payment page
The ghost of a young boy who died at Parchman, Richie embodies the novel's exploration of memory, and literally represents the lingering impact of racial violence. Richie is about twelve years old, and during his life he was a young inmate at Parchman Farm alongside Jojo's grandfather, Pop. Richie's untimely and tragic death leaves him trapped in a liminal space between life and the afterlife. He doesn’t remember how he died, and he can’t move on from Earth while the unfinished story still ties him down. He’s guided by the presence of a supernatural, shape-shifting figure, which sometimes appears to him as a white snake, and sometimes as a black carrion bird covered with scales. This guide tries to lead him toward discovering the truth of his death, which, it tells him, will allow him to move on to the next life. When Jojo and his family arrive at Parchman to pick up Michael, Richie immediately recognizes Jojo as a relative of Pop’s and follows him home to try and complete his quest for the truth.
Although Pop can’t hear or see him, Richie’s relationship with Jojo’s grandfather is one of the most important in Sing, Unburied, Sing. Pop was a source of strength and protection for Richie while he lived, and the love they shared was the main reason that Pop eventually killed him. Although most of the violence in the novel has nothing to do with love or kindness, killing Richie is Pop’s way of sparing the boy the grim fate of being tortured and lynched. Richie’s presence is a literal reminder of the way the South’s history of enslavement impacts the everyday lives of Black people in the US, and he represents the legacy of discrimination and hatred that hangs over American history. His narrative arc is also a call to remember and to bear witness to the injustices that were (and are) perpetrated against people of color in America.
