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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does the author mean when he says black children are told to be "twice as good"?
(a) It is a code for watching out for police officers.
(b) They are being warned to be streetwise and tough.
(c) It is a subtle threat for a beating.
(d) They are expected to behave better than white children when in public.

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

3. Which Howard University student was shot by a PG County officer shortly after the author's encounter with the police?
(a) The author's wife.
(b) Prince Jones.
(c) The girl with the long dreadlocks.
(d) Trayvon Martin.

4. What regret does the author have about the friend he made in France?
(a) He was so blinded by past fears he couldn't enjoy the mutual friendship.
(b) He didn't remember to write down his friend's phone number.
(c) They haven't kept in touch since he has returned to America.
(d) He doesn't remember his friend's name.

5. What did the city of Manhattan try to build over a slave burial site?
(a) The Twin Towers.
(b) A department store and a government building.
(c) A park and a museum.
(d) A school.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the author imagine white parents might tell their children?

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

3. The dead boy's mother channeled her anger into _____.

4. What does the author witness while researching a story on the history of segregation in Chicago?

5. What question does the author pose about assaulting an officer of the law?

Short Essay Questions

1. According to the author, how is racism experienced through city planning and real estate?

2. According to the author, how does the fear of losing one's life promote violence?

3. What impact does the death of Prince Jones have on the author?

4. What reasons does the author give for the woman feeling validated in pushing his son off the escalator?

5. How does the author compare the flight of Abraham Brian to the fear of the modern black man?

6. What in the significance of the author's vision of Prince Jones in the museum?

7. According to Coats, how have the American legal system and the banking industry conspired together to create the illusion known as "The Dream"?

8. What revelation does the author have about police officers and authority figures after the September 11 attacks?

9. Why are black children told to be "twice as good"?

10. Why is the author's fear of his son seeing him arrested greater than his fear of being arrested?

(see the answer keys)

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