Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
Lines 9-12
"But, mother, I won't be alone.
Other children will go with me,
And march the streets of Birmingham
To make our country free."
- The child is speaking again. She knows that other children attend the marches—which gives us a sense of the solidarity behind these marches. As well, she believes being in this company will make her more safe.
- So, why does she want to march? "To make [her] country free," she says. And she was right: the marches in Birmingham were instrumental to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. One last thing before we go: who is this girl? We don't have a name or much else to go by, and we're nearly halfway done with the poem.
- Her anonymity is no accident, though. Randall is giving a voice to a child that can represent many children; we aren't given too many specifics, or even her name, for this reason.