Sadie is a young mother in the Chicago parents’ group with which Barack works. She, like the other parents, lives in Altgeld. However, unlike most of the other parents, Sadie is married and highly religious. Her husband is training to be a minister, so her family doesn’t associate much with the other families. Though Barack is disappointed when Sadie—who’s tiny, soft-spoken, and nervous—offers to talk to Mr. Anderson about the possible presence of asbestos in Altgeld’s apartments, Sadie proves herself a skilled organizer. She becomes the face of the asbestos conflict, but she withdraws from the parents’ organization after a disastrous public event with the director. Sadie tells Barack that she’s not hopeful that they can accomplish anything, so she needs to concentrate on saving money to move away instead.
Get the entire Dreams from My Father LitChart as a printable PDF.
Sadie Character Timeline in Dreams from My Father
The timeline below shows where the character Sadie appears in Dreams from My Father. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 12
...to canvass their blocks to discover what needs to be fixed, but a woman named Sadie approaches him with a legal notice. It announces that Altgeld is hiring contractors to remove...
(full context)
After a week, Sadie calls Mr. Anderson’s office. As the weeks wear on, Barack helps her contact the CHA...
(full context)
...The maintenance man offers them a small amp and microphone and Barack warns Linda and Sadie to not let the director drone on. More than 700 people arrive for the event—but...
(full context)
The director arrives an hour late. Sadie and Linda welcome him and ask if he’s willing to commit to working with them...
(full context)
