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
On Tuesday, Justyce attends his Societal Evolution class. He’s distracted when he enters the room, since a grand jury in Nevada failed to indict the police officer who murdered Shemar Carson. In addition, he discovered yesterday that the police officer that Manny’s cousin killed was Officer Castillo. “What Jus can’t get over is that he knows Manny’s cousin,” Stone writes. Quan grew up in his mother’s neighborhood and is only one year younger than Justyce. They even used to spend time together as young boys, though Quan eventually “started running with a not-so-great crowd,” while Justyce went on to attend Braselton Prep. Now, Justyce can’t stop fixating on the fact that Quan murdered Castillo. “Yeah, Castillo was an asshole, but did he really deserve to die?” he wonders. Along with this thought, he has another unsettling idea: if Castillo had killed him, “would he have even been indicted”?
Justyce has a lot on his mind when he enters class on Tuesday. This is noteworthy because it reminds readers that he’s dealing with more stress and emotional turmoil than the average student, who can simply focus on getting good grades. Now that Justyce has experienced racial profiling, though, it’s impossible for him to pretend that the many injustices surrounding him in the world simply don’t exist. As a result, he finds it difficult to stop thinking about the Shemar Carson case and the way it relates to his own encounter with the police.
Themes
Before Justyce takes his seat in Societal Evolution, his teacher, Doc, calls him over. Doc runs the debate team and is Justyce’s favorite teacher. “He’s the only (half) black guy Jus knows with a PhD, and Jus really looks up to him,” Stone notes. Before the other students filter in, Doc warns Justyce that the conversation taking place in class that day might “hit a nerve.” “Feel free to sit it out,” he says. “You can leave the room if need be.”
Although Doc hasn’t yet revealed what the class will be talking about, it’s rather apparent that the topic will most likely have to do with racial inequality, and Doc’s sensitivity to Justyce’s emotional wellbeing is an indication that he wants to do what he can to protect him from further turmoil. In turn, readers see that Doc is another person (along with Manny) who wants to support Justyce.
Themes
After Justyce’s quick talk with Doc, Manny enters the class with his good friend Jared Christiansen. Justyce doesn’t particularly like Jared or really any of Manny’s friends, a group of often insensitive white boys. As Jared struts in, he says, “What’s up, Doc?” Forever annoyed by him, Justyce’s friend SJ says, “Oh god, Jared. Sit down somewhere.” SJ is Justyce’s debate partner, the captain of the lacrosse team, and an incredible student. When Doc begins class, he poses a frank question about the United States constitution, asking his students to discuss the idea that “all men are created equal.” More specifically, he asks, “Do you guys feel we’ve achieved full ‘equality’ with regard to race?” A tense silence follows this question, but then Jared speaks up, stating unequivocally that the country has “reached full equality when it comes to race.”
It’s easy to see that Jared’s confident answer might rankle Justyce, who was recently punched in the face and placed in handcuffs simply because Officer Castillo made an assumption about him based on his race. This, of course, doesn’t support the idea that the United States has reached “full equality when it comes to race.” And yet, Jared offers up this answer without much hesitation, as if he can’t fathom the idea that racism still exists.
Themes
“There are people who claim certain ‘injustices’ are race-related, but if you ask me, they’re just being divisive,” Jared says. SJ cuts in at this point, calling Jared “entitled” and trying to explain that he’s “oblivious to the struggles of anyone outside [his] little social group.” She then asks him to consider “economic disparities” and the fact that “there are more people of color living in poverty than white people.” In response, Jared says, “Dude, Manny drives a Range Rover.” Not wanting to get involved, Manny asks why this is relevant, and Jared points out that Manny’s parents are wealthier than his. Hearing this, Manny says that his parents have worked hard, but Jared says that this is his point, claiming it proves that black people have “the same opportunities as white people.”
Jared has never had to think very hard about inequality because he himself has never experienced discrimination. Consequently, it’s easy for him to claim that people who think racism still exists are only “being divisive.” In keeping with his apparent tendency to make broad generalizations, he says that Manny’s wealthy parents are proof that white and black people have “the same opportunities.” Uninterested in examining the matter more critically, he allows himself to make sweeping arguments about entire groups of people simply based on his limited perspective as a fortunate white person.
Themes
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SJ tells Jared that he hasn’t succeeded in proving his point. “You really think one example proves things are equal?” she asks. “What about Justyce? His mom works sixty hours a week, but she doesn’t make a tenth of what your dad ma—” Hearing this, Justyce cuts her off, telling her to “chill.” She apologizes and then reiterates her point, which is that one exception to an overall trend doesn’t mean much. She then says that African Americans are still “getting a raw deal,” even all these years after slavery. “Coulda fooled me,” Jared replies, to which SJ says, “Do you watch the news at all? The name Shemar Carson ring a bell, maybe?” In turn, Jared says that “not every white person who kills a black person is guilty of a crime,” positing that “the courts proved that” by not indicting Shemar Carson’s killer.
When Jared suggests that the success of Manny’s family proves the United States has reached complete racial equality, he chooses to ignore the bigger picture. While it’s true that it’s possible for some black families to achieve success and upward mobility, it’s also true that it’s harder on the whole for black people to access the same opportunities as white people. This is what SJ tries to help him see when she references “economic disparities,” wanting Jared to understand that not all white and black people are on an even playing field. When this doesn’t work, she emphasizes the systemic nature of racial inequality, referencing the Nevada jury’s failure to indict Shemar Carson’s killer. However, this doesn’t help her convince Jared, since he’s unwilling to consider the idea that the jury itself might be biased and instead assumes that the court system always delivers unbiased justice.
Themes
When SJ refutes the idea that the courts “proved” the officer who killed Shemar isn’t guilty of a crime, Jared says, “Dude, the kid attacked the cop and tried to take his gun. And he had a criminal record.” This enrages SJ, who accuses Jared of only getting his news from social media. She then reminds him that Shemar’s criminal record only included a single misdemeanor for possession of marijuana. “So? Do the crime, do the time,” Jared says. “Jared,” replies SJ, “you bought an ounce of weed two days ago.” Doc intervenes at this point, telling SJ to calm down, and then Jared tells her that how he spends his money isn’t her business. Wrapping up her argument, then, SJ says, “I know you’d prefer to ignore this stuff because you benefit from it, but walking around pretending inequality doesn’t exist won’t make it disappear, Jared.”
Perhaps the most important thing SJ says in this argument is that Jared “benefit[s]” from his own privileged position in society. The fact that he can commit the same crime as Shemar Carson but then point to that crime as evidence of Shemar’s lack of morality is a perfect example of what it means to perpetuate implicit bias. Jared has purchased marijuana himself, but he doesn’t think this says anything about the kind of person he is. But because Shemar Carson is a young black man, buying marijuana suddenly becomes—in Jared’s mind—proof that Shemar is a dangerous criminal. In other words, Jared isn’t applying the same rules to Shemar and himself. Instead, he makes certain assumptions about Shemar and then refuses to acknowledge that these assumptions are based on nothing but race.
Themes
Jared reminds SJ that she, too, is white, but this doesn’t faze her. “Yeah, and I recognize that and how it benefits me,” she says. In response, Jared accuses her of “jumping on the White Is Wrong bandwagon.” Hearing this, SJ says that nobody will ever assume that either she or Jared are criminals before they even consider them as people. After a long pause, Justyce gets up and leaves, saying he has to go to the bathroom.
Again, SJ tries to help Jared see that he—as a white person—has certain advantages that black people don’t necessarily have. He suggests that this outlook is a critique of being white, but she refutes this point by saying that all she’s doing is acknowledging the ways in which her whiteness “benefits” her. After all, inequality can’t be addressed if people don’t recognize its existence. To hear this debate about racism is apparently too much for Justyce to handle, though, which is why he exits, most likely feeling uncomfortable about sitting by while his white peers somewhat casually debate a matter that has recently become so viscerally real for him.
Themes
