The Shake

Book excerpt: On their way home from a boring college party, African American college students Tracey and Janet come across a terrible scene. Members of a traditionally white fraternity have severely beaten two African American freshmen basketball players. Disturbed and upset by the incident, Tracey discovers that one of the athletes was on a date with a white cheerleader at the party. Was the assault racially motivated? Tracey turns to her friend Terrance, the president of an African American organization on campus, for his help and advice. To her surprise, Terrance discounts her theory and tells her not to bother pursuing action against the fraternity. Tracey refuses to let the act go unpunished. After organizing a student protest to shake things up, she's gratified to see it earn coverage from the local press. But she's suddenly catapulted into the national spotlight when the names of two well-known politicians' sons end up in the headlines of the story. With the increasingly tense situation fast growing out of control, Tracey has to make some hard decisions that may affect not only the athletes but the entire campus.