Read the excerpt from Pink and Say. “Least you got to carry. In the Forty-eighth, we couldn’t have guns at first. We fought with sticks and hammers and sledges. Can you imagine not trustin’ us with our own fight?”

I couldn’t imagine such a thing.

“Then when they did finally give us muskets, they were from the Mexican-American War. Those muskets jammed and misfired!”

“Then how, in God’s name, can you want to go back?” I asked.

“’Cause it’s my fight, Say. Ain’t it yours, too? If we don’t fight, then who will?”

Which answer best states a theme developed by the details in the excerpt?

By standing up for oneself, it is possible to create a better future.

A person will learn more by following than by taking the lead.

It is often better to accept what is happening than to fight against it.

At times, it is better to remain silent than to speak out.