CW: police brutality, death, racism

Reread in April 2021
I am still so impressed with Nic Stone's Dear Martin. I am sad it is still so timely even after four years. 2017-me was right: this book is one that will stay with you forever.

Nic Stone's writing reads so nicely and I always end up flying through this book. I cannot wait to read more of her work soon.

I received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

This book is one of those few that will stay with you forever.

Dear Martin by Nic Stone follows the story of Justyce McAllister who is doing a project to be more like Dr Martin Luther King Jr. by writing him letters. The book covers how it is to be profiled based on only race and how it is to live with everyday racism. I do not want to say anything more because I do not want to give anything away. Just pick up this book. After you have read feel free to read my spoilery thoughts down below.

Spoiler

It is hard to review this book while not reflecting on it in real life and my own life. Part of the reason I think this book will stick with me forever is that I am privileged enough to never experience this. I am a twenty-year old white European girl living in the rural areas of the Netherlands. Nobody here owns a gun unless they are police officers.

That doesn't mean there aren't racial problems, though. One of our biggest holidays features people in blackface (google Sinterklaas en Zwarte Piet). People, even politicians, defend it by saying they don't want to ruin this tradition of a children's holiday but I don't think the children will care as much as their parents do. And that's excluding the negative effect it might how on children of colour. We call our days of trading in people "one of the black pages in our history" yet slavery is glossed over in most of the history classes I have had. Populist parties like the PVV and the refugee crisis have led to more Islamophobia and hate. And these are just a few problems.

In the first chapter, Justyce is arrested because of racial profiling. During the debates at school about race, some people made arguments that for example, affirmative action is discriminating against the majority. Or even that racism is not a problem anymore. Yet, this book shows how it still is a problem. Only now it is more hidden and easier to close your eyes to. Or maybe it has always been that way, I am not sure. Please enlighten me because I feel like I still have a lot to learn about (American) racial problems.

And it shows it some more in the second part of the book. Manny and Justyce get shot at over something as stupid as having their music too loud, cussing and not listening to someone. It is just so awful to know that this could happen today. It is so awful knowing that with police brutality small things like this were enough to kill!
How does one live like this? The police who should protect everyone is scared of you. They don't see you but something else, something less. And of course, not everyone does, but enough do. How I wish this wasn't still a problem, but it is.

Part of the impact comes because you spend time with both Justyce and Manny and they are these great, sweet guys. And I could not help but go back in my mind to Ferguson 2014 when the news broke here of protests in the US because of Micheal Brown, a boy, who was killed by a police officer.

How can I help to make it better? Maybe I am naive but I had always hoped that when my generations would be the grown ups this would all just stop. However, after the events in Charlottesville, I am not so sure anymore. So how can I help?

So yeah, Dear Martin was a devastating story to me which woke me up a little more. And I think that was the book's purpose or the author's intent.

I recommend Dear Martin to anyone who is looking for books similar to The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas. And I would also recommend it to fellow white people who are unlikely to ever experience what Justyce experiences.