Roots of Racism ZZ Packer’s “Brownies” takes place at Camp Crescendo, a summer camp for fourth grade students near Atlanta, GA. The author is effective in depicting prejudice and racism through Laurel who is objective, open minded, empathetic and less opinionated; the plot of the story may become increasingly hostile and biased if told from Arnetta’s point of view. Laurel, the narrator is objective and open minded in this racially charged environment at the camp. When Arnetta says she heard a girl from Troop 909 call Daphne a “nigger” Laurel is the only one who considers the fact that Arnetta may not have heard the girl correctly. fShe tries to questions this possibility but Arnetta just brushed her off. Laurel has a difficult time believing someone would have used the slur word especially the girl Arnetta points out, “ it is very unlikely this happy-looking girl would call anyone a “nigger” (Milne 2). Laurel also considers the fact that it may not be easy to fight Troop 909 since the girls may also fight back and may even deny saying the slur word. Considering other people’s perspective in a situation without blindly judging them shows.. . Laurel is thoughtful and empathetic towards people who are in difficult situations. When the girls hike to the restroom to scout the area, Daphne starts cleaning up the mess. Laurel notices the way she cleans the bathroom and realizes that Daphne’s family must be poor. “She did it “so methodically, so exquisitely, so humbly she