The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963

Byron tries to sneak into the house wearing a hat and a handkerchief on his head, but Momma scolds him for wearing the hat in the house. When he removes the hat and handkerchief, Kenny and Momma are shocked to see Byron’s straight and reddish hair: “Byron had gotten a conk! A process! A do! A butter! A ton of trouble!” (87). Momma reprimands Byron and tells him how foolish he looks, but she leaves his punishment to Dad. Kenny tells Joey about Byron’s hair when she gets home from Sunday school, and they visit Byron in the bedroom. Kenny teases Byron, trying to interview him as a convicted death row inmate on his way to execution. Joey is sad and worried. Byron tells Kenny that he, Byron, sees that “every other punk Chihuahua in America is climbing out of the woodwork to try and take a bite” from him because he is the “top-dog wolf” (92).

When Dad gets home, Momma forewarns him that Byron did something that day and calls Byron down. Dad tells Byron he guesses the hairdo is permanent and that he cannot do anything about it; Byron agrees. Then Dad takes Byron to the bathroom and shaves his head.