In the 1920s in Sugarlock, Tennessee, the scandal surrounding the birth of Wheat Grass destroys the marriage and family of Paul and Mildred Grass. Wheat's fair skin and green eyes cause a rift that leads to the death of her mother separating what remains of the once happy family. In Mound Bayou, Mississippi, Paul raises his wife's illegitimate child alongside his daughter, Olive. But Wheat's exotic look draws negative attention that Paul cannot bear alone in the racist South. After her parents’ death, Olive blames her sister for ruining her life, and eventually finds herself running from color to Chicago leaving their grandmother to raise Wheat alone. But when Wheat's existence causes tension in Sugarlock, Wheat must run from color herself, and the only safe place for her is with her estranged sister in Chicago. Olive begrudgingly takes Wheat in where Wheat learns that Olive hates her for circumstances outside her control, and that Olive has succumbed to society's color line. Will they put aside their physical differences and tackle the hurt from the past, or will they run from color again? Running from Color tells a story of being on opposing shades of the chocolate rainbow, a story that belongs to many, but has been largely silenced in the African American community.