At the beginning of the story she is evicted from her apartment over a rent dispute, and soon meets a man in a café who offers her lodging in his house.
[1] The narrator lives in the home for a week but is unable to find work, instead passing her time thinking, drinking and singing.
She is scrutinized by her neighbors, who disparage the narrator's lack of work, drinking habits, and singing; one couple is also overtly racist and sexist towards her.
The first encounter results in her being fined £5 for singing in the street, while during the second she (in a fit of frustration) throws a rock through the couple's window and is arrested.
The narrator is unable to pay her fine or explain her case to the local magistrate, and so is incarcerated for 10 days in Holloway Prison.
[1] "Let Them Call It Jazz" is one of the short stories Jean Rhys' wrote at Cheriton Fitzpaine during her absence from the literary spotlight.