“I was with the 24th Infantry. We fought alongside the 27th across most of Korea.” 

Atticus confronts the white mechanics who refuse to sell him a tire. He reiterates the danger to himself, well aware that he runs the risk of being attacked for his skin color. Atticus hopes to find common ground with the men and convince them that he is an upstanding American, just like they believe themselves to be. To accomplish this, he points to his military service and uses inclusion pronouns such as “we.” However, the men ignore his pleas. Military service does not improve Atticus’s life in their eyes and becomes just another failed attempt to find common understanding with racists. 

“It ain’t about happy. It’s about being whole. You have a right to that. You have a duty to that.” 

Montrose has witnessed terrible violence due to racism in society. The trauma of his past gives his life a purpose, one which he struggles to pass on to his son. Montrose is willing to give up his own happiness to achieve racial justice. He will not settle for an adequate existence or any form of compromise. In his view, no one should rest until true equality is found. Everything until that point—however happy it might make a person—is inherently tainted.