Life on the Color Line: The True Story of a White Boy Who Discovered He Was Black

Williams portrays himself as a child who obeys his parents, even his father’s ridiculous, drunken demands. However, Williams sometimes resists: For example, he stops riding along when his father drives drunk; he resists entreaties to join the church; when told to avoid white girls, he pursues them; and when told he can’t take advanced math, he asks his father to meet with the assistant principal. Was Williams a compliant child, interested in pleasing adults around him, or more of a contrarian? Are compliant children or contrarians more likely to be high achievers?

Although his sons are only 9 and 10 years old, Tony forces them to find work to supplement what Sallie and then Dora can provide. Does he have no other recourse? Given that their jobs are so limited, couldn’t Tony have worked several of them himself? Why didn’t those who provided work for the boys ask Tony to do the work instead? Can such child labor happen today?

A group of Shed Town boys heckle and pursue Williams and other athletes. Some hecklers start turning violent, causing the athletes to run for safety. They later marvel that many of the assailants cheered for them during football and basketball games. Why did the poverty-stricken youth of Shed Town turn on the Black youth of Muncie? Why did lower middle-class white students ignore the conflict between the other two groups? Do these dynamics exist today?

Teachers warn Williams about interacting with white girls, and Williams adds that this is the only counseling he receives from anyone in the Muncie school system. Are the warnings in any sense for his benefit? If not, who are the adults trying to protect? What, if anything, should Williams have been counseled in that situation? It’s unclear whether the teachers also counsel Janie, the white girl who set up a romantic meeting with Williams in the school. What, if anything, should a school counselor have said to her?

Virtually every plan, prediction, and project of Tony’s falls apart. He’s wrong about job prospects, political favors, financial matters, and relationships. He blames others for his failures when he’s clearly his own worst enemy. Ironically, his only accurate predictions are about his sons: He correctly predicts greatness for Williams and desolation for Mike. Why is he right about this yet wrong about everything else? Given the havoc he wrought in Williams’s life, why did Williams include him in the book’s dedication?

Given her family’s reactions when they discover that she’s dating a Black man, Sara Whitney must have understood beforehand the implications for her socially and within her family if her relationship with Williams became known. Is being “in love” an adequate reason for a young person to risk their career and well-being by dating someone of a different race? If she’d been older and wiser, would she have made the same decision? Many TV commercials, movies, and series portray racially diverse couples. Has this become the norm, or do racial barriers still exist for couples today? Support your answers.

After 10 years of hoping to see his mother again, Williams rejects her explanations about abandoning the boys and failing to reestablish ties with them—despite knowing where they were and having closely observed them. If a mother has reason to believe that the father of her children may react violently if she interacts with them, is she foolish to risk establishing contact? Did Mary have any reason to believe that Tony would treat her civilly if she visited the brothers while she was in Muncie? Why or why not?

Williams enjoyed an exceptional legal and educational career, filled with achievements and accolades of the highest order. His accomplishments demonstrate not only a brilliant mind but a relentless drive to succeed. To what extent was his success proportional to what he experienced as a child? Would Williams have achieved what he did had he grown up in middle-class Virginia believing that both his parents were white?