Who the heck is Mr. Z?

    In all seriousness, "Mr. Z" by M. Carol Holman was a well-written, insightful poem. What I don't understand is why the author decided to give the main character a name in the title at all if he was not going to mention it or use it in the poem at any point? Is there an underlying meaning that I'm not picking up? If so, what is it?
    However, besides my hang-up on the name, I actually found this poem interesting to say the least. One of the first details I picked up on was the fact that the character was black. "His mother's skin was the sign of error," (Holman) being in the first line, must mean that his being African American was important. And as we see in the remainder of the poem, this turns out to be true. He worked hard at everything, hoping that one day, it would all pay off. He married a former Jewish women, which to me says that it was probably out of love- that was probably the kind of thing that could ruin both of their reputations. Then, in the end, though he may not have gotten very far in society at that time, he did become "'One of the most distinguished members of his race'"(Holman). I feel like that last line speaks volumes. Even though he sought after his ambitions, worked hard, and never gave up trying, the majority of people will never realize it because they cannot see past the color of his skin. It's utterly disappointing, and yet completely true.