Clementine “Tish” Rivers and Alonzo “Fonny” Hunt have been friends their whole lives, beginning a romantic relationship when older. In the 1970s, they struggle to find an apartment as most New York landlords won’t rent to black people. Eventually, they find a place in a warehouse being converted to loft apartments; Levy, the Jewish landlord, rents it to them at a good rate because he enjoys seeing couples who are in love, regardless of race.
That night, Tish is harassed by a man while in a mostly white grocery store. He begins to assault her, so Fonny physically throws him out of the store. A white policeman nearby, Officer Bell, attempts to arrest Fonny for it, but reluctantly lets him go when the Jewish woman who runs the grocery store vouches for them and chastises Bell for his racism.
Fonny is later arrested and accused of raping a woman named Victoria Rogers. Although nearly impossible for him to have gone from the scene of the crime to the apartment where he was arrested in the time between the rape and the arrest, the case against Fonny is considered strong due to Officer Bell’s testimony. The claim is he saw Fonny fleeing the scene, and Victoria identified Fonny in a lineup as her rapist. Tish, as well as Fonny’s friend Daniel Carty, were with him at the time of the rape, but it is considered an unreliable alibi due to Tish’s romantic relationship with Fonny and Daniel’s previous conviction for grand theft auto (although actually arrested for marijuana possession).
Tish visits Fonny in jail as he awaits trial, and reveals to him that she is pregnant with their baby. Fonny is excited to be a father, but saddened that the birth might be while he is still behind bars. Later, Tish tells her parents, Sharon and Joseph, and sister, Ernestine, about her pregnancy. Though worried for her, Tish’s family is supportive and decide to invite Fonny’s family over to share the news.