending it is a mistake. Other students mock her careless statement. The only thing that keeps Melba going is the promise of Christmas break.