Racism
Racist beliefs and people put Ossian Sweet and his family in danger immediately when they moved into an all-white neighborhood. The novel is set during the 1920s, a time in which people white people and Black people were segregated. This segregation is inherently and structurally racist; however, the actions of Ossian's neighbor were even more viciously racist. When they came to his house, they had every intention of doing him and his family harm. They surrounded his house, aggravated his family, and if they had the option, would have hurt them. These racist ideals reflect the values of the people of the time, but also show how destructive and evil racism is.
Jazz
Jazz plays an integral part in Arc of Justice. Author Kevin Boyle's novel is set in the 1920s in Detroit during the so-called "Jazz age." Although the Jazz age was hard for many people, especially people of color like Ossian Sweet and his family, it gave birth to tremendous liberalism in the United States. People gradually became more accepting of those around them (especially people that are different than them). And the structurally racist systems which oppressed people like Ossian Sweet were eventually weakened.
Additionally, it is through jazz that Black people who had been affected by structurally racist systems can have a voice. They express their displeasure through their music. Arc of Justice features quite a bit of jazz music, suggesting that the lives of Black people in Detroit and the rest of the world are exceptionally difficult as a result of racism.
The perversion of the justice system
Because Ossian Sweet, a young physician, was Black, he was blamed for the death of a member of the white mob who was harassing his home. His home was in an all-white neighborhood, and many of his neighbors did not want his family to be there. In an attempt to get him out of the neighborhood, those in the criminal justice system charged Ossian with the death of the man. In the normal justice system, specifically for white people, you are innocent until proven guilty. However, in the perverted justice system in 1920s Detroit, Black people are guilty until proven innocent (and are often arrested with no evidence supporting the arrest whatsoever).
