I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings (200)

Summary:
 In this section Maya graduates from the eighth grade, and the author demonstrates to the reader different aspects of racism through the graduation ceremony. That is, Maya stated that for black people in Stamps an eight grade graduation is a great event. Also a white speaker by the name of Mr. Edward Donleavy, who came to speak about different improvements in local schools, mentioned that the white schools received new lab equipment for their science classes. However he simply said that there were a lot of black college athletes that had graduated from that school. Maya took this as an insult, because she felt that it was a way of saying that Black students only achieve greatness through sports, not their intelligence. Her mood during the graduation was very low until Henry Reed the valedictorian of their graduating class begins to lead his class in the song :"Lift Ev'ry Voice and Song". This song was considered the Negro National Anthem. As she joined them her pride and mood increases immediately.
 On the other Maya had a horrible tooth ache because of two rotten teeth and had gone to a white dentice with Momma. The reason why she didn't go to a black dentice was because the nearest one was in fact very far, and there was a white dentice that Momma knew. Momma had lent Dr. Lincoln money during the great depression. However when she asked him to treat Maya, he refused to treat a black patient. She reminded him that she had loaned him money years ago, and still he insisted that he was not going to treat Maya, and he reminded Momma that he had paid her back already. Momma then told him that he owed her interest, and he in return gave er ten dollars. In the end Momma had to take Maya to a black dentice.

 By the end of this section, Momma planned to send Maya and Bailey back to California to live with their mother. Before this Bailey had experienced the shock of his life. He saw a dead black man being pulled out of a pond, and was told by a white man, who was laughing, to help him load the black man's body into a wagon. On top of that, the white man pretended that he was going to put Bailey along with the other black men hat were there, in the wagon and lock him in there. Bailey went him shaking and pale.

Quote: 

"Annie, my policy is I'd rather stick my hand in a dog's mouth than in a nigger's" (Angelou 189).

Reaction:

This quote is when Dr. Lincoln did not want to treat Maya. When I read this I was confused, because I wasn't sure what to think about him. I didn't know where to think he was rood and a racist because he didn't want to treat a little girl just because she was black, or to think he was nice because of the way he spoke to Momma since she had entered his space. Also I wasn't sure if I should categorize him as a hypocrite; he did accept her money during the Great Depression, but doesn't accept her now. I wonder if he had this great epiphany that made him now think that if it wrong to associate with a black person, or if he even thinks that it is wrong to associate with a black person. Sadly, I am still not pleased with this character, and do not know how to characterize him. Is he rood? A hypocrite? A racist? An opportunist? Selfish? All the above?