Chapter summaries
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Part 2
Chapter 16
Five weeks after Khalil’s death, Starr is doing an interview on national TV. Starr is asked questions about who Khalil was. She focuses on his youth, his personality, and his kind heart. She explains that Khalil only sold drugs to help his mother get out of a situation with a gang leader in their neighborhood. But she also says she does not understand why the media makes it sound like it was ok for the police to shoot him if he was a drug de…
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Part 5
Chapter 22
Three weeks later, the grand jury is about to announce their decision. Starr goes over to Chris’ house, where she realizes she feels out of place. She wants to have sex, but Chris says no because he notices that she is not in a good place, and he does not want it to happen like that.
That night, Seven rings Starr to say DeVante is missing. Seven, Starr, and Chris drive to Iesha’s house in Garden Heights. They sneak inside and see several King Lords dancing in the back yard. DeVante is in one of the bedrooms, badly injured. Iesha finds them and tells them to get DeVante out of the house, along with Kenya and her little sister. They are nearly caught by King, but Iesha covers for them by distracting King. On the car radio, they hear that the grand jury has decided not to charge the officer who murdered Khalil.
Chapter 23
They are all shocked by the jury’s decision not to charge One-Fifteen. Starr, Seven, and DeVante feel so angry they want to join a protest or riot. They head downtown and join the crowd. Chris feels out of place, but he understands that this is how Starr and Seven feel at school. As the riot gets out of hand, they run away. In the car, Chris and the others talk about being white and being black, and the others question Chris’ assumptions about black people. Chris admits that some of his comments about these issues have been insensitive. The group then heads towards their father’s store, as they are worried it might be targetted by the rioters.
Chapter 24
Seven’s car runs out of gas in an unfamiliar part of the neighborhood. The boys get out and push, but they decide they have to leave the car. They walk until they reach the spot where Khalil was killed, where a crowd of protestors has gathered. April Ofrah is leading the protest. She spots Starr and leads her onto the to…