April Raintree Quotes

Have you ever seen racism in action? Have you seen the damage it can do to a person, how it can haunt them for the rest of their lives? Discrimination changes people. It changes their perception of themselves, and the people around them. It makes them build walls and hide who they are in fear of more ridicule and alienation from their peers. The novel April Raintree by Beatrice Culleton is a prime example of the affects racism can have on people, and shows how drastically it can change them and their outlook on the world.
The first time April and Cheryl are shown to experience racism is when they are young children, before they are taken away from their parents. On one of the many times April takes Cheryl to play in the park, the white children
This causes her to argue with Cheryl, revealing her true opinions of their Metis heritage, and lose touch with her for several months. Furthermore, she finds out that her husband is having an affair that his mother is encouraging to avoid having mixed children, saying “That’s the trouble with mixed races. You never know how they’re going to turn out. And I would simply hate being grandmother to a bunch of sniveling little half-breeds” (100). This causes her to divorce her husband, doubting their entire relationship and marriage.
All of these little moments may seem miniscule at the time, but ultimately they cause April to grow into an insecure, guarded person who hides her race and emotions to avoid judgement, as well as become judgemental to both white people and First Nations people. It also causes strain on her and Cheryl’s relationship, who grows up in support of her mixed race from her peers. These two characters show the different ways that race can affect people’s outlook on life, and goes in depth about the doubt and insecurities it can give