Starr’s Approach on The Hate U Give

In 1961 Martin Luther King Jr. declared, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” King expresses the importance of speaking up for what one believes in and the consequences of remaining silent. This concept is just as applicable in contemporary times and author Angie Thomas proves this notion’s relevance in her 2017 novel, The Hate U Give. In the narrative, Starr, a 16-year-old black teenager, has to switch between her poor black neighbourhood of Garden Heights, and her affluent, upper class white private school. The boundary between these two worlds completely transforms after Starr witnesses the shooting of her best friend, Khalil, by a white police officer. Over the course of the novel, Starr comes to terms with Khalil's shooting, as well as the earlier death of her best friend, Natasha. In order for Starr to grow and resist the negative impact of racism on her life, she needs to face her past, show her whole self to the people who care about her and help her community by speaking out about the injustices she has experienced. Through these experiences, Starr changes from a scared, isolated girl to one who passionately and courageously expresses what she believes is just. Through her masterful depiction of Starr’s experiences, Thomas succeeds in helping the reader understand the complex impact of racial injustice, and how a young woman is capable of accomplishing all of her goals.

At the beginning of the novel, Starr chooses to completely separate her two worlds from each other; Williamson Prep vs. Garden Heights. The way Starr acts and the way that she expresses her feelings change based on the skin colour of the people around her. Starr has trained herself to know when it is appropriate to say the right things depending on which location she is in. Starr exclaims to her best friend, “God. Being two different people is so exhausting. I've taught myself to speak with two different voices and only say certain things around certain people. I've mastered it” (Thomas 301). Starr’s unfortunate reality prevents her from being allowed to speak freely and to say what is on her mind without thinking about her surroundings first. The only time her white friends come to Garden Heights, is to celebrate her birthday once a year. Other than that, Starr knows that neither her white nor black friends would be interested in intermingling. Further, Starr chooses not to speak to her white friends about witnessing not only Khalil's death, but also her best friend Natasha’s death at the hands of white cops. What is also stark is how Starr chooses to not mention her white boyfriend, Chris to her father because she believes that he will not approve of him, solely because of the colour of his skin. Starr even goes as far as to comment, “I can’t get the guts to tell daddy though. And it’s not just because he doesn’t want me dating yet. The bigger issue is that Chris is white” (42). The way Starr isolates the black and white people in her life, such as by the way she speaks, geographically and familially, shows how racism affects her life negatively. Ultimately, she denies a portion of herself from each of her communities; she can never fully be herself. Throughout this early stage in her teen life, Starr does not yet have the courage to openly express herself. During the aftermath of Kahil’s death, Starr isolates herself by choosing to not speak about her experience. The day after, Starr has a conversation with her half sister, Kenya. Starr is so overwhelmed by the chaos that is going on that she tells Kenya exactly how she is feeling and that she does not have the courage to speak up and tell the community the truth of Khalil’s death. Starr emphasizes, “I've seen it happen over and over again: a black person get killed just for being black, and all hell breaks loose… I always said that if I saw it happen to somebody, I would have the loudest voice, making sure the world knew what went down. Now I am that person, and I’m too afraid to speak” (34-35). Starr’s hesitation and fear to speak up continues in her first interview with officer Gomez, to debrief about the trauma she has endured. Starr’s mom constantly requests officer Gomez to give her an extra second to recall what actually happened and figure out how she wants to express those thoughts. Starr chooses to answer the questions she is asked by responding with uncertainty and hesitancy. The next act of isolation that Starr is going through is when Starr is unsure if she wants to attend Kahlil’s funeral. Starr is second guessing herself on attending her best friend’s funeral because she does not want to put herself in a situation where she might be asked to express how she is feeling. The way Starr separates herself by insisting to not share any details from the incident she witnessed, demonstrates the harsh impact of discrimination on her life because of her feelings as a fearful black girl. Immediately after witnessing Khalil’s death, Starr most certainly does not yet have the audacity to share what she believes is right with the world around her.

As time goes on, Starr realizes that she must speak up on behalf of her black community. Starr’s whole life consists of witnessing such cruel behaviour and she has finally found the courage to take action. The first instance where Starr feels pushed to express her feelings to the world is when Kenya makes Starr feel bad for not doing anything about expressing herself. Kenya declares, “The Kahlil I know would’ve jumped on T.V. in a hot second and told everybody what happened that night if it means defending you. And you can't do the same for him… Here you are, with a chance to help change what happens in our neighbourhood and you staying quiet. Like a coward” (198). Kenya's message sparks Starr to rethink remaining silent. Starr’s passion is evident when she tells her mother, “So I can’t be silent. This is bigger than me and Kahlil though. This is about Us, with a capital U; everybody who looks like us, feels like us, and is experiencing the pain with us despite not knowing me or Kahlil. My silence isn't helping Us” (171). The next moment of realization that Starr must take initiative in her community, is when her white school-mate Hailey makes a disrespectful comment during a class-wide basketball game. She states that Starr should just pretend that the basketball is like fried chicken and be more aggressive. This demonstrates how Starr has grown more aware and resentful of the power imbalance in her relationships with her white friends. This is the first time that she calls someone out for a racist comment, which reflects her growing awareness of injustice and belief in the strength of her own voice. In breaking out of her shell and accepting the fact that she must express to the world how she is feeling, Starr’s character evolves into a more mature and determined young woman. She starts to help her community by understanding that she must speak up about the injustices she has witnessed. By the end of the novel, Starr has fully grown into a passionate and determined young woman, through coming out in the open and expressing on national television the truth about how she feels towards discrimination and her personal experiences thus far. After the Grand Jury chooses not to indict the officer who shot Kahlil, Starr exclaims, “I wanna do something, protest, riot, I don’t care!” (389). This is the moment when Starr fully understands that she must face the past and the cruel journey that she has gone through. Natasha's death, as well as Khalil’s death, motivate Starr to become the persistent young woman that she has become. Next, Starr becomes more engaged in the fight for racial justice, going so far as to climb on a police car. The crowd cheers for her to “speak” (409). Starr states that she is the one who witnessed Khalil’s death, and that she wants the world to know that his life mattered. She turns to the cops and begins a chant of, “Khalil lived”(412). Standing on the same street where Khalil died, Starr is no longer afraid and finally fully embraces her power to demand justice. The morning after the rally, the newsline headers read, “The witness fights back” (435). Furthermore, the news network calls Starr Carter, “brave” (435). Starr’s courage and strength allow her to break her silence and express to the world what really matters. Despite remaining quiet at first, Starr became a symbol for the fight against racial injustice. She recognizes that she can never please everyone, however is no longer afraid of fighting for her beliefs. Starr exceeds in facing the past, showing her complete self to her two communities that she is a part of and helps her home community by giving voice to her experiences of injustice.

At the end of the novel, Starr lists the names of black individuals in her community who were killed by local white police officers and promises to never stay silent again. She even goes as far as to exclaim, “Kahlil, i’ll never forget. I’ll never give up. I’ll never be silent. I promise” (444). In the same vain of Martin Luther King Jr.’s declaration, of the importance of speaking up for what one believes in, Starr Carter is only 14 when her life completely changes. She proves to the world that nothing should hold one back from fighting for the causes in which they believe in. Ultimately by the end of her book, Angie Thomas demonstrates that the hate you give is just as much as the hate that you will receive.