Religion is the backbone of many people’s lives.

It’s not only their beliefs, but it

sets up the way they live. It is the basis that goes on to develop into habits, the way they
speak, their schedules, their beliefs, their temper, etc. This is very much true when it
comes to Trevor’s mother, in Born a Crime.
If my faith in God is strong enough, then no one can stop me. This is not only a
major theme of Born a Crime, but it’s what Trevor’s mom lives by. “If God is with me,
who can be against me?” She was never scared. Even when she should have been.”
(Noah, 14) This quote shows the theme because when she said that, she meant it. She
truly wasn’t afraid of anything. As long as God was there with her, and her faith was
strong enough, no one would get in her way. Regardless of the riots in the streets, and
the threat it posed to her life, she simply didn’t care.
This is proven even further, when Trevor goes into detail explaining the riots.
“Whenever the riots broke out, all our neighbors would wisely hole up behind closed
doors. But not my mom. She’d head straight out, and as we’d inch our way past the
blockades, she’d give the rioters this look. Let me pass. I’m not involved in this shit. She
was unwavering in the face of danger. That always amazed me. It didn’t matter that
there was a war on our doorstep. She had things to do, places to be.” (Noah, 14) I like
his wording here. It didn’t matter if there was a war on our doorstep. His mother was
fearless. The way Noah describes the riots, especially when he brings up the term
Necklacing. I’d be terrified if I was put in that situation, regardless of my religion. But not
his mother, all she needed was her faith in God, and she could persevere through
anything. “Once a month at least we’d drive home and the neighborhood would be on
fire. Hundreds of rioters in the street. My mom would edge the car slowly through the
crowds and around blockades made of flaming tires.” (Noah, 14) Again, just another
quote further backing his mother’s fearlessness. Not only was her life on the line, but
her children’s lives too. She was so confident in God to protect her in situations of need,
that it eliminated her fear completely, and allowed her to push through even the hardest
of times to get where she needed to go.