The Color of a Lie

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of racism, death, and bullying.

Calvin is grounded for two weeks. After that, he bikes to Sojourner and finds a Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) organizing meeting led by Eugene and James. Robert isn’t attending because he thinks his former organizing indirectly led to Charlotte’s death.

Lily wants more Black students to attend Heritage. They make a plan for more Black families to secretly buy houses in Levittown. Eugene asks if Calvin will be the group’s informant about Vernon Reality, who leads housing segregation. Calvin agrees.

Calvin wants to make Lily proud, but he’s also afraid. Eugene reminds him of a younger Robert, who didn’t think anything could harm him. Since Heritage can’t legally deny any applications sent to the school, but they also won’t give applications to Black students, they ask Calvin if he’ll get the applications. Calvin tells Eugene and Harry about his relationship with Emmett Till.

Eugene asks Calvin to take them to a CORE meeting in Virginia, using his passing privilege to drive them safely. Calvin thinks he can do it if he convinces his parents that he’s spending the night at Alex’s after Heritage’s dance, and he convinces Alex to cover for him.