How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from West Side Story.
Quote #1
RIFF: Tony, this is important.
TONY: Everything's important, Riff. You, me, the sweet guy I work for.
[…]
I promised Doc I'd clean up the store tonight.
When Riff tries to convince Tony to come to the dance to confront the Sharks, he resists. We see him cheerfully hauling around cases of soda at Doc's store and generally being a good guy. He's done with the Jets; other things are more important to him now. He's become a hardworking guy; it's a hopeful picture. Does the movie's ending prove there's really no escape from your social circumstances no matter how hard you try?
Quote #2
MARIA: If Bernardo knew.
TONY: We'll let him know. I'm not one of 'em, Maria.
MARIA: But you are not one of us. And I am not one of you
Racial conflict divides people into "us" and "them," and this never ends well. Tony's the romantic who thinks that their love will transcend that. Maria's more practical, probably because as an immigrant, she's been on the receiving end of racist attitudes.
Quote #3
RIFF: Dear kindly Sergeant Krupke,
Ya gotta understand--
It's just our bringin' upke
That gets us outta hand.
Our mothers all are junkies,
Our fathers all are drunks.
Golly Moses, naturally we're punks!
Although this is a comic piece, it shows us that Riff knows a lot about the causes of juvenile delinquency—or at least what the generally accepted theories are. Naturally, the Jets are singing it to each other because the people in a position to do something about it (like Sgt. Krupke himself) really just don't care.