Sweetness is a light-skinned African American mother living in the 1950s. Raised in a family with a history of passing as white, she internalizes the era's severe racial prejudices. She approaches motherhood with intense anxiety and shame when her daughter is born with dark skin. This fear makes her a strict and emotionally distant parent who rationalizes her harshness as a necessary form of protection.

Lula Ann is the daughter of two light-skinned parents, born with a "blue-black" complexion that causes immediate upheaval in her household. Growing up, she receives virtually no physical affection or warmth from her family. She learns early on that her skin color makes her a target for discrimination both at home and in public.

Louis is Sweetness's light-skinned husband. After three years of a happy marriage, he becomes consumed by suspicion when his daughter is born with a very dark complexion. He refuses to touch the baby, treating her like an enemy out of a baseless belief that his wife was unfaithful.

Sweetness's grandmother is a light-skinned woman who makes the choice to permanently pass as white. Acting out of a desire for self-preservation in a deeply segregated society, she severs all ties with her Black heritage. She returns letters from her own children unopened rather than risk her societal position.

Lula Mae is Sweetness's mother. Despite having light enough skin to pass as white like her own mother does, Lula Mae chooses to live openly as a Black woman. She faces daily indignities and segregation, such as working subservient jobs for white families and being forced to use a separate Bible when marrying.