The stories in Fresh Ink explore the importance of having collective support in order to push back against hate and exclusion. Characters throughout the collection experience intolerance from others in the form of racism, gender bias, anti-gay bias, and other exclusionary behavior: They’re bullied, abused, and made to feel as though their lives are invalid. Additionally, however, the stories reveal that having support from others not only makes it easier to stand up to hate but also gives people a stronger voice of resistance.

For example, in “Don’t Pass Me By,” Doobie faces daily bullying and racism both directly from his peers and indirectly through the school as a whole. The school is mostly white, and Indigenous American students like Doobie, who come from the “Rez,” are often mistreated and bullied by other students, unless (as Doobie’s friend Hayley and many others do) they do their best to appear “white,” in effect abandoning their Indigenous heritage to fit in. Doobie, however, can’t do this due to his appearance and consequently doesn’t fit in and takes the brunt of the abuse. Throughout the story, he endures this abuse, and even the curriculum makes him feel like an outsider.