Title: The Hate U Give
Author: Angie Thomas
Published by: Balzer+Bray
Published on: 2018
Pages: 473 pages
That's the problem. We let people say stuff, and they say it so much that it becomes okay to them and normal for us. What's the point of having a voice if you're gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn't be?
FOURTEEN, Part 1: WHEN IT HAPPENS
This review was written in light of the recent murder of Daunte Wright.
Last year, specifically in May 2020, the whole world woke up to the news of the murder of George Floyd, a black man, by a white police officer. He was pinned to the ground by said officer, whose knees were on his neck for about 9 minutes. Despite his plea, "I can't breathe," the officer kept his hold. Even after George lost consciousness and paramedics arrived to the scene, he was still pinnedto the ground. But then, it was already too late.
In June 2020, those police officers were fired and charged with second-degree murder. But it was already breaking point. George Floyd wasn't the first, neither was he the last. Anger was boiling underneath and protesters took to the streets. Not just blacks, Latins, and other minorities, but also white people. Not just in America, but also in the UK, Latin America, South Africa, and yes, even in Indonesia. It was the largest Black Lives Matter movement to date, spreading across the globe.
During that time, I received many recommendations on books written by black authors. We realised that, though this movement has been around for almost a decade, a lot of people (us in Egg & Co. included) still don't understand the oppression that our black brothers and sisters have to experience in their lives, be it minor or major.
One of those books is The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.
Starr Carter, a sixteen-year-old teen girl, lived in Garden Heights, a poor neighbourhood of mostly black people. She and her half-brother, Seven, enrolled in a fancy private school about an hour away from home. Theirs was a mostly happy family: their parents were happily married and clearly still in love even after all this time, and their younger brother, Sekani, was an adorable little rascal. Starr moved seamlessly between two worlds that are at odds; she was one of only two black students in school and had a white boyfriend.
One night, she went to a party held by one of her neighbours in Garden Heights with Kenya, her brother's half-sister, where she met Khalil, her childhood best friend. Even though they were a bit distant growing up, nothing seemed to change when they caught up at the party. A fight and gunshot broke in the party, which led Khalil and Starr to run away. Khalil decided to drive Starr home and on the way, their car was stopped by the police.
That night went from good to the worst living nightmare a person could ever have. Khalil was shot to death in front of Starr. He was unarmed. Soon, his death became national headline. As the sole witness, Starr's decision to speak up or not could make or break not only her community, but also her family.
EGGLYSIS
THUG LIFE: The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everyone
This book is very important and I believe everyone should read it. In my Goodreads account, I have this shelf for books my children are going to read, and immediately after finishing The Hate U Give, I included it there.
The first couple of chapters were rather hard for me to read, especially the events leading up to and the aftermath of Khalil's murder. Not because it's badly written (by God, Angie Thomas writes beautifully), but because I couldn't fathom that people this racist, this unabashedly hateful exist. I couldn't even tell myself that it's only a book, it's fiction, because while yes it is fiction but every. Single. Word. Is. True. And it happened in our very real world. Almost one year after BLM movement swept the world, no more than three days ago to be precise, Daunte Wright was shot to death by a police officer. Why? At first, he was stopped while driving because he hung a car freshener on his rearview mirror, which is against the traffic law in Minneapolis. The police claimed she had an arrest warrant. Daunte tried to run away, because after seeing what happened to George Floyd who did everything the police officer told him, who wouldn't? His girlfriend witnessed the murder. The police's alibi? She thought that that pistol was a taser.
An arrest warrant isn't a licence to kill. That Daunte decided to run away didn't justify his murder. And what kind of police officer couldn't even tell the difference between a gun and a taser, when its colour, its shape, even its weigh are different?
The fact that what happened to Daunte is eerily similar to Khalil in this book (the latter being a work of fiction) is a testament of how the same bullshit has been happening over and over again. From George Floyd to Breonna Taylor being murdered in her own home to Michael Brown being shot while walking with his friend to Martin Luther King, Jr being assassinated at his hotel balcony. Two weeks ago, I watched Judas and the Black Messiah, a biographical movie that tells the story of Fred Hampton, a promising young black leader who made changes among minorities in the 60s. FBI saw him as threat and murdered him in his sleep. Didn't the same thing happen to Breonna Taylor, too? No wonder our black brothers and sisters are fed up. Even JFK himself said, those who make peaceful revolution impossible, make violent revolution inevitable.
Just like what Starr said in the selected quote above. What's the point of having a voice if you're going to be silent in those moments you shouldn't be?
"The officer forced Khalil out the car." "Forced?" she says. "Yes, ma'am. He pulled him out." "Because Khalil was hesitant, right?" Momma makes this throaty sound, like she was about to say something but stopped herself. She purses her lips and rubs my back in circles. I remember what Daddy said -- "Don't let them put words in your mouth." "No, ma'am," I say to Gomez. "He was getting out on his own, and the officer yanked him the rest of the way." She says "I see" again, but she didn't see it so she probably doesn't believe it. "What happened next?" she asks. "The officer patted Khalil down three times." "Three?" Yeah. I counted. "Yes, ma'am. He didn't find anything. He then told Khalil to stay put while he ran his license and registration." "But Khalil didn't stay put, did he?" she says. "He didn't pull the trigger on himself either."
SIX, Part 1: WHEN IT HAPPENS
Me to Starr:
"Yeah." She smiles and says in that same sugary, sympathetic tone, "Now, do you know if Khalil sold narcotics?" Pause. What the fuck? [...] "Did you consume any alcohol at the party?" she asks. I know that move from Law & Order. She's trying to discredit me. "No. I don't drink." "Did Khalil?" "Whoa, wait one second," Momma says. "Are y'all putting Khalil and Starr on trial or the cop who killed him?"
SIX, Part 1: WHEN IT HAPPENS
What I love the most about this book is that, while it highlights the struggle of being black from the perspective of a teenage girl, it doesn't depict her as a one-dimensional justice warrior. Starr had her doubts about speaking up, and it mostly revolved around the safety of her family. Starr was both beautifully fragile, yet strong. We experienced the trauma of witnessing the murder of her best friend together with her, and we rejoiced the moment she began to find her voice because truly, we found our voice too. This can be applied in so many ways. Starr found her voice as a girl coming of age and as a black woman advocating for her people.
As serious as the topics being brought up, this book is actually rather funny. Everyone from the Carter household is so lovable and I love their dynamics to bits. And yes, even unofficially adopted ones like DeVante. I also want to specifically hightlight Starr's relationship with Chris, her boyfriend, and Hailey, her best friend. Without spoiling anything, it's actually a character study on how at a loss non-black people can be on their struggle. I'm including other race other than caucasian here. You can choose to be an ally, but remember to always keep an open mind and be willing to learn, or stay hateful and ignorant.
Overall, The Hate U Give...
