the hate you give movie essay

71 The Hate U Give (2018)

Race, Gender, and Policing in The Hate U Give

By Marisa Oritz

An emotional film describing the struggles of those involved in cases of police brutality, The Hate U Give , directed by George Tillman Jr., is an adaptation of the novel written by Angie Thomas. This film makes me eager to watch it over and over because of the message it conveys. It is centered around ideologies and stereotypes of African Americans in society and how the different communities react to certain events. This movie, just like all others, leaves people with different ways of viewing the world. It opens up a new door that gives them an understanding of how and why certain people act and react in that way. Others should be interested in this film because it is a moving and eye-opening story that makes you want to help make a difference in the world. While many films with a dominant black cast pose as “ghetto,” “lower-middle-class,” “violence,” etc., this film, in particular, conveys those adjectives, it does so in a different way. Yes, it shows what people think of when they hear “black community,” but the way the author, director, and producer made this film offers a new way of viewing it. The story, editing, sound design, and cinematography make this film’s message want to see a change in America. The Hate U Give demonstrates the meaning of difference, power, and discrimination by touching on topics of police brutality, white supremacy, African Americans in film, and women in film.

Starr, the main character, is a teenage African American girl who lives in a black community but goes to a dominantly white prep school. Her friends and boyfriend go to the same school and are white. Though back in her hometown, her childhood friend is a teenage African American boy. The storyline is centered around the tragic event of her childhood best friend dying due to police brutality. Starr starts to notice that her friends are not her friends, the cops will not do anything, and she has to make a hard decision about whether to testify in court or not. The gang’s correlation impacts this decision because the boy who died was a part of their crew. Starr takes her anger and frustration out on teaching the public that the way they are thinking and doing things is wrong and that all the fighting and violence needs to stop. Racism has always been an issue in America, but there has been more spotlight on the topic in the past few years. 2020 has had its share of events, and one of those events is the Black Lives Matter movement. This film demonstrates the power that cops have and how African Americans have witnessed or experienced criminal injustices. There has been an increase in protests and movements for creating equality. More and more police brutality cases have been rising from the past and present, demanding that the police who wrongfully harmed or killed those men and women be brought to justice. The film, The Hate U Give, shows and creates emotion like those who lived through a similar event themselves.

There are a few differences in the film that relate to the characters and their environment. There is a difference between privileged and unprivileged seen in different ways in the film. One instance in the movie is how Starr lives in a lower-class neighborhood, and she feels like she can not bring any of her white friends over because they will judge her or will not understand her home life. Later in the film, she allows her rich and privileged boyfriend to take her home from the dance, but he is in a limo (01:27:10-01:27:47). The film shows the limo pulling up to her house, and the viewers can see the difference between the two worlds or privileged and unprivileged. The difference between the lower-middle class and the upper-middle class is highly represented. One distinct difference has to do with Starr’s family situation compared to her African American Uncle. Her uncle lives in a lovely neighborhood where there are no gangs nearby compared to Starr’s dangerous neighborhood where gunshots can be heard at night. There is also the difference in lifestyle when comparing her life [Starr’s] to her school friends. Her friends have luxury items and houses, whereas Starr does not.

There are two forms of power in the film: white power and the power of the truth. White power comes from the dad of the cop who shot the innocent black male. The father and the news paint the picture as having the cop being the victim in the situation. He puts out a statement about him, his son, and his family to defend their title. He is trying to sway the public into believing that it was a horrible mistake saying how they are getting threats and backlash from the event. The news plays footage of black people doing gang-related activities, mentioning how crime in black neighborhoods has increased and how the police are there to help make it a safer place. White power also comes from the murderous cop himself because he was a white cop with reason to believe the black male had a weapon. Therefore after the jury understands that the cop had caused to fire at a supposedly black gang banger male they found the cop not guilty. This power theme seems to happen very often because people like to judge based on social stigmas and ideologies surrounding certain communities. Power in this film also comes from the main character, Starr. After seeing her friend get shot dead by the police, she now has the move to go to trial or stay silent and not become a target. Though, after countless interactions with certain people in her life, it becomes clear to her that some people just do not get it. Starr decides to use her voice and tries to get the police officer who killed her friend imprisoned. She also takes a stand against her so-called best friend after she countlessly makes remarks towards African Americans. Starr confronts Hailey after tension builds up throughout the movie and asks her why others who look like her come off as dangerous and threatening, but she does not (01:39:40-01:40:52). Starr makes a statement towards the police blockade at a street protest, and people follow her lead (01:50:38-01:52:26). Then towards the end of the movie, she steps in front of her little brother with a gun to protect him from getting shot at by the police because he is just a kid who is afraid of the violence. As Jessica King, a well-known movie critique from Variety, put it, “She is also glowingly emblematic of a new American generation unfairly tasked with solving social ills they had no hand in making, but of which they are overwhelmingly the victims” (par. 9). It is rare for films to have a young black female hold power in the movie, though it has become more common.

Discrimination is directly represented on the screen, though there could be some off-screen as well. When talking about on-screen, there is one character that seems to demonstrate discrimination and racism. Hailey, Starr’s school friend, makes comments about black people. Hailey makes remarks about how all black people are dangerous. She tells Starr how her friend who got shot was bound to happen because he was black, lived in “the hood,” and was facilitated in a gang. Hailey also tells Starr how she is not threatened by her because she is different from the others. Discrimination could have happened off-screen as well in terms of casting. According to Tianna Dowie-Chin, a researcher on black feminism, race, and ethnicity, wrote, “Black people with lighter skin are considered to be more employable and are employed at higher rates, incarcerated and disciplined in schools at lower rates, and possess higher representation in positions as corporate executives and government official” (par. 13). There is a high possibility that the black actors’ skin tone played a vital role in casting. The majority of the black cast, including the lead, is categorized as light skin rather than dark skin. While some may say that it does not matter because they are still black, it does matter. People are still being discriminated against based on the pigment of their skin color. The more whitewashed a person’s skin is, the higher chance they have of receiving better opportunities.

There are white supremacy issues, women in film, and African Americans represented in the film. Hailey in the movie represents white supremacy. Her character is white, wealthy, and privileged. Hailey’s persona acts like she is better than the people around her and does not care how her actions affect others. She makes multiple racist remarks towards black people. For example, she refers to “fried chicken” and says that black people are threatening society. After hearing the cop’s father talk on the news about how their family has been getting hateful comments, she also says she feels bad for them. As Stephy Monisha, a graduate from Stella Maris College, wrote, “The terrible reality is that Hailey does not feel any remorse for her white supremacist attitude, and even though she misuses her privileged position by passing racist comments, she accuses Starr of being sensitive” (p. 3994). Starr is not acting sensitive, but she is defending herself and her black community.

The women in this film are well represented, but it could have been better. The mother in the movie is shown as a strong support system for her kids, but she is much more in the book. According to Tianna Dowie-Chin, a Ph.D. candidate in Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Florida, “Rather than portraying Lisa as the successful black woman she was originally written as in the novel, the version of her presented in the film denies her role in her family, particularly her financial role” (par. 12). The novel shows the mother, Lisa, as a very successful black woman with a great job that helps support her family in a big way. In the film, that part of her is unknown, which degrades the importance of her character.

Just because this film represents the black community and a dominant black cast is shown, there are still details in the editing and cinematography that belittle them. There is also a common trait for black males in film, and that is that their characters usually end up with a lousy ending. According to Jeanette Convington, an Associate Professor of School of Arts and Sciences of Sociology, wrote, “The more savagely young black males were depicted in these films, the more moral license the criminal justice system required to arrest, imprison or kill off the dangerous black youth depicted on screen, even if it meant violating their rights in the process” (p. 64). The film does kill off a young black male that poses a threat to some people in the film. The film killed off this killer to make a point and not because it was the character’s fate. There also seems to be some noticeable edits during filming when the screen only showed black characters. For example, there are some shots in the film that when there are only black characters in the frame, the camera tends to be less stable and shakier compared to scenes with white characters (01:58:41-02:01:33). There also seems to be a trend throughout the film where many scenes involving Starr, her family, and other people in her black community are shot in the evening and night time. This results in darker lighting and gives a more suspenseful feeling. When Starr is at school or her friend’s house, they are shot during daytime and have more bright lighting (01:16:36-01:19:50). There are also shots of white actors with a camera angle looking up at them which codes as that white people are more important and powerful. An example of this is when Starr and her boyfriend, Chris, are at her locker talking and the camera looks up at Chris and eye-level for Starr (00:10:10-00:11:17). All of these issues are well exhibited throughout the film.

One aspect of this film that I focused on was the music. Music in films and shows can provide an emotional element of the event that is occurring. In this film, the music matches with the events and themes of the scenes. For example, during a party in Starr’s neighborhood, the people at the party were all African-American, drinking and dancing, so the music choice was hip/hop. The songs in this film came from artists such as Tupac, Kendrick Lamar, Pusha T, Logic, and others. In particular, though, two songs were made for the movie “The Hate U Give” by Bobby Sessions and “We Won’t Move” by Arlissa. According to Jon Burlingame, the nation’s leading writer for music in film, Bobby Sessions said, “I hope the song, along with the film, will inspire young people to find their voice, speak out, and have these uncomfortable conversations about what’s going on in our community, and hopefully motivate everyone to do something about it” (par. 8). This song is tied to the movie by having the same title and the message both outlets are trying to send to the audience. Arlissa’s song plays at the end of the movie and has compelling verses. According to Carita Rizzo, a writing and editing consultant and contractor, the song’s title’s message is saying, “We’re going to hold out ground, we’re going to remain peaceful but vigilant” (par. 4). The song itself conveys a message and emotion that has excellent chemistry with the scene of the movie. There is also instrumental music that is very strong for one particular scene. The song “The Cycle” by Dustin O’Halloran plays during the scene where Starr’s little brother is pointing their father’s gun at two gang members, and police show up to the scene. Starr realizes that her brother is very likely to be the next victim of police brutality in this event. The song has a slow tempo with a tone of sadness and worry that gives off a very emotional feel for the audience when viewing this scene. Without this particular music in this scene, the audience would not feel the same type of emotions. Music addition in scenes, whether with lyrics or without, gives off emotional appeals for the audience to connect with the storyline.

When I first watched this movie, it had me in tears and gave me the urge to get up and do something about America’s problem. Then when I first read this assignment, this movie immediately came to thought. The Hate U Give demonstrates America’s issues and that of difference, power, and discrimination. When this movie first came out in 2018, I did not know what I could do to eliminate the issue. Now, in 2020 there came an opportunity to show my support in the black community and the Black Lives Matter movement. I participated in peaceful protests at the Oregon capital and walked with thousands of people demanding equality. George Floyd’s murder was the last straw and sparked people to raise awareness of police brutality and racism in America. More and more cases from the past and present started to increase. Many more cases of police brutality came out of the shadows to expose corruption in society, much like in the movie with Starr’s friend and the police officers who killed him. People see a black male and suspect that he is up to no good. Judgment based on their race and sexuality is made before knowing the facts, which has led to a horrible ending for many. I would relate this film to the T.V. series 13 Reasons Why because both exhibit and bring to light difficult topics to talk about that but are in need to be talked about. 13 Reasons Why mentions drug abuse and addiction, suicide, sexual assault, homosexuality and sexuality, and bullying all are which issues in society and that of teenagers and young adults. Both The Hate U Give and 13 Reasons Why are meant to demonstrate to people how these issues are not something to talk about lightly and are significant problems for many people. Both want their viewers to see how these problems affect people differently and show that they are awful things to have to deal with, and those people should not have to go through that.

The Hate U Give demonstrates what many people of color have to go through and deal with in society. It brings emotion to viewers in ways that help you relate in a small way to how those who have experienced this issue go through. It is also a film that shows how societal beliefs and opinions of people of color affect how they are portrayed on screen through their editing and cinematography. The Hate U Give demonstrates through different film elements of difference, power, and discrimination issues presented both in reality and on film.

Burlingame, Jon. “Def jam to Release ‘The Hate U Give’ Soundtrack (EXCLUSIVE).” Variety. Web. 28 Sep. 2018. https://variety.com/2018/music/news/the-hate-u-give-soundtrack-def-jam-1202961188/. Accessed 17 Nov. 2020.

Covington, Jeanette. Crime and Racial Constructions : Cultural Misinformation about African Americans in Media and Academia, Lexington Books, 2010. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/linnbenton-ebooks/detail.action?docID=500798. Accessed 17 Nov. 2020.

Dowie-Chin, Tianna, et al. “Whitewashing Through Film: How Educators Can Use Critical Race Media Literacy to Analyze Hollywood’s Adaptation of Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give.” International Journal of Multicultural Education, vol. 22, no. 2, 2020, p. 129+. Gale Academic OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A637123496/AONE?u=lbcc&sid=AONE&xid=60a35c76. Accessed 17 Nov. 2020.

Kiang, Jessica. “Film Review: ‘The Hate You Give’.” Variety. Web. 8 Sep. 2018. https://variety.com/2018/film/reviews/the-hate-u-give-review-1202933118/. Accessed 10 Nov. 2020.

Monisha, Stephy P. “‘Other’ Worlds Represented in Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give.” Journal of Critical Reviews 7.13 (2020), 3993-3995. Print. doi:10.31838/jcr.07.13.604

http://www.jcreview.com/fulltext/197-1599475602.pdf?1605653310. Accessed 17 Nov. 2020.

Rizzo, Carita.“‘The Hate U Give’: How Music Producers Created a Song to Amplify the Battle Against Racial Injustice.” The Hollywood Reporter. Web. 12 Dec. 2018. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hate-u-give-how-music-producers-created-films-final-song-1167901. Accessed 17 Nov. 2020.

The Hate U Give. Directed by George Tillman Jr., 20th Century Studios, 2018.

Difference, Power, and Discrimination in Film and Media: Student Essays Copyright © by Students at Linn-Benton Community College is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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“The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.” The phrase originally made popular in the '90s by Tupac as an acronym for "THUG LIFE," inspired another work of art, Angie Thomas ’ debut novel, The Hate U Give . The book so successfully connected with a young generation grappling with gun violence and police brutality that it has remained on The New York Times’ bestseller list since its release in February 2017. Now, the film adaptation of its powerful story will attempt to reach an even bigger audience with its Black Lives Matter message.

Both the book and movie follow Starr Carter, a black teenager well-versed in code-switching between her black community in Garden Heights and the prep school her parents send her and her siblings to in the ostentatiously white and wealthy Williamson neighborhood. When the audience first meets her in George Tillman Jr .’s film, her stern-voiced dad, Maverick ( Russell Hornsby ), is teaching his children what to do if a police officer stops the car they’re in. Put their hands on the dashboard; do as they say. It’s the difference between life and death. She is nine-years-old in this scene, her older brother is ten and the youngest member of the Carter family is just a year old, still fussing in his mother’s arms.

The story then jumps forward to when Starr ( Amandla Stenberg ) is a vibrant 16-year-old who plays on her school’s basketball team and finds love in a goofy yet earnest white classmate named Chris (K.J. Apa). But the unintended consequence of having one foot in two different social circles is that you never really feel balanced in either. She feels out-of-place both at her white prep school where white kids love to use black slang and at a neighborhood party her friend brings her to so Starr can help her out in a fight. Starr’s awkward feelings are pushed aside for a moment when an old childhood friend and first crush, Khalil ( Algee Smith ), approaches her with a smile completed by dimples. A fight breaks out at the party, interrupting their meet-cute, and the two drive off in Khalil’s car. On their way back to Starr’s home, the two teens reminisce about old times and even share a kiss. Then, red and blue lights flash. A cop pulls them over for some unexplained reason, and Khalil gets defensive. Starr tries to coach him through her father’s warnings: hands on the dashboard, do what they say. When the cop walks away to run Khalil’s license, the teenager carelessly reaches for his hairbrush to pass the time. Shots ring out, killing Khalil. The officer handcuffs Starr next to her dying friend. He had mistaken the hairbrush in the boy’s hand as a weapon and shot first before asking any questions.

The event is a seismic one for the community and for Starr, who finds herself swept up in the media frenzy and the outrage. She suffers from post traumatic stress and seems to wander the halls of her school, unsure of what’s she doing there at all. Although only a short drive away, her classmates seem entirely disconnected from the problems facing the neighborhood next door. This exasperates Starr, and she begins breaking rank from one of her white girlfriends who really doesn’t understand what’s going on. Her boyfriend, Chris, stumbles through a crash course in how to be an ally, trying his hardest to help her.

The movie feels instructional without getting too preachy, taking time to explain various inequalities and barriers facing black Americans, typically in exchanges between father and daughter. In learning the ways of this unjust system, Starr decides not to accept things the way they are. Her outlook reflects the kind of youth-led movements that have sprung up from Black Lives Matter and the marches against gun violence in schools. The status quo just simply won’t go unchallenged this time.

Stenberg, whose previous credits include other YA fare like “ The Hunger Games ” and “Darkest Minds,” carries the difficult part well, growing from a carefree teen to traumatized kid to a natural born leader before our eyes. She’s hardly alone in her efforts as the supporting cast includes Issa Rae , Anthony Mackie and Common. As Starr’s parents, Hornsby and Regina Hall also share a nuanced and complicated dynamic—a loving couple who feel differently about how best to raise their children, in the difficult neighborhood in which they grew up or elsewhere.

To visually mirror the experience of switching between the worlds of Garden Heights and Williamson, the lighting and color of the scenes also change from warm, familiar tones (Garden Heights) to washed out blue hues (Williamson). The scenes in the Carter household look inviting and well lit, bringing to mind the comfort of a loving family. When Starr is at school, her face looks washed out and pale, as if the screen was trying to mute the colors of everyone’s skin to look the same. She tries so desperately to fit in this environment, she sacrifices who she is in more ways than just avoiding using the slang terms her classmates have co-opted.

In my screening of “The Hate U Give,” there were tears, gasps, laughs and cheers. A shiver rippled through my skin when the shots rang out, and I choked back sobs in many more scenes. It may be a popular movie with arguably simple messages, but it delivers them in emotionally effective ways. We feel for Starr and we are with her in moments like when she confronts a racist friend or questions a reporter for fixating on Khalil’s checkered past. We get a sense of the isolation she feels in her school’s hallway and when she’s forced to watch her friend bleed to death. If the story ever seems too basic, too “intro to race in America,” it’s because this is the story of a 16-year-old girl who’s learning that the world is even worse than what she knew. In the audience, there will likely be many more girls who will either be hearing a story like Starr’s, or recognizing their own experience onscreen, for the first time.

Monica Castillo

Monica Castillo is a critic, journalist, programmer, and curator based in New York City. She is the Senior Film Programmer at the Jacob Burns Film Center and a contributor to  RogerEbert.com .

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Film credits.

The Hate U Give (2018)

Rated PG-13

129 minutes

Amandla Stenberg as Starr Carter

Lamar Johnson as Seven Carter

Regina Hall as Lisa Carter

Russell Hornsby as Maverick Carter

Anthony Mackie as King

Common as Carlos

• George Tillman Jr
• Audrey Wells
• Angie Thomas

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“The Hate U Give,” Reviewed: An Empathetic, Nuanced Portrait of a Teen’s Political Awakening

By Richard Brody

There’s no special merit to films that address subjects of urgent political concern, nor to ones that advocate progressive views. Sometimes such movies offer little more than fan service, of a sort that hardly differs from canonical interpretations of superhero stories designed to please hardcore followers. In skewing their drama and characters in order to stoke viewers’ responses in favor of one particular outcome, some political movies dull the emotional experience of watching. Far from advancing and reinforcing the desired view, such numbing movies suggest that the view exacts a price in vitality; viewers will decide for themselves whether the trade-off is worth it. What’s certain is that a narrow view of advocacy and a narrowed emotional range go hand in hand, and that filmmakers, in the grip of their own persuasion, often miss that connection.

“The Hate U Give,” which is in wide release this Friday, does not fall into this trap. It’s an explicitly political movie that advocates a manifestly progressive view of its subjects, but it does so with a varied emotional energy, a set of complex characters in uncertain situations, and a perspective that emphasizes the drama’s open-ended, trouble-filled engagement with society at large. It does so with a sense of balance, of heads-up alertness that suggests a dramatic type of peripheral vision—the director, George Tillman, Jr., seems to know, and to convey that when the camera is on one character or several others are present and potent, whether just out of frame or somewhere out of view but clearly exerting an unseen influence.

It’s the story of a black family living in the predominantly black Georgia neighborhood of Garden Heights and confronting, directly and personally, legally enforced and socially reinforced norms of racism—which is to say, they’re a perfectly ordinary black American family, working and living under circumstances that, as is clear from the start, would be inconceivable for a white family to face. The central character, Starr Carter (Amandla Stenberg), a sixteen-year-old high-school student, is also the movie’s central consciousness—her presence, her conflicts, and her voice (in the form of a retrospective voice-over) dominate the film from beginning to end. The movie, based on a novel by Angie Thomas , with a screenplay by Audrey Wells (who died earlier this month), opens with Starr’s recollection of “the talk” that her father, Maverick (Russell Hornsby), gave her and her two siblings—about how to behave if stopped by a police officer, in order not to give the officer any excuse to shoot them.

Starr was nine at the time. Her half brother was ten, and his very name, Seven, is relevant to the story’s premise: he was named by Maverick in reference to point No. 7 of the Black Panthers’ Ten-Point Program, which demanded “an immediate end to police brutality and murder of black people,” and it’s precisely the police murder of a black person on which the drama of “The Hate U Give” pivots. Maverick, who owns a convenience store, and Starr’s mother, Lisa (Regina Hall), a nurse at a local hospital, arrange for Starr to attend a well-funded, predominantly white high school in a nearby community. (Starr describes the “two versions” of herself—Version One, which is her in her own neighborhood, and Version Two, which she puts forward in her school in order not to be considered “ghetto.”)

Starr Version One goes to a party with black friends in her neighborhood; when shots ring out, one of them, a young man named Khalil (Algee Smith), a lifelong friend, brings her to safety and drives her home. But during a routine traffic stop—ostensibly for a failure to signal a lane change but actually a case of a white cop catching Khalil “driving while black”—he reaches for his hairbrush, which the officer claims to believe is a gun, and shoots Khalil dead. Starr, the only witness, had started recording the arrest on her phone; ordered to put it away, she nonetheless is able to identify the officer by his badge number.

When a grand jury is convened to consider charges against the officer, Starr is asked by an attorney for Khalil’s family named April Ofrah (Issa Rae) to testify. But, as Starr knows, Khalil had been a newbie small-time drug dealer (because his family faced a catastrophic failure of the safety net) and was working for a local kingpin named King (Anthony Mackie), who pressures—and threatens—her not to testify. What’s more, Starr also faces pressure from the local police and their allies not to testify. To complicate matters, Maverick is King’s former “right-hand man.” He served three years in jail for a crime committed by King—the deal being that, after his release, he’d be released from the gang. Maverick wants Starr to testify; Lisa, however, who fears King’s gang (the King Lords), as well as the police, wants to protect Starr above all, and to keep her from testifying.

The drama is sharply delineated, the conflict clearly drawn—but Wells’s script sets them in motion by means of a wide array of complicating subplots and contextualizing incidents, which Tillman balances nimbly, energetically, and perceptively. There’s Starr’s relationship with Chris (K. J. Apa), her boyfriend, a white classmate; her friendships with other classmates, white and Asian; her relationships with her younger brother, Sekani (TJ Wright), with Seven (Lamar Johnson), and with Seven’s other half sister, Kenya (Dominque Fishback); her relationship with her uncle, Carlos (Common), who’s a police officer; and there’s the media factor, which plays a role in all of these relationships. The killing of Khalil is major local news, widely reported on television—though, because she is a minor, Starr’s identity is concealed, including from her friends.

What’s more, these media accounts are themselves a defining aspect of the movie’s societal landscape: the depiction of Khalil, the obsession with his criminal behavior, the depiction of his family, the depiction of protests that erupt after his killing, the representation of the Garden Heights community, the questions posed in interviews by a Barbie-like TV reporter are all implicated in the story. Similarly, attempts by the police to prevent residents from recording officers’ actions are also elements of the drama; so is the oppressive prevalence of gun violence on the part of the drug-dealing gang and the endemic, menacing presence of guns in the homes of law-abiding citizens as well; so is local activism, the urgency of protest, and police repression of it.

There’s also a plethora of social context in the film, regarding both Starr’s personal and familial backstory and the political framework within which Maverick is raising the family. (He instills his children with political ideals by way of a quasi-military but nonthreatening discipline.) Lisa—who nonetheless shares Maverick’s larger ideals—inculcates in the children a practical and fundamentally apolitical route to success. Despite Starr’s painful efforts to meet the unfair expectations of her white classmates, she meets with a wide range of uncomprehending judgments ranging from oblivious to insidious. The vectors of frustration, rage, and despair that rack the black residents of Garden Heights are echoed, wrongly and prejudicially, in the media in ways that only aggravate the hostility that the residents face.

The very title of the film, borrowed from the late Tupac Shakur’s explanation of his album titled “Thug Life”—The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody—highlights the cycle of damage caused by racism. The phrase, like the film, unambiguously asserts that racist practices and attitudes, whether official or merely habitual, are the underlying engine of the movie’s very action. The movie isn’t a bold or bracing work of stylistic originality; rather, it’s one in which a familiar manner is expanded and elevated by way of insight and sensibility. “The Hate U Give” is the rare movie that puts the background into the foreground—that integrates its characters’ personal struggles and dreams with a wide and clearly observed political and historical environment. Its unstinting vigor and empathetic but unsentimental nuance mark it as a distinctive and exceptional political film.

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By Troy Patterson

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The Hate U Give review – a defiant challenge to divided America

Amandla Stenberg stars as a young black student whose double life navigating America’s racial politics is brutally questioned

I f ever a movie resonated with a news image it’s this one, with the extraordinary shot of nurse Ieshia Evans at a protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 2016, where she faced down three cops in full riot gear while wearing a flimsy frock. She did this with all the floaty calmness of Botticelli’s Venus. The Hate U Give is a fierce, dynamic movie with a terrific performance from Amandla Stenberg as Starr, a high-school student who becomes witness to a callous cop shooting, and her performance seems to be channelling some of the defiance and miraculous strength despite vulnerability in that famous picture.

The movie has been written for the screen by the late Audrey Wells , who died of cancer two weeks ago, adapted by her from the 2017 YA bestseller by Angie Thomas . The director is George Tillman Jr, who made Notorious in 2009, and the title itself is taken from Tupac’s Thuglife, an acronym for The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everyone. By the end of the movie, Starr suggests a radical change in attitude, and in fact a change to the third word of this title – the “U”.

Starr is effectively living a double life. Her dad is a proud Black Panther who lives in a tough black neighbourhood, but he has now settled down to running a neighbourhood store profitable enough for him to send his daughter to a posh private school, away from bad influences. It is here that Starr has learned how to pass for white culturally: hardworking, nice Starr hangs out with the Insta princesses who appear to accept her with no reservations and she has a really nice white boyfriend. But she is always careful to suppress any threateningly “black” mannerisms, yet when she goes to parties in her own home turf, she has to avoid any “white” phrases.

It is at one of these that she runs into Khalil (Algee Smith), a boy she once knew when they were both kids, playing at Harry Potter – books of which her father semi-seriously disapproves because the Hogwarts house system encourages gang culture. Now Khalil is a tough-looking, handsome young man with expensive clothes, who appears to be still more than a little in love with Starr, and she is charmed by him. But then there are gunshots and they have to escape the party in Khalil’s car – and stroppy, headstrong Khalil is pulled over by a jumpy young cop. It ends in catastrophic violence, and Starr finds that she has to testify under oath in front of a grand jury, meaning that she, Khalil and her whole community will be on trial. The crisis of loyalty means her whole “white/black” identity goes to pieces, along with friendship with people who “don’t see race”.

Interestingly, the phrase #blacklivesmatter is used in this movie by the white characters: the white school students who stage what Starr finds to be a well-meaning but jarringly inauthentic campus protest. This is a fashionable gesture in which they indulge before they realise that Starr, their own fellow student, is in fact involved. Meanwhile, the situation is still more complex: the gangbangers who are acquainted with her father don’t want her to go public with her testimony in case it puts their criminality in the limelight. The film shows that they are themselves policing the situation with maximum brutality.

It is muscular and very watchable film, with a really strong starring performance from Stenberg. Perhaps it is flawed by a certain emotional grandstanding, and the fact that experiences of other black students at her expensive school (including her own brother) are passed over, and Starr is to all intents and purposes utterly alone in how she feels. Yet this may be a just approximation of how this is in real life. The Hate U Give has a fierce storytelling grip.

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• The Hate U Give is equal parts coming-of-age drama and Black Lives Matter primer. It’s terrific.

The best-selling novel makes for a riveting, funny, incisive big-screen drama anchored by outstanding performances.

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Share All sharing options for: The Hate U Give is equal parts coming-of-age drama and Black Lives Matter primer. It’s terrific.

Angie Thomas’s novel The Hate U Give , about a teenage girl named Starr who sees her childhood friend shot and killed by police in front of her, was an instant hit when it came out in February 2017, debuting at the top of the New York Times young adult best-seller list and staying there for 50 weeks.

Thomas’s novel is based on a short story she wrote following the 2009 police shooting of Oscar Grant . Narrated by Starr, it captures a whole range of concerns and events that have animated the Black Lives Matter movement as well as broader American conversations about race: police shootings of young, unarmed black men, double consciousness and code-switching, “colorblind” white people, an asymmetrical justice system, gang violence, and a lot more.

But while art that ably functions as a primer to important social matters can often fall flat in its storytelling, The Hate U Give is as moving, funny, and riveting as its narrator, Starr — and the new movie based on the novel succeeds at least as much as, if not better than, its source material.

Directed by George Tillman Jr. from a screenplay by Audrey Wells and with a truly outstanding cast, The Hate U Give has a great deal to say and no apologies to make about that, even as the film presents itself as a straightforward Hollywood drama. But it strikes a perfect balance between being a coming-of-age story nestled in a family narrative on the one hand, and a social drama on the other. And in never sacrificing either of those two interests, it becomes a strong example of both.

The Hate U Give is about a black teenage girl finding her voice after tragedy

What makes The Hate U Give sing is that it’s told from the perspective of Starr Carter (Amandla Stenberg, in an absolutely riveting performance), a black teenager who’s well aware of the specific complications of her life. She lives in Garden Heights, a predominantly black neighborhood that’s home to more than its fair share of violence, but attends a mostly white private high school in another neighborhood called Williamson Prep.

Starr candidly explains that she’s one version of herself in Garden Heights and another one entirely at Williamson. As the only black girl in her class, she doesn’t want to be perceived as loud, aggressive, or difficult — even around her white best friend (Sabrina Carpenter) and her boyfriend, Chris (K.J. Apa), who is certain that he is “colorblind.”

But at home, she can relax. She lives with her father, Maverick (Russell Hornsby), and mother, Lisa (Regina Hall), who had her when they were 17 and have stayed together against the odds. Her half-brother Seven (Lamar Johnson) and little brother Sekani (T.J. Wright) live with them too.

Seven’s mother Iesha (Karan Kendrick) is the girlfriend of King (Anthony Mackie), who is also the head of a local gang, the King Lords. Maverick used to be King’s right-hand man, but got out of the gang after taking the rap for one of King’s crimes and spending three years in prison. Now he owns the local grocery store in Garden Heights.

One night Starr goes to a party in Garden Heights, where she sees her childhood friend Khalil (Algee Smith). Years earlier, before she started going to school at Williamson, Khalil was her first crush and her first kiss. But they grew apart after Lisa enrolled Starr at Williamson, which happened following the death of Khalil and Starr’s other friend, Natasha.

When a fight breaks out at the party, Khalil offers to take Starr home in his car. On the way, they’re pulled over by a cop who shoots Khalil, mistaking his hairbrush for a gun. Khalil dies, sparking a national outrage. And Starr is not only traumatized but conflicted: Does she speak up but risk attracting attention to herself and her family from the cops? Or — to make matters worse — when it turns out that Khalil was working with King in order to earn money for his family after his mother was diagnosed with cancer, should she worry about possibly snitching on King and bringing down the wrath of the King Lords on her family?

The message of The Hate U Give works because its characters are richly drawn

The Hate U Give is a sobering story, but it’s shot through with romance and lightness too. Maverick and Lisa love one another, and their kids learn what love looks like from their openly affectionate parents. Starr knows what to look for in a boyfriend, and her relationship with Chris is complicated more by her efforts to navigate their differences than by anything he does.

And the movie skillfully weaves a number of genuinely laugh-out-loud scenes into its deadly serious story — like Chris trying to discern whether mac and cheese is a side dish or an entrée — in a way that gives the whole thing humanity. After all, tragedy never exists purely in a vacuum, and laughter lets the audience relax into a happy domestic life for a moment before the movie reminds them that, in fact, these characters are fighting for their lives.

The key to pulling off a movie like this is to ground it with strong narrative rhythm and outstanding performances, rounding out the characters so the story seems less like an after-school special and more like a story about real people you might sit next to at a neighborhood restaurant or run into at the supermarket. In this, The Hate U Give succeeds spectacularly. It’s anchored by Stenberg’s dynamic performance, but the rest of the cast is uniformly terrific, especially Hall and Hornsby as Starr’s loving, worried, angry, caring parents. Even the movie’s white characters — who are clearly stand-ins for ways affluent white people often tend to think about race — feel less like the cardboard cutouts they could have been and more like real people, by dint of good writing.

With these sorts of characters in play, the many issues The Hate U Give touches on come vibrantly to life. A protest late in the film (led by an activist and attorney played by Issa Rae) is the film’s fiery culmination, but its beating heart is a pair of scenes in which Starr confronts her cop uncle, Carlos (Common), about the complicated internalized racism he experiences as a police officer, and then later as she finally finds her voice and a way to turn her personal tragedies into words of that could actually effect change.

Ultimately, that’s The Hate U Give ’s main theme: that a girl like Starr, should she find her voice, could use it in powerful, lifesaving ways. It’s a recurring theme in young adult literature, but it feels like it translates even more forcefully to the screen, where we can watch and hear Starr scream the truth about her murdered friend, but also laugh with her family. In turning the novel into a family drama with vibrant urgency, Tillman and his cast have given Starr her own voice — while also giving a voice to the urgent matter of racial justice in America, which deserves full attention and rich, dynamic stories like this one.

The Hate U Give premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September and opens in theaters on October 19.

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The Hate U Give

Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Now, facing pressure from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and s... Read all Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Now, facing pressure from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and stand up for what's right. Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Now, facing pressure from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and stand up for what's right.

• George Tillman Jr.
• Audrey Wells
• Angie Thomas
• Amandla Stenberg
• Regina Hall
• Russell Hornsby
• 412 User reviews
• 178 Critic reviews
• 81 Metascore
• 22 wins & 38 nominations

• Starr Carter

• Lisa Carter

• Maverick 'Mav' Carter

• April Ofrah

• Seven Carter

• Miss Rosalie

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia On February 5, 2018, it was announced that Kian Lawley had been fired from the film due to a resurfaced video showing him using racially offensive slurs. On April 3, 2018, it was announced that K.J. Apa had been cast to replace him. Therefore, some scenes had to be re-shot.
• Goofs When the girls were riding with King in his car, the speedometer and RPM tachometer were clearly visible in backseat view shots of King driving. The RPM tachometer would fluctuate up and down like normal driving, but the speedometer never went higher than zero to three MPH, clearly a sign that the actor was accelerating the gas pedal (while in neutral), but the car was being pulled or pushed for the interior shots.

Maverick 'Mav' Carter : [from the trailer] I didn't name you Starr by accident.

• Crazy credits At the beginning and the end of the movie, the title is shown with the letters T, H, U and G visible.
• Connections Featured in CTV News at Six Toronto: Episode dated 5 September 2018 (2018)
• Soundtracks Hold You Down Written by J Buttah, Emanny Salgado and Jadakiss Performed by Jadakiss featuring Emanny Courtesy of Def Jam Recordings Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User reviews 412

• Jan 2, 2021
• How long is The Hate U Give? Powered by Alexa
• October 19, 2018 (United States)
• United States
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• Tìm Lại Công Lý
• Atlanta, Georgia, USA
• Fox 2000 Pictures
• State Street Pictures
• TSG Entertainment
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $23,000,000 (estimated)
• $29,719,483
• Oct 7, 2018
• $34,934,009

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 hours 13 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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Davis, California

Amandla Stenberg movie focuses on self-love, racial politics

Amandla Stenberg, the actress from “The Hunger Games” and “Everything, Everything,” is back in theaters to teach about the hardships that marginalized communities face in their day-to-day lives. “The Hate U Give, ” based on the novel by Angie Thomas, starts off with a family of five having the talk, but not the one with the birds and the bees. This talk was about what to do when a cop pulls you over, a conversation that many black households have to have in an increasingly polarized world. The movie started off strong and ended with a shocking twist.

“The Hate U Give” follows Starr Carter, played by Amandla Stenberg, who is caught between two worlds. But when Starr witnesses the unfortunate reality that far too many black families have had to face in this society, a ripple in her world is created. Starr is in the car with her childhood best friend Khalil, played by Algee Smith, when a white cop shoots him. This moment sparks a debate within Starr on whether or not she is strong enough to fight and speak up for her best friend, who can no longer speak up for himself.

Khalil’s death makes Starr doubt her day-to-day routine of code switching. Due to the drastic contrast between her two communities, Starr often employs code switching to fit in. Depending on who she’s with, Starr dresses differently, acts differently and uses different language. During one of Stenberg’s interviews, she addressed the reality of code switching in black communities.

“[Black kids] have to be so careful about the way they act and present themselves from such an early age because they understand that they are not afforded a childhood in the way their white counterparts are,” Stenberg told Trevor Noah during an interview on “The Daily Show.”

During the movie, Starr’s narrative represents the all-too-real struggle of stereotyping and double standards faced by marginalized communities. Slang that makes white people look cooler has the opposite effect on her and she is instead labeled “ghetto.” She is also careful to avoid any type of retaliation in fear of being labeled the angry black woman. Starr uses code switching in order to avoid the stereotype that is ultimately placed on her, just as it is placed on so many African Americans every day.

The movie sheds light on many different problems that the black community faces, problems which are relevant and need to be talked about. The most prevalent issues depicted were police brutality and the unjust legal system which disproportionately criminalizes African Americans and other marginalized communities. The movie expands on the definition of racism and explains that racism is ingrained so deeply into society that it is commonplace.

“The Hate U Give” repeatedly references Tupac’s song “THUG LIFE,” which stands for  “the hate you give little infants f*** everybody.” This reference consistently ties into the movie’s theme. Starr comes to the conclusion that it isn’t the hate you give infants, but the love you show that is much more powerful.

Much like Starr, Amandla Stenberg is a profound activist that is currently using her platform on social media to encourage others to educate themselves on certain topics, such as racism and homophobia, that are currently affecting the country. Her acting allowed the audience to connect with these issues on a more emotional level.

When the original cast was announced, there was concern over whether or not Stenberg should play Starr due to the fact that she is a light-skinned black woman and the book cover showed a dark skinned black woman. Stenberg took a step back and evaluated whether or not the role was hers to play. The author of the novel, Angie Thomas, spoke on a panel at the 2018 Essence film festival and stated that Amandla was the person she pictured Starr to be, settling the issue.

“The Hate U Give” is a refreshing movie. It discusses heavy topics and provides a new perspective on systemic racism within our society. “The Hate U Give” is currently playing at Regal Davis Holiday 6.

Written by: Itzelth Gamboa — [email protected]

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Race and Culture in The Hate You Give Movie

The Hate You Give is a movie produced by Angie Thomas and based on the same novel. It is a portrait and projection of fundamentals giving a backdrop of the current situation that America is facing. The movie orchestrates the prejudice of justice by killing Khalil Starr’s friend shot by a police officer in cold blood as a matter of race. Race and ethnicity are very prevalent in the American justice system today, and it is more common to Black Americans and other racially diverse individuals (Fletcher and Hernandez-Gantes 2). The movie is well adapted to the current situation as it reveals themes of racial, social, and cultural issues which society needs to eradicate.

The Hate You Give movie reveals society issues, particularly how society can be cruel even when one wants to amend his/her ways and make right for the errors they did. Maverick’s decision to walk away from crime brews contention after deciding to leave his gang because he has children. As a result, he is imprisoned for a crime he never committed for him to be allowed to leave the gang. After three years, he finds it difficult to integrate back to society, contrary to the expectation that he is a reformed man. He sails back to society with many constraints, which serves as a perfect example of how society is repulsive and judgmental to an ex-convict.

The movie also sheds light on police brutality and how after committing homicide, they can walk scot-free. The events reminisce of prior police brutality before the inaction of a law that allowing the reporting of homicide by police officers. Khalil is shot and killed in the movie by a police officer who stops him after failing to signal a lane change. This shows how the police have clouded judgment on the black community and associates the black community with the crime. Police are killing many innocent black people, yet the truth is suppressed not to surface, just as the police officer who kills Khalil escapes justice. This act reveals how stereotyping has been used to justify acts of violence by police and other people against the black community.

Culture has been revealed in great magnitude in the movie as the precursor of stereotyping by law enforcement. The blacks have a manner of dressing that they are identified with and a manner of speaking English expressed as slang. However, it is the black’s culture to speak slang and drees like a black. Starr complains that they have been robbed of their culture by the white community. Aprilia states that “experiencing racial discrimination for a long time may make the oppressed justify acts of oppression” (1). The Black culture is revealed through their singing style, slang speaking, and black fashion elevated on the white’s perception and injustice. White Americans have always been given an upper hand, and even when they follow Black American culture, it is deemed as being cool.

The racial progress in America has been revealed in the movie to be gloomy. Many black communities believe that slavery continues to prejudice their rights and, more so, to weaken their position. Maverick speaks to Starr of denied opportunities and resources that blacks are denied, which continues to entrap blacks to the shackles of poverty. Furthermore, the movie reveals how poverty has been racialized such that many of the black communities are forced to sell drugs to be able to eradicate poverty, and as a result, they are hated for that. Starr’s dilemma to navigate through their black world and their temporal white world in Williamson Prep proves that fact. More than 56% of Americans believe that the former president Donald Trump made the relationship between white and black Americans worse, with 15% feeling he tried and 13% saying he tried and failed (Horowitz et al.). This serves as a clear indication of how racism has intensified in the last couple of years.

Another aspect of society prevalent in the movie is the act of oversize body shaming. Women, in particular, suffered body humiliation, as discussed in the context of the movie. In the current society, it is no different, with a study showing 60% of women are struggling with their weight (Puhl et al. 26). Society has made it unbearable for overweight women to the point that bodyweight is defining women. This has led to the situation where many women change their skin color and undergo surgery to have looks that society seems to cheer.

Although The Hate You Give drama has many praises, it also has many critics. Some critics might argue that the movie is nothing more than a plot to attract a fan base. Others might feel that the movie does not highlight urgent political distress. Furthermore, some critics believe that the movie does not represent the entire community landscape, which may cause a rift between whites and blacks. However, according to Clarisa (1), The Hate You Give is a true representation of the struggle black people go through to end racial profiling. Therefore, it is indicative that the movie has succeeded in showcasing the troubles of the Black community and other race’s battles against white superiority in American society.

The entire movie examines how society rides on stereotyping of the black community to justify vices in the society, such as violence, racism, and prejudice. The evil acts upheld against the blacks are used to safeguard the whites, such as Starr’s classmates. In conclusion, discrimination is perpetuated racism, and the entire society has solemn responsibility to end evil acts. Justice is essential, and every human being is entitled to justice, fair treatment, and an equal share of the societal resources for a better society with zero conflict.

Works Cited

Aprilia, Ririn. “Internalized Racism in Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give” . Jurnalmahasiswa.Unesa.Ac.Id , 2020.

Clarisa, Wella. “RACIAL PROFILING IN ANGIE THOMAS’ THE HATE U GIVE” . Journal.Stba-Prayoga. , 2020.

Horowitz, Juliana Menasce et al. “Views On Race In America 2019” . Pew Research Center’S Social & Demographic Trends Project , 2019.

Puhl, R. M. et al. “Missing The Target: Including Perspectives Of Women With Overweight And Obesity To Inform Stigma‐Reduction Strategies”. Obesity Science & Practice , vol 3, no. 1, 2017, pp. 25-35. Wiley , doi:10.1002/osp4.101.

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The Hate You Give Movie Analysis

Bravery, we have all had that exhilarating feeling that rushes over our whole body when we finally build up the courage to come over an obstacle in our lives.  No matter how many times we experience bravery,we still have to build up the courage with the help of peers, being inspired by a mentor, or having the wait of someone else on your shoulders and being afraid to let them down. In the film “The Hate You Give” the main character Starr witnesses the death of her childhood friend Khalil. She feels guilty about not coming forward about her other friend's death and feels that she has the obligation to get Khalil the justice that he & his family deserve. To receive justice Starr struggles and overcomes those struggles, in doing so she experiences the need to be courageous numerous times which gives Starr the confidence to use her voice and fight for Khalil. 

In the film, “The Hate You Give” , the nature of bravery is shown through Starr Carter as she continuously encounters situations where she has to be brave. She is a 15 year old African American who lives in a predominantly African American neighborhood called ‘ Garden Heights ’.  Her neighborhood has an issue with drugs and gang violence, most of this is caused by the “ King Lords” who are drug dealers within Garden Heights. At the beginning of the film Starr shows up to a party in her neighborhood. Later on at the party Starr sees her childhood friend Khalil. They chat for a little while, however gunshots are fired. People start to flee the party, Starr and Khalil rush outside to his car and get in. As they drive away Khalil says “ [ There is ] always some shit, man. [We] can't even have a party without somebody getting shot at. ”  While Khalil is driving Starr home a cop pulls them over because  “ [Khalil] failed to signal a lane change. ” The cop demands to see Khalil's ID and Immediately asks him to step out of the car. Khalil’s tries to refuse to step out of the car but Starr bravely urges him to listen to the cop. As Khalil is getting out of the car,  Starr has the audacity to try to pull out her phone and record what's going on. The cop is stern and tells Starr to “ Drop the phone now! ”, Starr’s phone drops on the floor of the car. Again the cop demands for Khalil’s ID and Khalil hands it over. The cop goes back to his car and Khalil starts fooling around. Starr urges Khalil to “ Get back where he told you. ” Khalil insists that everything is fine and grabs a hairbrush to brush his hair. BANG! Khalil is shot by the cop and unfortunately dies minutes after. After the incident Starr is at the police station being interrogated by officers. She builds up the will power with the help of her mother to tell the officers that “ One- Fifteen pulled us over. '' After Khalil's funeral, an activist named April Ophra shows up at Carter's home. April tries to convince Starr that she should publicly come out as the witness to Khalil's death to assure that he gets justice. Starr is afraid that if she comes out she might be judged at her predominantly white populated school. Although Starr has the courage to finally tell her family and April about who killed her other childhood friend Natasha. A few days after Starr is at school and her friend Hailey and many others start to use the protest about Khalil's death to get out of school. Starr gets upset with Hailey.  After Hailey and Starr’s argument Starr decides to come out as the witness and starts off with a TV interview. During the interview Starr’s face is blurred due to her being afraid that kids at school would find out she knew Khalil and she doesn't want to be known as the poor girl who saw her friend get shot. Starr mentions the king lords and Khalil why affiliated with them was due to “ [There being] no one to bring in money to help his little brother and his grandma who has cancer. ” The king lords find out that Starr snitched and now they are after her, but that doesn’t stop her from getting Khalil justice. Khalil's case is going to a grand jury and Starr is on the witness stand. She tells the jury everything she knew about Khalil and what had happened. Later on in the film Starr encounters a protest heading for city hall “[The] cop goes free. No trial, nothing The grand jury didn’t indict.” At this point Starr doesn't care what people think of her because fighting for Khalil matters more than what somebody else thinks. She finds April leading the protest. April asks Starr if she is ready to “ use [her] weapon. '' In Which the weapon is Starr's voice.  Due to all of the situations Starr has been through up until now she finally accumulates enough confidence and courage to finally openly come out as the witness to Khalil’s death. Starr shouts at the top of her lungs to the protesters that the situation isn’t about how Khalil died but it was “how Khalil lived. ” And how Khalil’s life matters. In the end one is able to spot that even if we come across bravery so often in our lifetime, it is still a challenge to build the confidence to be brave and take action in any situation. 

I can relate to Starr on a very personal level. Starr had another one of her best friends die right in front of her and was struggling with the loss of her friend but being traumatized because of how she had to witness his death. Just about a year ago my dad passed away from a possible drug overdose. When the time came to go to the viewing I had to choose whether to see his body or not. At first I decided I wouldn't go to see him. Although I thought about it for a few hours and realized that if I don't go I won't be able to say goodbye. So I decided to be brave enough to go and say goodbye. I walked into the room he was in, from right then and there I knew the image of him would be screwed into my head for the rest of my life. A few days after that I had to return to school, the whole time I was on my way there the thoughts of what had happened a few days before were running through my brain. I was going to return home because I was afraid of what kids would think if they had found out what had happened to my dad, especially being a native kid the stereotypes about alcohol and drugs can make things worse. In the end I made the decision to keep on walking because I care what people think of me? The choices of my father or the people around me shouldn't determine who I am.

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The Hate U Give

By angie thomas, the hate u give essay questions.

In what ways does Starr cope with the tragedy of Khalil's death? How do these coping techniques reflect the influences on her life such as family, friends, and media?

At first, Starr turns to her family and her community to help cope with her feelings of anger and sadness. Starr's parents talk with her, take her out to eat, hug her, and try to help her through the difficult aftermath of the shooting. Visiting Khalil's grandmother also gives Starr a sense of closure more than attending Khalil's funeral which is marred by local rivalries. Eventually, however, Starr's coping mechanisms transition from reaction to outright action: she protests after the jury decision and uses her elevated platform as the witness of the shooting to conduct a powerful televised interview.

What insights does this novel generate concerning the national debate over police brutality and racial profiling? Does it open new perspectives or explain any inconsistencies?

The novel provides a nuanced perspective on a hypothetical police shooting which offers insight into the character of the broader debate in the U.S. For example, the interview given by the officer's father and the responses that Starr gets to her own interview represent the "Blue Lives Matter" response to Black Lives Matter protests in the U.S. The anger and frustration experienced by Starr and her friends, who cannot seem to beat the racist and oppressive systems of the police, helps explain why violent riots occur after grand jury decisions in similar cases. The fact that Carlos is a police officer prevents an easy characterization of all policemen as corrupt. Because each character is represented as a full person acting within a broader social system, the novel denies any simple explanations of police brutality issues but offers insight into the motivations of various groups involved.

What role does family play in the novel? In what ways are unconventional families portrayed? Discuss two other family besides Starr's.

Family is essential to Starr's experience of the world; everything from her job to her school has been influenced by the hopes her parents have for her own life. Starr's family demonstrates how caring can extend across multiple homes—Seven lives with Iesha and King, but clearly respects and loves his parents and siblings at Starr's house. Khalil's family demonstrates the importance of extended family such as grandmothers to raise children when the negative influences of drugs tear families apart. Nevertheless, Khalil remains dedicated to his mother—he sells drugs just to help her pay back a debt—which points to the enduring familial connection that persists despite hardships.

How does Hailey respond to Starr's struggle over Khalil's death? Is this a reflection of society or white privilege as a whole, or can the influence of Hailey's personality be teased out of the way she reacts?

Starr is bothered by Hailey's treatment of Khalil's death because Hailey refuses to demonstrate any empathy or to attempt to see the situation from Starr's point of view. Hailey certainly has a confrontational, overbearing personality; she always wants to be the leader in Starr's friend group and quickly grows defensive when Starr points out that she made a racist comment. Negative social factors, such as racial privilege, undoubtedly factor into Hailey's behavior as well. Hailey refuses to accept the fact that well-meaning people can make harmful racist remarks. She accepts a glossed-over stereotype of Khalil as a drug dealer and won't accept Starr's attempts to explain further.

Discuss the importance of speaking up in the novel. In what ways does Starr grow when it comes to learning to use her voice to fight for the issues she is passionate about?

The powerful closing lines of the novel demonstrate the centrality of speaking up to the story. A major plot point is Starr's how star deals with her grief, going from disbelief to anger to action. Starr channels her disappointment with brutal, racist police into activism. She is inspired to do so in part by Kenya, who points out that Khalil would have done the same for her. Starr comes to agree with Kenya and her father in their belief that speaking up, protest, and action are effective ways to ensure change.

The Hate U Give Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Hate U Give is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

How does Starr feel about being at the party

Starr feels invisible and uncomfortable at the party. She seems different from everyone else because she goes to a different school, dresses differently, and she is really not into drugs or alcohol.

The Hate You Give

Seven's living arrangements change for a few reasons, the first being his desire to protect his sisters. More importantly, Seven's relationship with his mother is strained, and his mother's relationship with King doesn't help matters. Seven feels...

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Study Guide for The Hate U Give

The Hate U Give study guide contains a biography of Angie Thomas, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Hate U Give
• The Hate U Give Summary
• The Hate U Give Video
• Character List

Essays for The Hate U Give

The Hate U Give essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.

• Inequality Merges With Truth: Societies at Odds in 'The Hate U Give'
• 'The Hate U Give': A Critique of Modern Day American Society
• The Relationships: the Building Blocks of Life

Lesson Plan for The Hate U Give

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Hate U Give
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Hate U Give Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for The Hate U Give

• Introduction
• Development and publication

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — The Hate U Give — “The Hate U Give”: Analysis of the Theme of Activism

"The Hate U Give": Analysis of The Theme of Activism

• Categories: Black Lives Matter Racial Discrimination The Hate U Give

About this sample

Words: 1035 |

Updated: 9 November, 2023

Words: 1035 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

Table of contents

Prompt examples for "the hate u give" essay, "the hate u give" essay example.

• Exploring Activism: Discuss and analyze the theme of activism in "The Hate U Give," considering how the characters engage in activism and the impact it has on their lives and the broader community.
• Social Justice and Empowerment: Examine the novel's portrayal of social justice issues and how activism empowers the characters to speak out against injustice and inequality.
• Individual vs. Collective Activism: Explore the different forms of activism, from individual acts of courage to collective movements, and analyze their significance in the novel.
• Activism and Identity: Discuss how activism is intertwined with the characters' identities, including Starr's identity as a Black teenager, and explore the complexities of activism in relation to one's sense of self.
• Impact and Legacy: Analyze the impact of activism in "The Hate U Give" on the characters, their community, and the reader, and consider the lasting legacy it leaves within the narrative.

Introduction

"the hate u give": analysis of activism, racial injustice, police brutality, black lives matter, works cited.

• Thomas, A. (2017). The Hate U Give. Balzer + Bray.
• Crenshaw, K. W. (1991). Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color. Stanford Law Review, 43(6), 1241-1299. https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039
• Alexander, M. (2010). The new Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness. The New Press.
• Davis, A. Y. (2016). Freedom is a constant struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the foundations of a movement. Haymarket Books.
• Brown, M. (2016). Policing black bodies: How black lives are surveilled and how to work for change. African American Review, 49(1), 99-103. https://doi.org/10.1353/afa.2016.0005
• Tatum, B. D. (2017). Why are all the black kids sitting together in the cafeteria? And other conversations about race. Basic Books.
• Floyd, D. (2020). A promiscuous grace: The politics of shame in The Hate U Give. In The Truth About Denial: Bias and Self-Deception in Science, Politics, and Religion (pp. 229-250). Oxford University Press.
• Harris, F. C., & Brown, K. (2019). Through the eyes of Starr Carter: The importance of character identification and critical literacy in The Hate U Give. Journal of Language and Literacy Education, 15(2), 51-68.
• Thoman, E. B., Smith, J. L., Brown, E. R., Chase, J., & Lee, J. (2018). Beyond the ‘mean girl’: Influences of gender and social status in early adolescent girls’ experiences of peer aggression. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(4), 762-777. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-017-0785-7
• Kandasamy, P., & Takayama, K. (2020). The politics of witness: Intersectional witnessing practices and digital storytelling in the #BlackLivesMatter movement. New Media & Society, 22(6), 1051-1069. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444820921754

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Related Essays on The Hate U Give

Thomas, Angie. The Hate U Give. Balzer + Bray, 2017.

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The Hate U Give

61 pages • 2 hours read

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-5

Chapters 6-10

Chapters 11-15

Chapters 16-19

Chapters 20-21

Chapters 22-26

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Further Reading & Resources

Discussion Questions

Tupac’s THUG LIFE explanation is a major theme of the book. How do you see THUG LIFE playing out in the real world today, possibly even in your community? Can you relate any recent events to the idea of THUG LIFE?

THUG LIFE refers to the self-perpetuating cycle of hatred but does not necessarily offer a solution. How does author Angie Thomas address this? Does she offer a solution or is the answer more complicated? How do you think you can fight against this cycle?

How does this book provide a voice and a perspective that is often overlooked?

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