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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How did the author's parent's respond to his questions about inequality in the world?
(a) They told him stories of their youth.
(b) They referred him to books.
(c) They read passages from the bible.
(d) They sent him out on the street.

2. How does the author describe Malcolm X?
(a) Fierce, violent, and wild.
(b) Rebellious, irrational, and impulsive.
(c) Strong, ethical, and powerful.
(d) Controlled, intelligent, and beyond fear.

3. Who were the first white people the author knew on a personal level?
(a) His editors.
(b) Reporters.
(c) Hippies.
(d) Religious zealots.

4. What bothers the author about artists like Michael Jackson?
(a) He represents the nonviolent black man.
(b) He used cosmetic surgery to appeal to a white fanbase.
(c) He did not finish what he started.
(d) His lyrics are without meaning.

5. What realization did the author make about death in the sixth grade?
(a) Death does not wait.
(b) Death can occur without warning.
(c) Death chases after the living.
(d) Death is inevitable.

6. What did the author's mother urge him to do when he was in trouble at school?
(a) Draw.
(b) Run.
(c) Write.
(d) Fight.

7. How did the author spend most of his time at The Mecca?
(a) Absorbing culture and music.
(b) Listening to and writing poetry.
(c) Reading and taking notes on black literature and essays.
(d) Arguing politics on the Lawn.

8. What is "The Dream" that Coats refers to?
(a) The misconception that all Americans, regardless of race, can achieve success.
(b) Principles set out by the Declaration of Independence.
(c) The ability of every person to achieve their personal goals.
(d) Hope for the future.

9. What difference does the author see between his childhood and that of his son?
(a) His son is living in "The Dream."
(b) He had to learn to fight and survive in a more violent environment.
(c) He had more friends than his son does now.
(d) His son's friends are much wilder than his were.

10. What realization does the author have about his university education?
(a) It was going to provide him with the skills to be a great writer.
(b) He was never going to learn everything he needed to know.
(c) It was a pointless as his public school education.
(d) It was designed to break down myths and reveal the truth about humanity.

11. What 1986 event helped solidify the author's view that violence is inevitable?
(a) He fired his first weapon.
(b) A teenage boy pulled a gun.
(c) His mother iwa mugged.
(d) His father was shot.

12. For whom was the author's son named?
(a) Robert Hayden.
(b) Martin Luther King.
(c) Samori Touré.
(d) Malcom X.

13. How old is the author's son at the time the memoir is written?
(a) 21.
(b) Six.
(c) Two.
(d) 15.

14. Whom did the girl with the long dreads love?
(a) Malcom X.
(b) Prince Jones.
(c) Maya Angelou.
(d) The Author.

15. According to the author, it is important that whether one wins or loses the fight, who should be by your side?
(a) Pride.
(b) Family.
(c) God.
(d) Friends.

Short Answer Questions

1. Whose death reminded the author that his world and his son's were one and the same?

2. According to the author, there is no difference between his son and which murdered 17-year-old?

3. Why does the author feel the interview at the beginning of his memoir was a failure?

4. Why did the author refrain from comforting his son when Michael Brown's killers were set free?

5. As a child, what baffled the author about the nonviolent protests of the civil rights moment?

(see the answer keys)

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