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Newt Winger is the main protagonist of the 1963 Gordon Parks novel, The Learning Tree, and its 1969 film adaptation of the same name. He's a poor African-American teenager who has to deal with racism growing up, had witnessed multiple tragedies, and came to the aid of a white man who's falsely accused of murder.
He was portrayed by Kyle Johnson, the son of Star Trek co-star Nichelle Nichols.
Why He Rocks[]
- Despite all the pain he's gone through, he managed to stay strong and focused throughout all of it.
- He's optimistic, caring and a good kind of rebellious. A great combination for an excellent role model for the viewers.
- Excellent character development. He starts of as a naïve teen who was optimistic and didn't know too much about how harshly black people like him where treated, but eventually evolves into a strong, brave independent character who always puts others before himself.
- His touching relationship scenes with Arcella are very sweet.
- He's loyal and dependable, as shown when he willingly does housework around the Kiner's household without charging him for it.
- Even though he knew about how black people like him were treated, he was still willing to risk everything to defend a white man he knew didn't kill commit murder like the others thought during the film's climax.