Even the Earth Is a Revolutionary
- A bunch of the kids stick around after breakfast for what is called "the program."
- Turns out this is a class of some kind, run by Sister Mukumbu and another woman, Sister Pat.
- Sister Mukumbu is actually warm and welcoming; things are finally looking up a bit.
- The classroom walls are covered with photos of important black figures: Malcolm X, Huey Newton (the leader of the Black Panthers), and Muhammad Ali are the only ones Delphine recognizes, though there are many other men and women on display.
- The walls also have big pieces of paper with slogans, ideological values, and mission statements written on them.
- Right away, Sister M calls a child up for a demonstration.
- The student is Hirohito Woods, the very same boy that was on the "Flying T" last night—you know, the one Delphine immediately decided she didn't like.
- For the demo, Hirohito is the Earth, and Sister M is the Sun; Hirohito spins around while walking in circles around Sister M.
- For Delphine, watching Hirohito go through this humiliation is sweet revenge.
- But there's a message here, too: The Earth revolves around the sun. Revolve… revolution… revolutionary… See where she's going?
- This is a clever metaphor. Sisters Mukumbu and Pat name revolutionaries like Huey Newton and Che Guevara, people who made things change. They point out that things change over time, so it is natural for people's rights to be revolutionized, too.
- When it's time to talk about the kids' part in the revolution, Vonetta's hand shoots up.
- They didn't come for a revolution, she explains; they came for breakfast and to meet their mother.
- Suffice it to say, Delphine is embarrassed by this last bit.