The Color of Water

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“The Legacy of Jim Crow”

In this activity, students will examine the history of Jim Crow laws in their community in order to understand their wide-ranging impact.

In The Color of Water, McBride details how the legacy of Jim Crow laws and antisemitic and anti-Black sentiment had a profound impact on his sense of self. This was a common experience for children of his generation who were Black or had diverse racial backgrounds. The purpose of this activity is to investigate how laws in your community or a community you’re familiar with impacted the citizens of that community.

• Begin by reading The Constitutional Rights Foundation’s “A Brief History of Jim Crow” to gain a better understanding of the impact of these laws on individual citizens.
• In groups of 3-5, research the community’s history of Jim Crow laws or other laws that were intended as de facto discrimination. You might start with a simple search of your community’s name and “Jim Crow”; you might also consider the archives of your local newspaper or state and local government websites in your initial search.
• As a group, identify one law or story from your research and prepare a 3-5-minute presentation that incorporates visual elements to share with the class. Questions you might consider:
• When was the law enacted? When and why was it overturned?
• How did people in the community react to the law?
• What was the rationale for enacting the law, both officially and unofficially?
• Who helped change the law or overturn it? How were they perceived or presented in the reporting you found?
• Who supported the law? Who opposed the law?
• How and why did feelings about the law change over time?

After you finish the presentations, the class will have a discussion on how the research has changed their opinion about their local community and its history, so be ready to share your thoughts.

Teaching Suggestion: You’ll want to conduct some pre-research before setting students up with this activity, and it might be a good idea to prepare a list of research topics for the students. You’ll also want to consider your local community’s history in how you decide to direct your students, particularly if there are notable incidents of racially-motivated violence that students might encounter; prepare them for the existence of these events and offer them an alternative direction for research if they are uncomfortable with the subject matter.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The Black Power movement leaves a lasting impression on James in his youth.

• What is James’s attitude toward the Black Power movement? (topic sentence)
• In what ways does he find it alluring? In what ways does he find it dangerous?
• In your conclusion, explore how James’s views on Black nationalism evolve over the course of the book, especially as he gains clarity over Growing Up With a Diverse Racial Background in America.

2. A diverse cast of characters is featured throughout The Color of Water.

• What are some of the racial, religious, and generational divides James explores in his memoir? (topic sentence)
• Focusing on three specific divides in the text, how does each relate to James’s journey of self-discovery? 
• In your conclusion, examine how James realizes the Layered Nature of Privilege on the road to self-discovery.

3. Throughout The Color of Water, James poses a compelling argument in favor of the importance of investigating one’s own cultural heritage.

• How does James craft this argument? (topic sentence)
• In what ways is it convincing? In what ways is it flawed?
• In your conclusion, expand upon how James makes the case that one’s Cultural Heritage is an Inescapable Legacy that will follow individuals wherever they go.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Despite the fact that Ruth seeks to bury her Jewish heritage, how and why does it emerge as a cultural force in her adult life, particularly with respect to how she raises her children? Consider the ways in which Ruth is conflicted about her own Jewish identity, and how her conflicted feelings transfer to her children. In your conclusion, explore how Ruth’s experience—and, subsequently, James’s experience—serves as a testament to The Inescapable Legacy of One’s Cultural Heritage.

2. Discuss Ruth’s lack of acknowledgment of race throughout The Color of Water. What are its drawbacks? In what ways does it serve her children well? How does it exacerbate James’s confusion over his own Diverse Racial Background? In your conclusion, assess if, on the whole, Ruth’s “color blindness” was an asset or a hindrance to her children.

3.As an adult in the professional working world, James notices different gradations of privilege among his colleagues. What does James mean when he says that his Black colleagues’ “claims of growing up poor were without merit in my mind” (264)? How does this relate to the differences between the experiences of young Black men who grew up before the War on Drugs versus those who did not? In your conclusion, describe how James’s experiences in the professional world teach him about the Layered Nature of Privilege.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Ruth feels a sense of relief when she leaves her family after marrying a Black man. However, who is the one relative that she felt she “didn’t do right by” when she left the family?

A) Tateh

B) Mameh

C) Her younger sister

D) Her older brother

2. When Tateh comes to America, he Americanizes the family surname to Shilsky from what?

A) Gutowski

B) Korkosz

C) Stinsky

D) Zylska

3. In 1966, James’s older siblings embrace the Black Power movement, singing songs and poems written by what musical group?

A) The Last Poets

B) The Watts Prophets

C) Bob Marley and the Wailers

D) Gil Scott-Heron’s Black and Blues

4. For Tateh, his grocery store is everything. In Chapter 5, what anecdote does Ruth tell about the grocery store that demonstrates Tateh’s hypocritical beliefs around race?

A) He forces Ruth to break up with her Black boyfriend, even though white boys refuse to date her because of her Jewish heritage.

B) He denies service to Black people at his grocery store, even though he is offended when his family is denied entry to the local market.

C) He charges Black customers exorbitant prices, meanwhile facing antisemitic treatment from the community at large.

D) He refuses to allow Black patrons to browse the grocery store unsupervised, despite knowing how uncomfortable and humiliating it is to be the target of heightened surveillance. 

5. James’s older brother Richie experiences “color confusion” surrounding his race, thinking of himself as what color?

A) Blue, like Aquaman

B) Orange, like the Thing

C) Green, like the Incredible Hulk

D) Pink, like the Pink Panther

6. James’s eldest brother, Dennis, attended medical school at what east coast university?

A) University of Pennsylvania

B) Harvard University

C) University of Pittsburgh

D) New York University

7. When Helen drops out of school, her stepfather struggles to make sense of her decision. Which of the following best explains why he is so confused?

A) He is such a big proponent of education that he doesn’t understand why anyone wouldn’t want to be in school.

B) He has warned her that she will never have a future without an education.

C) He thinks of her as one of the most gifted young people he knows, so he always thought she’d grow up to be a scholar.

D) He does not get Helen’s critique of the “white man’s education” because of their generational divide.

8. During adolescence, James spends much of his time either staring in the mirror or losing himself practicing what musical instrument?

A) Piano

B) Clarinet

C) Flute

D) Saxophone

9. Which of Ruth’s relatives helps her arrange for an abortion?

A) Betts, her aunt

B) Cynthia, her cousin

C) Leon, her uncle

D) Yoav, her cousin

10. What is the most important lesson that Chicken Man imparts on James?

A) To never steal from family members

B) To always go to church

C) To never get into a dispute with a woman

D) To pray every single day

11. Which of the following statements best describes what figures like Big Richard and Chicken Man represent for James?

A) Valuable education comes from the streets, not just from formal education.

B) Black men in the South have a unique kind of Blackness compared to James’s own diverse heritage.

C) James’s Jewishness will never allow him to fully relate to Black men of a certain age.

D) Misogyny is deeply ingrained in the men of Suffolk.

12. In her senior year of high school, when Ruth learns that Peter is engaged to another woman who is pregnant, that leaves only one reason for her to stay in Suffolk. What is that reason?

A) She got a scholarship to a university in Suffolk.

B) She is the only one of Tateh’s siblings he trusts to watch the store.

C) She is afraid of the world outside of Suffolk.

D) She wants to stay and look after Mameh, whose health is worsening.

13. When Ruth first meets Dennis in 1939, why is she uninterested in starting a relationship with him?

A) Because is more focused on having fun partying in Harlem

B) Because he seems too aloof for her liking

C) Because he already has a girlfriend

D) Because Mameh told her to be wary of men

14. During high school, James gets the opportunity to go to Europe as part of what extracurricular school group?

A) The American Youth Jazz Band

B) The Young Democrats

C) The Debate Team

D) Writer’s Club

15. When Ruth reaches out to Dee-Dee for help after Dennis is diagnosed with cancer, why does Dee-Dee refuse to help her?

A) Dee-Dee is also experiencing illness.

B) Dee-Dee recently lost her job, and she is struggling to make ends meet.

C) Dee-Dee never forgave Ruth for breaking her promise not to leave Suffolk.

D) Dee-Dee promised Mameh that she would never speak to Ruth again.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What is the structure of The Color of Water, and how does it contribute to the messaging in the book’s themes?

2. Why does James find newsrooms particularly difficult racial battlegrounds to navigate?