Mama is a strong woman. After her husband leaves her, Mama works a number of jobs and raises her children on her own. She and Anne share the same strength of will. However, despite the poverty, she is too scared to fight against inequality. Mama doesn’t want to leave the community in which she lives and is unhappy when Anne goes off to college and then goes on to join the civil rights movement. Mama fears that joining the movement means that Anne will never be able to return home. It is the conflict between Anne and Mama that is central to the book.

Anne and her mother represent the African American attitude of the future and the past, respectively. Growing up in the midst of the civil rights movement, Anne and her mother experience the turmoil, emotion and danger of being African American in the south during the 1950s and 1960s. 

Mother and daughter are definitely more different than they are alike. However, they share the fact that they both care deeply about the well-being of African Americans in the South. Anne's mother loves her family and wants the best for them as does Anne. Likewise, they are both hardworking women who will work whatever job necessary to support the family. 

However, the differences between Anne and her mother stem from the beliefs they have about what is best for the family and for the African American culture at large. Anne's mother can best be described as from the "do not rock the boat" mindset and conforms to the expected behaviors for someone of her race and gender. She sees the unfairness in the world but believes actions taken against the wrongs will make things worse. Anne does whatever she feels will better the state of existence for her family and African Americans. She is not worried about "rocking the boat" and challenges traditional behaviors and attitudes in efforts to gain equality for her people. Unlike her mother, where Anne sees unfairness in the world, she is called to take action, believing she can make the world a better place.