Brownies

Referred to as Snot for most of the story, Laurel is the story’s narrator and a member of the black Brownie troop at Camp Crescendo. She lives in an all-black suburb south of Atlanta. As the narrator, Laurel is more of an observer than an actor, recording the thoughts and words of those around her more often than actually making a decision or voicing an opinion. She does, however, act as the voice of reason atcertainpoints in the story, trying to convince Arnetta and Octavia that they are wrong about Troop 909 being racists (though her urgings fall on deaf ears), and later, trying to make a point about racism through her account of her father and the Mennonites at the story’s conclusion. 

Arnetta is the unspoken leader of Snot’s Brownie troop. A bully and a tyrant, it’s Arnetta who first spreads the false rumor that one of the members of Troop 909 has called Daphne a ni****. Arnetta believes her own perception of events to be entirely correct, and in this manner, may be viewed as narcissistic. Even once it’s discovered that Arnetta is wrong about Troop 909, she keeps trying to accuse 909’s members of being racist.