Swift River

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of racism, graphic violence, bullying, and antigay bias.

Racism impacts the lives of three generations of Newberrys in Swift River. While the form that racism takes shifts over time, becoming slightly subtler as societal norms shift, the animus toward Black people generally and the Newberry family specifically persists through the lives of Aunt Clara, Pop, and Diamond.

In 1915, Clara experiences direct and unapologetic racism. The most obvious example is Swift River’s status as a “sundown town”—a place where Black people cannot go after dark. The announcement of this underscores the racism that motivates it, as the signs posted in Swift River read, “N*****, DON’T LET THE SUN GO DOWN ON YOU IN SWIFT RIVER” (83). Clara consequently has to be very cautious not to be caught out in town after dark, which limits her activities and causes anxiety. Clara says, for example, “I watch the sun all day. Even inside I know exactly where it is in the sky. I feel the dark creeping up on me until it pounces, blacking out my freedom” (83). The constant awareness of the time of day and the looming threat of promised violence illustrate the far-reaching effects of racism, which range from the psychological (Clara’s anxiety) to the practical (the restriction of Clara’s movements).