Summary
In Chapter 5, Jus joins Manny and the "crew"—Jared, Kyle, Tyler, and Blake—for a Halloween party. Jared comes up with the idea that they should each dress as stereotypes in order to prove that things in America are equal. Jus is dressed as a Thug, Manny is a Token Black Guy, Jared's a Yuppie/Politician, Tyler's a Surfer Dude, and Kyle is a Redneck. Blake, however, takes the costume too far and is dressed as a Klansman. Manny is uncomfortable about the costumes, and he asks to talk to Jus about it alone. Manny tells Jus that if he's uncomfortable he doesn't need to go to the party, but Jus tells him that they should just go. He's still trying to live more like Dr. King, and has just learned that one of Dr. King's definitions of integration was "intergroup and interpersonal living" (41). Jus and Manny's "crew" go to the party, where things quickly get out of hand. Blake is punched in the face almost immediately upon arriving. There is a group of Black kids (plus one white guy) that Jus recognizes from his neighborhood that stand in front of Jus and the other guys. One of the guys, Trey, recognizes Jus and calls out his costume. They also recognize Manny as Quan Banks's cousin. They ask Jus and Manny what they are doing with Jared, Kyle, Tyler, and Blake. Jus tries to diffuse the situation, but Trey tells Jus that he hasn't changed—he's still the smarty-pants that he was when they were children. They call Jus out for going to Bras Prep, and Trey tells Jus and Manny that their white peers are never going to respect them or see them as equals. They decide to leave the party after one of Trey's friends reveals that he is carrying a handgun in the waistband of his pants. Trey tells Manny and Jus that they can stay at the party if they want to, but they leave with the others. A moment of understanding passes between Manny and Jus after they have left, and they both start taking off their costumes.
Following Chapter 5, Jus writes his third letter to Martin. In the letter, he recounts a conversation that he had with SJ after they had been talking on the phone for several hours. SJ originally calls Jus to ask him about the Halloween party and how it went. Jus tells SJ that someone punched Blake in the face, which causes her to laugh. He then tells SJ every detail about the party, which ends with Trey and his friends threatening them with a gun. He then talks about his feelings about the party with SJ and tells her that he felt like he was being forced to make a statement. He feels bad about leaving behind the group of kids he grew up with to leave with a white boy who is dressed as a Klansman, and wonders if Jared and the rest of them only will ever see him as different because of his race. They talk for several more hours, and Jus tells SJ about his "be like Martin" project. Before they hang up, SJ apologizes to Jus for speaking for him during the class discussion in Chapter 3. Jus leaves the conversation worried because he is starting to develop a crush on SJ and thinks his mom wouldn't approve because she is white. He's also upset at himself for talking to SJ about race.
In Chapter 6, Jus discovers that he has been accepted to Yale. The first person he calls is SJ, who is very excited for him. She will be attending Columbia next year, and they talk about how Yale and Columbia are close by each other. For a moment, Jus feels happy, and "all the bad stuff that's happened in the past few months falls away" (53). SJ tells her parents, who congratulate Jus as well. Jus feels again his crush for SJ and realizes that he called her to tell her the news before he called his mom. The next day at school, SJ runs up to Jus in the cafeteria and gives him a huge hug. Melo watches their encounter and asks Jus about their relationship after SJ leaves. Jus tells her that they are just friends. Melo then asks Jus to hang out soon, and Jus agrees.
In the next chapter, Chapter 7, Jus is back in his Societal Evolution class. When he enters the class, Manny tells Doc that Jus has been accepted to Yale, and Doc congratulates him. However, Jus is troubled because SJ won't look at him when she comes into class. On top of that, Jared is glaring at Jus. As soon as the bell rings, Jared announces that he wants to discuss "how affirmative action discriminates against members of the majority" (59). He then implies that Jus took his spot at Yale simply because Jus is Black. Jared assumes that he got higher standardized test scores than Jus, but it is revealed that Jus did better than him on the ACTs. SJ calls Jared out for making the assumption that his test scores are higher because of Jus's race. SJ stands up for Jus and tells Jared that his assertion—that affirmative action discriminates against members of the majority—is false. Despite this, Jared keeps up his argument, and says that there will be other minorities less qualified to get in than him who will be accepted. SJ tells Jared that their education is "the best of the best of the best" (62). She asks Jared to imagine another student who was not given the same opportunities that Jared was given, and who as a result has a lower GPA and lower test scores. She then asks Jared if it would be fair for Jared to automatically get in to a better school just because his scores are higher. Jared dismisses SJ's argument and says that no matter which college he gets into, when he sees a minority, he's going to wonder if they are qualified to be there.
After Chapter 7, Jus writes his fourth letter to Martin. In the letter, he relates to Martin that he went home in person to tell his mom the news of his admittance to Yale. While his mom is "ecstatic" at the news, on the way home Jus comes face-to-face with Trey and his friends, who are more discouraging. Trey tells Jus that his success won't last long: "'You'll be back, smart guy. Once you see them white folks don't want yo black ass at they table. They not down with you bein' their equal, dawg. We'll see you soon" (65). Jus is understandably upset about this comment, especially because of Jared's behavior in Societal Evolution class earlier that day. Jared and Trey's combined hostility in response to Jus's success hurts Jus's confidence. Jus tells Martin that it feels like he's trying to climb a mountain, and there are people who are trying to push him down from both sides. He worries that he's going to feel inadequate at Yale next year, and that his classmates will wonder if he is qualified to attend. He wonders how he should respond and rhetorically asks Martin what he would do: "Where'd you get the courage to keep climbing in the face of stuff like this? Because I know you got it from both sides" (66). He signs off, but adds a postscript, where he reveals his conflicted feelings about SJ and Melo. He compares them: SJ is continually cheering Jus on, while Melo wants to hold him back. He doesn't know how to handle the fact that these two girls are interested in him at the same time.
In Chapter 8, Jus is sitting in Manny's basement. Manny is grilling Jus about his relationship with SJ, but Jus insists that they are only friends. However, Jus reveals to the reader that they have been spending a lot of time together because the state debate tournament is coming up and that his feelings for her are complicated. Manny keeps pressing Jus about SJ, and he finally reveals to Manny that his mom would never approve if he dated a white girl. Manny responds that SJ is "'not white white'" because of her Jewish heritage (71). Jus responds that SJ's ethnicity won't change anything in his mom's eyes; her skin is white. Manny cannot find the reasoning in this line of thinking, but Jus tells him that that's just the way it is. He also tells Manny that he and Melo are talking again. Manny takes offense at this bit of news, and tells Jus, "if Melo and SJ are diverging paths on the road of life, you're headed for a dead end, my friend'" (71). Jus tells Manny that's he's not going to take relationship advice from someone who's never been in a relationship. After a bit of silence, Manny reveals to Jus that he's afraid of Black girls—he's never met a Black girl that wasn't one of his family members. Jus tells Manny that Black girls are just like any other girls. Manny then reveals that he is extremely nervous about going to Morehouse (a historically Black college) next year. He tells Jus, "'you're my only black friend, dawg. I'm supposed to go from this all-white world to an all-black one overnight?'" (73). Jus allays Manny's concerns. At the end of the conversation, Manny tells Jus not to pass on his relationship with SJ just because his mom won't approve; besides, turning down a romantic relationship just because the girl is white does not seem to correspond with Dr. King's teachings.
In Chapter 9, it's the day of the state-wide debate tournament. Jus recalls the events of the previous several weeks: Thanksgiving and Christmas flew by, and he spent most of his time preparing for the tournament with SJ. He also reveals that he broke up with Melo two nights ago and that over the past few weeks his feelings for SJ have deepened. At the tournament, Jus is caught off guard about his feelings for SJ and thinks that he's been a fool for sidelining her for Melo. Doc approaches Jus and SJ and asks them if they are "ready to rumble" (76). Jus reveals that he and SJ have "decided to forgo the actual debate rounds of the tournament and focus solely on advanced pairs argumentation" (76). This means that if he and SJ want to win, they only have one shot. Jus is extremely nervous, especially because of the sensitive nature of the topic he and SJ decided on. He recalls how they ultimately decided on their topic. They were in SJ's basement, and SJ was working busily at her computer while Jus contemplated his feelings for her. Finally, SJ reveals her plan: she and Jus are going to do an argument on racial profiling. Jus is wary at first and thinks that it means they're surely going to lose. But SJ convinces him that it's a good idea. She tells him, "'I didn't sleep for a week after what happened to you, Jus. I know we might be throwing away our chance at a win, but if we can get some facts out there, maybe make people think a little bit, it'll be worth it, right?" (79). Ultimately, Jus and SJ decide to go through with SJ's idea. Their opening statement at the debate tournament is "We are here to argue that racial disparities in the US criminal justice system are largely due to racial profiling" (80). The crowd reacts to the controversial nature of their argument, but Jus and SJ win over the judges, and they win the tournament.
Analysis
In Chapter 5, Jus attends a Halloween party with the "crew," and each of them is dressed as a stereotype, per Jared's suggestion. Jus is dressed up as a "Thug," which includes "pants belted around his thighs with boxers exposed, Thug Life T-shirt, thick gold chain with a huge medallion, fitted flat-billed baseball cap" (39). We know that this is not how Jus dresses in his everyday life; instead, he usually dresses in the typical clothes that his classmates wear. Jus is uncomfortable about this costume idea from the beginning. He initially agrees to go along with Jared's idea because he is trying to live according to Martin Luther King's teachings: "Truth is, four hours ago, Jus was ready to back out because the idea of going anywhere with Jared and crew just felt wrong, knowing what he knows about what they think. But then he stumbled upon Martin's definition of integration—'intergroup and interpersonal living'—and decided to just go with it. He's not sure this is exactly what Martin meant, but what is he supposed to say?" (41). Jus has a hard time excusing the costume idea, however, when he arrives at the party and Blake is dressed up as a Klansman. A Klansman is a member of the terrorist white-nationalist group Klu Klux Klan (KKK). The KKK has held a terrible role in American history, and they are responsible for countless deaths in the Black community. Blake's decision to make a joke out of such a terrible part of history is jarring to the extreme. It causes an emotional reaction in Jus: "if Jus didn't know it was a costume, he'd be a little scared" (40). Ultimately, this chapter asks several important questions. Every single person in the "crew" is dressed as a stereotype, but some of them are evidently more harmful than others. Ultimately, we must ask ourselves: does dressing as a Thug hold the same weight as dressing as a Surfer Dude (Tyler's costume)? When Jus dresses as a Thug, who is it harmful towards? And when Blake dresses as a Klansman, who is it harmful towards? Notably, the stereotypes that Jared chooses for the group seem to place Black people as the butt of the joke. Jus's costume reduces his identity to a mere "Thug" when we know he is in fact so much more. Manny's "token" costume also reduces him to his race. Finally, Blake's Klansman costume places Black people and experiences as the butt of the joke. In the end, Jared's attempt to prove that inequality no longer exists becomes itself a manifestation of racism and inequality within their friend group.
Blake does not spend long in his Klansman costume—right after they get to the party, he is punched in the face by one of Jus's childhood friends, including a kid named Trey. Jus recognizes them immediately. Jus grew up in a low-income Atlanta neighborhood, where many of his childhood peers grew up to be a part of gangs. The group of kids at the Halloween Party are all part of a gang called Black Jihad. They take notice of Jus's costume: "A dark-skinned guy with short dreadlocks gives Jus a once-over and smiles. 'That's a real funny costume, Justyce'" (43). In contrast to Jus, the guys from his neighborhood are unironically wearing "Thug" attire and they see Jus's costume for what it is—a costume. Evidently, Jus does not easily fit within the "Thug" stereotype, and his costume is harmful to others who might actually choose to dress that way, who had fewer life opportunities than Jus did. Jus and Manny are singled out by the group of guys from Jus's neighborhood, and Trey warns them that they don't really fit in among Jared's "crew": "Trey looks back and forth between Jus and Manny. 'Don't get it twisted, my dawgs. These white boys might be standing here next to y'all, but y'all still ain't nothin' but niggas to them, ya heard me? . . . Ain't no amount of money or intelligence can change that shit'" (44). In this encounter, Trey sees right through Manny and Jus's costumes and their involvement with Jared's "crew." According to Trey, Jared and the "crew" will never consider Jus and Manny as full equals because of their race. They do not belong with those guys, Trey believes, and instead belong with Treys' group of friends. In this moment, Jus and Manny exist on a border between "us" and "them" that is hard for them to navigate. After they leave the party, Jus and Manny share a look: they understand each other, as they have both stood on the border of two different communities, never fully belonging on either side. They start taking off their costumes on their way home: "Jus watches Manny examine his tied up sweater, his khakis, his loafers—his 'costume' made up of clothes he pulled from the closet. He unties the sweater, then looks up at Justyce. For the moment, they understand each other. Justyce takes the fitted cap from his head and fake chain from his neck" (45).
The encounter between Jus's childhood friends and Jared's "crew" introduces the theme of community, which extends throughout the novel. Jus lives between the worlds of two starkly different communities: his mostly Black low-income childhood neighborhood on the one hand, and his mostly white extremely rich Bras Prep community on the other. Manny, his best friend, is the only other person who can understand Jus's experiences, but his understanding is limited by the fact that he grew up wealthy and the mostly-white world is all he knows. As the novel progresses, Jus must learn how to negotiate the demands and prejudices of these different communities while also trying to find a community for himself. People from his childhood home, like Trey, believe that Jus won't last long in the white world and will return to the neighborhood soon enough: "'You'll be back, smart guy. Once you see them white folks don't want yo black ass at they table. They not down with you bein' their equal, dawg. We'll see you soon" (65). On the other side, people like Jared refuse to believe that racism exists in the first place, thus discrediting Jus's life experiences. Jus's decision to leave the party with Jared's "crew" shows his trouble in navigating these different communities. As he tells SJ on the phone, he feels as if whatever decision he makes he is making a statement about his belonging with that group: "'Well, either way it went, I was sayin somethin', you know? Staying woulda been a statement of solidarity with these guys I grew up with—and who look like me. Leaving was a different statement, and the fact that I chose to do it with a white guy who was as a Klansman. . . welll. . . '" (48). These questions leave Jus feeling discouraged. He wonders if Trey's predictions are correct—if he will never truly be able to fit in in a mostly-white world. It ends up feeling like he is in an impossible situation. As he writes to Martin, "it's like I'm trying to climb a mountain, but I've got one fool trying to shove me down so I won't be on his level, and another fool tugging at my leg, trying to pull me to the ground he refuses to leave'" (66).
The topic of affirmative action speaks to Jus's concerns about community. In Chapter 6, Jus is excited to learn that he has been accepted to Yale. The next day at school, however, Jared is hostile towards him in his Societal Evolution class because he believes that Jus got in solely because of affirmative action. Affirmative action is a policy held by admission committees and hiring boards across the United States. It is an effort to level the playing field by recognizing that systemic racism affects the lives—and therefore the applications—of marginalized people. Affirmative action is a highly debated issue; some people see it as a fair solution to a long history of racism and oppression, others see it as a "free pass" for minority students who do not have to work as hard as white students to succeed. SJ is of the first opinion; Jared is of the second. Jared, who has just been deferred from Yale, believes that Jus (and other minorities) took his place. "'Point is,'" he says in class, "'it gives an unfair advantage to minorities. So, okay, Justyce and I might be 'equals' or whatever. But there are other minorities without the qualifications I have who will get in before I do. That's just not fair'" (62). SJ reminds Jared that the education they receive at Bras Prep is "the best of the best of the best" (62). They are given every resource, are supported in their test performance, and most of their teachers hold PhDs—these are not opportunities that every high school student across America is given. SJ also brings up "stereotype threat," which she explains via the example of a low-income student who "suffer[s] from low self-esteem and struggle[s] with standardized testing because. . . [he] knows people expect him to underperform, which triggers severe test anxiety that causes him to underperform" (62). SJ argues that if you took a high-income student and a low-income student and erased their backgrounds, the privileged student would probably outperform the low-income student. She asks Jared whether he considers it fair that the high-income student would get accepted and the low-income student would get rejected. Nevertheless, Jared is not convinced, and at the end of the class he boldly declares: "All I know is that no matter what college I end up at, when I see a minority, I'm gonna wonder if they're qualified to be there" (64). This entire conversation leaves Jus feeling discouraged and insulted—if Jared feels this way, does that mean that his classmates at Bras Prep feel that way about Jus's presence at their school? Does this mean that his classmates at Yale will continuously question whether Jus deserves to be there?
In these chapters, we see the relationship between SJ and Jus steadily progress. Jus realizes that he has a crush on SJ after the Halloween party. He writes to Martin that he is developing a crush on her, but he does not know how to respond: he knows his mom would not be happy about him dating a white girl. As the debate tournament gets closer and closer, Jus and SJ spend more and more time together in order to prepare. During their planning sessions, however, Jus is often caught off guard by his budding feelings for SJ. He explains to Manny in Chapter 8 that his mom would never be okay with Jus and SJ's relationship: "'Manny, my mama would blow every gasket in a fifty-mile radius'" (70). Manny reminds Jus that SJ is "not white white" because she is Jewish (70). Jus knows that SJ's ethnicity won't matter to his mom, though. In Jus's mom's eyes, as long as SJ is seen as white by the rest of the world, she is not fit for her son. Jus grapples with these questions as his relationship with SJ progresses. At the end of Chapter 9, he seems almost ready to risk his mother's anger and get together with SJ. However, after their victory, he leans down to kiss her, and she turns him down. Jus is left feeling disappointed and confused.
