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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Chapter Twelve: A Scapegoat to Bear the Sins of the World," what does Wilkerson imply is true about the American response to the 2013 Ebola outbreak?
(a) That Americans did not care as long as it was confined to primarily Black communities.
(b) That Americans withheld antiviral treatment from Africans.
(c) That American aid was designed to confine the disease to Africa.
(d) That it only became a priority once Americans became sick.

2. In "Chapter Twenty-Two: The Stockholm Syndrome and the Survival of the Subordinate Class," what does the Black bailiff do when the white killer of a Black man begins crying about her conviction?
(a) Shoves her as she is being escorted from the court.
(b) Comforts her by stroking her hair.
(c) Tells her to shut up and stop crying.
(d) Tells her that it will be okay and calls her "honey."

3. In "Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Symbols of Caste," about how many Confederate monuments does Wilkerson say exist in the modern United States?
(a) 700.
(b) 300.
(c) 130.
(d) 1,700.

4. According to "Chapter Twenty-Five: A Change in the Script," what percentage of White voters voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012?
(a) 32% each time.
(b) 43 and 39%, respectively.
(c) 45% each time.
(d) 38 and 23%, respectively.

5. In "Chapter Twenty-Two: The Stockholm Syndrome and the Survival of the Subordinate Class," what is the purpose of including the story about Deandre Somerville's experience with jury duty?
(a) It is meant to show that even inside the supposedly impartial world of jury deliberations Black Americans are treated with prejudice.
(b) It is meant to show that Black and white Americans are not extended the same measure of "grace" by the justice system.
(c) It is meant to show that even Black children are harshly penalized by the justice system for minor offenses.
(d) It is meant to show that juries are still generally mostly white, even in the twenty-first century.

6. What does Tushar, from the London conference in "Chapter Ten: Central Miscasting," say caused him to question the caste system?
(a) The disparity in privilege he witnessed in India.
(b) His own status as a Dalit.
(c) The treatment his father received by members of the highest caste.
(d) His Hindu faith.

7. In "Chapter Twenty: The Inevitable Narcissism of Caste," what does Wilkerson say about whites who take time to consider the Black perspective?
(a) They do not exist.
(b) They are important allies.
(c) They are rare.
(d) They often refuse to act on their understanding.

8. In "Chapter Thirteen: The Insecure Alpha and the Purpose of an Underdog," what is Wilkerson arguing about the role of the "omega" wolf, at the bottom of the pack hierarchy?
(a) It performs a valuable and necessary role.
(b) That it does not actually exist in natural wolf groupings.
(c) That humans should treat people at the bottom of the human "pack" with more kindness and respect.
(d) That since humans are not canines, it is not relevant to human societies.

9. In "Chapter Ten: Central Miscasting," how many other people of African descent are at the London conference besides Wilkerson?
(a) None.
(b) The conference is primarily attended by Africans and African Americans.
(c) One.
(d) Dozens.

10. What fact does Wilkerson offer in "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste" to refute the common idea that economic insecurity cause people to vote for Trump?
(a) Clinton won among voters in the lowest economic bracket.
(b) Clinton won among non-White voters.
(c) Clinton won the popular vote.
(d) Clinton won among Whites with no college degree.

11. In "Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Symbols of Caste," Wilkerson mentions the "Lost Cause." What does this term refer to?
(a) The attempt to use Reconstruction to alter not only the legal position of Blacks in the South but their social status as well.
(b) An alternative perspective regarding the contribution of enslaved Blacks to the economy of the South.
(c) The desire of modern progressives to base governance on science and humanism.
(d) A factually incorrect ideology that says that the Civil War was not fought over slavery but "states' rights" and that in any case slavery was not such a bad thing.

12. In "Chapter Twenty-Five: A Change in the Script," what Lyndon Johnson prediction about Southern voters does Wilkerson relate?
(a) They would stop voting for Democrats after Democrats supported Civil Rights legislation.
(b) They would elect politicians who promised to suppress the Black vote.
(c) They would become the most loyal base of the Democratic party.
(d) They would be led by a White evangelical voting bloc.

13. In "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste," Wilkerson uses the term "kitchen table appeals" (327). What kinds of appeals are these?
(a) Appeals to food-related issues like food safety, agricultural policy, and food scarcity.
(b) Appeals to women's concerns with reproductive freedom, physical safety, and equal rights.
(c) Appeals to caste-related concerns like immigration, voting rights, and affirmative action.
(d) Appeals to everyday people's concerns with money, education, and health care.

14. In "Chapter Twenty-Three: Shock Troops on the Borders of Hierarchy," what are the Black women on the wine train ejected from the train for?
(a) Causing a disturbance by laughing and talking.
(b) Insisting that they be served before the other passengers.
(c) Delaying the train by boarding too slowly.
(d) Endangering themselves and others by drinking excessively.

15. In "Chapter Fifteen: The Urgent Necessity of a Bottom Rung," what is the story of Burton Holmes and Freddie Stowers meant to illustrate?
(a) Even Black soldiers have not been exempt from racial harassment.
(b) The American system will go to great lengths to suppress or ignore lower-caste success.
(c) The French made white Americans uncomfortable by praising Black soldiers.
(d) The United States government does not extend the same veteran's support and benefits to Black soldiers.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "Chapter Twenty-Four: Cortisol, Telomeres, and the Lethality of Caste," what are the "telomeres" Wilkerson talks about?

2. In "Chapter Twenty-Four: Cortisol, Telomeres, and the Lethality of Caste," what does the Nigerian immigrant discover about living in America?

3. On page 283 of "Chapter Twenty-Two: The Stockholm Syndrome and the Survival of the Subordinate Class," what does Wilkerson quote anthropologist Edmund Leach as saying about the lowest caste in India?

4. In "Chapter Fourteen: The Intrusion of Caste in Everyday Life," what figure of speech does Wilkerson use when she says that modern caste protocols "are like the wind" (212)?

5. In "Chapter Twenty-Four: Cortisol, Telomeres, and the Lethality of Caste," which of the following groups does Wilkerson say tends to show more of the negative health impacts of prejudice?

(see the answer keys)

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