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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How many years pass before the author decided to travel overseas with the mother of his son?
(a) Ten.
(b) Two.
(c) One.
(d) Seven.

2. What did the dead boy's mother say to the author's son in the chapter "The Dream"?
(a) "Do not speak back or speak up."
(b) "Be twice as good."
(c) "Never give up. Never surrender."
(d) "You exist. You matter. You have value."

3. What regret does the author have about the incident with his son and the escalator?
(a) That the woman was not punished for shoving a child.
(b) That a pleasant evening was ruined.
(c) That his son learned about violence.
(d) That his son might have seen him arrested.

4. What did the dead boy's mother decide to do after the trial in the chapter "The Dream"?
(a) Plead her son's case before the journalists and writers.
(b) Attack the judge in court.
(c) Shoot the man who murdered her son.
(d) Leave the country.

5. According to the author, how is racism experienced through real estate?
(a) Certain realtors refuse to work with black families.
(b) Neighborhood covenants prohibit black families from buying in certain areas.
(c) Property values are intentionally spiked in traditionally white neighborhoods.
(d) Buyers are purposefully steered towards certain neighborhoods.

6. How does the author describe Prince Jones?
(a) A dreamer and a poet.
(b) A good Christian and scion of a striving class.
(c) A baller and a heartless thug.
(d) A gentle soul washed away by society.

7. What does the author wish he had done differently with the woman who pushed his son?
(a) Stopped and picked up his son first.
(b) Invited her for coffee and talked to her as a person.
(c) Stopped and called the police.
(d) Made her realize her actions were inherently racist.

8. According to the author, this son has been cast into "a race in which the wind is always at your face and _____" what?
(a) Ffire is at your feet.
(b) The hounds are always at your heels.
(c) You will always be running headfirst into it.
(d) A knife is always at your back.

9. Who was Abraham Brian?
(a) A white congressman who lobbied for the rights of free black men.
(b) A slave who led the underground railroad.
(c) A black soldier for the Confederacy.
(d) A free black man who left his home to escape the threat of slavery.

10. To where did the author move to in 2001?
(a) Chicago.
(b) Los Angeles.
(c) Atlanta.
(d) New York.

11. Why did the author want to return to Paris with his son?
(a) He wanted his son to experience life without fear.
(b) He wanted his son to learn French.
(c) He wanted to send his son to a French school.
(d) He wanted to become a French citizen.

12. According to the author, what is the problem with defining a race?
(a) Races shift based off of who is the "beneath" and who is the "above."
(b) There is more intermarriage in a global society.
(c) There are too many variations to categorize.
(d) Race is a cultural - not genetic - term.

13. What comparison does the author make between the police officer who shot Prince Jones and the ones who died on September 11?
(a) One is a villain and the others heroes.
(b) They are all the same in his eyes.
(c) He cannot judge them as police, but as men.
(d) They wear the same cloth.

14. Who took care of the author's son while his mother was away?
(a) The author.
(b) The author's grandmother.
(c) The author's mother.
(d) His step-mother.

15. What unique point does the author make about black Americans in France?
(a) They were never slaves in France, but they were still black.
(b) They are seen as equals by all people.
(c) They are disliked by everyone for being American, not black.
(d) They are seen as wealthy capitalists.

Short Answer Questions

1. Whom does the author describe as the "below of the country"?

2. Why was the author's son pushed off the escalator?

3. From what does the author draw joy?

4. What does the author mean when he says black children are told to be "twice as good"?

5. What threats were made against the author when his son was pushed off the escalator?

(see the answer keys)

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