In his speech at the school graduation ceremony, the aspiring politician Edward Donleavy makes it clear that Black boys need not have any aspiration other than athletic prowess. They may be the next Joe Louis, but not the next Thomas Edison or Abraham Lincoln. Black girls, apparently, are not even worth mentioning. Their destiny is to be housemaids, cooks, or shop assistants, then wives and mothers.

This is not only the attitude of the white establishment; it filters down even to the “powhitetrash,” who treat Momma with offhand arrogance, despite the fact that she owns the land on which they live. The book is full of casual yet brutal insults meted out to Momma and her friends. One of the most egregious occurs when Marguerite is in terrible pain from toothache and Momma takes her to the white dentist, who had borrowed money from her in the past. He tells her that he would sooner put his hand “in a dog’s mouth than in a nigger’s.”

In the face of all this provocation, Momma, who can be hot-tempered when dealing with her grandchildren, appears cool, serene, and cheerful. She is one of several strong Black women, such as Grandmother Baxter and Mrs. Bertha Flowers, who remain both gracious and formidable in the face of despicable treatment. Marguerite is constantly amazed by their ability to do this. When the “powhitetrash” and others are rude to Momma, she feels the humiliation much more than her grandmother ever appears to. She admits to being relieved that she has never seen Mrs. Flowers with the “powhitetrash,” since she knows they would not treat her with respect. As Black women have even more tribulations to bear than their husbands and brothers, their urbanity is even more impressive to Marguerite.