Jay's a people person. I'm more of a, "yes, people exist, but that doesn't mean I have to talk to them" person.
Jay essentially likes people, and is still happy to reach out to them, make connections, interact with them on a regular basis. She is the kind of person who will say hello the the person behind her in the line at the grocery store.
Bri, on the other hand, does not like people very much. She knows that she has to co-exist with them, and she knows that her actions and behavior cannot solely be for her own purposes and benefit because she needs to respect the rights of others as well. She means people no harm; she just doesn't like them. She doesn't want to make small talk, or reach out, or interact with people on a daily basis. In this way she and her mother are very different.
Church is full of people with plenty to say and nothing to do. You'd think some of them would help us instead of talk about us, but I guess it's easier to say you love Jesus and harder to act like him.
Bri feels judged by others, and to some extent she is not incorrect in her feelings. She thinks that all the congregation does is talk about her and her family, and not in a positive way. They judge and they point out all the things that are wrong, but they never reach out and try to help in any way. Bri cannot understand why, if they see that they are struggling, they don't do something to help. She also shows that she has a good understanding of irony, in that all of the people in church who say that they love Jesus don't seem to want to use his teachings as a building block for those in their neighborhood who are in need of a hand. Jesus does not judge, but the people Bri sees in church on Sundays always seem to do so.
It is kinda messed up. Her my brother is, doing everything right, and nothing's coming from it. Meanwhile, Aunt Pooh's doing everything we've been told not to do, and she's giving us food when we need it.
That's how it goes, though. The drug dealers in my neighborhood aren't struggling. Everybody else is.
Another irony: Bri's Aunt Pooh is a drug dealer, and she is never in financial need. Meanwhile, her brother, Trey, is an academically gifted young man with skills and qualifications, and he cannot get a decent job. The only job he is able to get is working in a pizza restaurant. This is why there is no real incentive for kids in the neighborhood to stay on the right side of the line. The financial rewards seem to go to the drug dealers, not the kids who stay out of trouble. This is also why most of the children in the novel want to be gang leaders when they grow up.
