Let's talk about the protests and rioting at the end of the novel. What finally prompts Starr to find her voice? Why do you suppose some people may start to riot and loot as a part of the protests?
I think that Starr finding her voice is a central theme in this novel and plays a significant role in the coming-of-age-aspect of this book. Accordingly, I think that Starr is on a continuous journey to find her voice, which peaks near the end of the novel during the protests. Starr begins to find her voice online through Tumblr, which readers know about early on with Starr's sharing of a post about Emmett Till, which causes conflict between her and Hailey several times. Moreover, Starr gives her statement to the police and shares about the Khalil she knew on Tumblr, in an attempt to humanize him to the greater public (205). It's important to note that after Khalil is murdered, fear is an important factor that keeps Starr relatively silent about the shooting. These sentiments are reinforced when Maverick is stopped by the police and treated worse once the cops realize that he is Starr's dad and that she is the witness (193).
Moreover, I think that Starr really uncovers her voice during the protests because she is surrounded by people who share similar feelings and frustrations as her after the court decision is announced, as she says, “people say misery loves company, but I think it’s like that with anger too.” (393). Starr feels a sense of community with the people around her, sharing their anger over the decision. “My anger is theirs and theirs is mine.” (393). She’s mad about systematic racism and how it is such a significant part of policing in the US and I think that the fact that she is surrounded by a community of people is what helps her really use her voice. In the past, Starr has felt discouraged from using her voice from people like Hailey; however, I think that having the support of others that she receives when speaking at the end of the book helps to validate the fact that Starr’s voice is her biggest weapon and that it matters.
On the topic of the riots, it appears that they are a response to people not feeling heard and undervalued. While the riots are intense and grow increasingly tense and violent, I think that they are a justified response from people who largely feel ignored on a systematic level. This is not to say that the violence is appropriate but, rather, that it is difficult to be heard in a society that actively ignores you. In this way, what are people supposed to do to share their concerns and frustrations when this is their reality? Regarding the looting, I think Devante explains this best when he explains that the McDonalds and pawnshop also did not treat his family well (397). In this way, it seems that the anger of some of the protestors spread so that it was no longer targeted at the police but, rather, at every system and business that treated them unfairly. Again, I think that tensions reached a boiling point for many in this part of the book and people wanted to fight against an entire system and society that appears to be working against them.
Moreover, I think that Starr really uncovers her voice during the protests because she is surrounded by people who share similar feelings and frustrations as her after the court decision is announced, as she says, “people say misery loves company, but I think it’s like that with anger too.” (393). Starr feels a sense of community with the people around her, sharing their anger over the decision. “My anger is theirs and theirs is mine.” (393). She’s mad about systematic racism and how it is such a significant part of policing in the US and I think that the fact that she is surrounded by a community of people is what helps her really use her voice. In the past, Starr has felt discouraged from using her voice from people like Hailey; however, I think that having the support of others that she receives when speaking at the end of the book helps to validate the fact that Starr’s voice is her biggest weapon and that it matters.
On the topic of the riots, it appears that they are a response to people not feeling heard and undervalued. While the riots are intense and grow increasingly tense and violent, I think that they are a justified response from people who largely feel ignored on a systematic level. This is not to say that the violence is appropriate but, rather, that it is difficult to be heard in a society that actively ignores you. In this way, what are people supposed to do to share their concerns and frustrations when this is their reality? Regarding the looting, I think Devante explains this best when he explains that the McDonalds and pawnshop also did not treat his family well (397). In this way, it seems that the anger of some of the protestors spread so that it was no longer targeted at the police but, rather, at every system and business that treated them unfairly. Again, I think that tensions reached a boiling point for many in this part of the book and people wanted to fight against an entire system and society that appears to be working against them.
Hi Nicole! I completely agree with everything you have said and think you expressed your thoughts amazingly. In regard to the discussion question on why people may start to riot and loot as part of the protests, I agree with your point and wanted to add that sometimes looting and rioting is the only tangible thing that can be targeted to express frustration, devastation, and anger with police brutality and the flawed system. When black people are targeted by the police and there is no justice for senseless killings, looting and rioting seem to be the only way to spread their message.
Hey Nicole!
I totally agree with you! The part where you say they are fighting against a system rather than the police is what interests me the most. Though this is what I agree most with, I want to add that often (at least I think so), we take our voice for granted. Maybe it's because we are told to not defy grown ups as children or something, but I feel like we often forget that it's our right to freedom of expression and I think Starr also discovers that as she goes. That even though she is told to stay quiet at first, she doesn't have to because it's her right. At the end you see she takes full control of her voice and says what needs to said, I think that's when she fully realizes the power of her voice when others back her up.
I totally agree with you! The part where you say they are fighting against a system rather than the police is what interests me the most. Though this is what I agree most with, I want to add that often (at least I think so), we take our voice for granted. Maybe it's because we are told to not defy grown ups as children or something, but I feel like we often forget that it's our right to freedom of expression and I think Starr also discovers that as she goes. That even though she is told to stay quiet at first, she doesn't have to because it's her right. At the end you see she takes full control of her voice and says what needs to said, I think that's when she fully realizes the power of her voice when others back her up.
Hi Annabelle,
I agree with this statement.
When injustices are carried out, people should not carry on with their daily lives. They must make it clear that they find the action unacceptable and will not allow it continue. If everyone simply went to work and school, the state and police would not know how strongly people feel about police brutality. Protest have been used as a tool for getting a message across since the beginning of American history. We see this with the Boston Tea party
I agree with this statement.
When injustices are carried out, people should not carry on with their daily lives. They must make it clear that they find the action unacceptable and will not allow it continue. If everyone simply went to work and school, the state and police would not know how strongly people feel about police brutality. Protest have been used as a tool for getting a message across since the beginning of American history. We see this with the Boston Tea party
I agree with all of the points you've made. When every system that is meant to help and protect you starts to do the exact opposite or never really did its job in the first place, anger and frustration build up. When lawful ways to get justice stop working, people have to make do with the unlawful ones and make sure that their voice is heard.
Also, I feel as though everyone should watch the following video. It sums up pretty much everything.
Also, I feel as though everyone should watch the following video. It sums up pretty much everything.
Thank you for sharing that. That was a powerful video and I completely agree. Starr found her voice after becoming increasingly frustrated and angered. She tried lawful means and like many black individuals out here when they feel like they have exhausted all options she had enough. I feel like people riot and loot because when their peaceful, loud voices are falling on deaf ears then action needs to be taken. DeVante said it well, the pawnshop stole from them. An already poor and disadvantaged people are still being exploited and it is at that moment of looting and rioting they feel like they can get back what was taken from.
I really like this video because she addresses the "what" versus "whys" behind protests, rioting, and looting. The media often focuses on the "what" rather than the "why," and that's where the disconnect is. We can absolutely connect this to the book. Starr slowly finds her "WHYs" and uses those to raise her voice by the end of the book.
I liked your statement that violence is appropriate but difficult to be heard by a society who isn't listening. When you do the right thing and get no response for so long people are bound to get angry, frustrated, and sad. Eventually, those emotions need to go somewhere.
I think you perfectly summed up the different pivotal points in the book in which Starr finds her voice. For me, I found the part in the book on the basketball court a pivotal point as well. There, Starr uses her voice to express her anger around the racist remarks her friends were saying around her. After Khalil's death, Starr became even more aware of the language and subtle actions people made around her. From using Tumblr as a platform to using her voice at the protests, Starr's voice became stronger each time she practiced using it. At first she became numb and unsure how to formulate words to speak out about Khalil's death, but as more injustice was evident in her community, she knew it was her place in the world to use her voice and her experiences to better the future experiences of others.
Starr comes to find her voice at the end of the novel when she realized that her talking to the grand court was not successful in bringing justice to Khalil’s death. Starr tried to use her voice while protecting her identity and followed the standard procedures of the criminal justice system, talking to detectives, going on the grand jury, and obtaining legal counsel but unfortunately, the criminal justice system is not created to protect the marginalized and this is illustrated in Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give.
Starr begins to find her voice in situations that at first glance seem insignificant but were important factors in Starr finding the power of her voice. On page 130, Starr first calls Hailey out for acting racist. In this scene, Starr begins to abandon her fear of being the ‘angry black girl” (pg. 130) from Garden Heights and sticks up for herself. Development in Starr finding her voice is evident throughout the novel from the day after Khalil’s death. Starr is working at the store with Maverick when Mr. Lewis comes in and begins to talk about Khalil’s relationship with King. (Pg. 47) Starr stays quiet despite the anger this causes. As the labeling of Khalil as a drug dealer continues Starr creates a Tumblr blog called "The Khalil I Know" (pg. 200) This was Starr’s initiative to break the stigma of justifying Khalil’s death. Starr’s voice gets louder as the media pushes to justify the actions of officer One-Fifteen that ultimately resulted in the death of Khalil. Khalil was labeled as a thug, a drug dealer, a danger whereas in the interview with One-Fifteens father the officer is painted as a perfect member of society. (Pg. 238) This was the push Starr needed to freely speak on the news. She knows her voice for Khalil had to be louder than One-Fifteens fathers. Thinking out all her words and actions is a big aspect of Starr’s personality, but during this interview, she abandons that; she abandons what Williamson Starr would do and speaks about things her and Ms. Ofrah had not discussed and she abandons everything Garden Heights Starr learned not to do like dry snitching and taking a jab at the cops by asking if he wishes he had shot her too. (pg.277) Her need for justice becomes a bigger influence than her own safety.
Starr’s voice finally breaks free when the grand jury decides not to punish officer One-Fifteen. Starr’s decision to riot is fueled by an array of emotions and she realizes there is nothing more she can do. She did everything she was supposed to and instead of justice for Khalil, protection for One-Fifteen was granted. I think this is the motivation for many protests and riots in our society. People are angry, sad, frustrated, and fearful that it will be them next, it will be their children, parents, friends. You can do everything right and continue bringing these cases to the justice system and receive no progress, no justice. Police brutality does not only affect people in singles but in the masses, pain, grief, and anger are all shared values in which motivate the masses to protest. Media production and the criminal justice system only allow you to hear what they want and are designed to further continue marginalizing the marginalized. Rioting and protesting is a way people can express these feelings of pain, demand change, and bring a new perspective to why they’re fighting that isn’t controlled by the media.
Starr begins to find her voice in situations that at first glance seem insignificant but were important factors in Starr finding the power of her voice. On page 130, Starr first calls Hailey out for acting racist. In this scene, Starr begins to abandon her fear of being the ‘angry black girl” (pg. 130) from Garden Heights and sticks up for herself. Development in Starr finding her voice is evident throughout the novel from the day after Khalil’s death. Starr is working at the store with Maverick when Mr. Lewis comes in and begins to talk about Khalil’s relationship with King. (Pg. 47) Starr stays quiet despite the anger this causes. As the labeling of Khalil as a drug dealer continues Starr creates a Tumblr blog called "The Khalil I Know" (pg. 200) This was Starr’s initiative to break the stigma of justifying Khalil’s death. Starr’s voice gets louder as the media pushes to justify the actions of officer One-Fifteen that ultimately resulted in the death of Khalil. Khalil was labeled as a thug, a drug dealer, a danger whereas in the interview with One-Fifteens father the officer is painted as a perfect member of society. (Pg. 238) This was the push Starr needed to freely speak on the news. She knows her voice for Khalil had to be louder than One-Fifteens fathers. Thinking out all her words and actions is a big aspect of Starr’s personality, but during this interview, she abandons that; she abandons what Williamson Starr would do and speaks about things her and Ms. Ofrah had not discussed and she abandons everything Garden Heights Starr learned not to do like dry snitching and taking a jab at the cops by asking if he wishes he had shot her too. (pg.277) Her need for justice becomes a bigger influence than her own safety.
Starr’s voice finally breaks free when the grand jury decides not to punish officer One-Fifteen. Starr’s decision to riot is fueled by an array of emotions and she realizes there is nothing more she can do. She did everything she was supposed to and instead of justice for Khalil, protection for One-Fifteen was granted. I think this is the motivation for many protests and riots in our society. People are angry, sad, frustrated, and fearful that it will be them next, it will be their children, parents, friends. You can do everything right and continue bringing these cases to the justice system and receive no progress, no justice. Police brutality does not only affect people in singles but in the masses, pain, grief, and anger are all shared values in which motivate the masses to protest. Media production and the criminal justice system only allow you to hear what they want and are designed to further continue marginalizing the marginalized. Rioting and protesting is a way people can express these feelings of pain, demand change, and bring a new perspective to why they’re fighting that isn’t controlled by the media.
Hi Emily, I like your final sentence here, where you bring up bringing a new perspective that isn't controlled by the media. Often the media does twist around stories, as we see in this novel when One-Fifteen's dad speaks on the news. Protests and riots are definitely unfiltered and express the truth of the pain protestors feel.
When Starr gets to Carnation street where the shooting happened, she can see Ms Ofrah and the rest of Just Us for Justice protesting holding the hairbrushes in the air chanting "A hairbrush is not a gun". She can see the shrine for Khalil and she knows she wants to do something. She has been told throughout the book by Ms Ofrah that her voice is her weapon so she decides to use it watching the peaceful protest happen while the cops continue to threaten them. I think when you are trying to get a point across while peacefully protesting and still, nobody is listening and the cops are still threatening you, anger spreads fast. I can understand how hard it would be to keep the frustration and anger at bay when it appears nobody is listening to you, so it turns to violence to get a rouse out of the police officers. It is a group mentality of anger and if one person starts, more will join. In the novel even DeVante is ready to set fires and burn buildings down to cope with his anger since other people are, the idea even crosses Starr's mind for a brief moment.
I love the analysis that you and the other Emily are both making here. I firstly really like the way Emily broke down Starr finding her voice into multiple categories. The pivotal and final moment was at the riots, but there were many more times where she learned how to use her voice leading up to that. I also really appreciate how you point out that DeVante is ready to keep going; he's angry, and wants to burn things, and, as you point out, even Starr feels this way for a moment. I think it's interesting to view these events through the experiences of multiple characters and connect it to what is happening today. Many protesters are likely more like Starr's classmates, many of whom are protesting for the right cause but only because they think it's the right thing to do, and even if they aren't trying to be performative, it still isn't necessarily coming from a place of anger. I wonder how Starr and DeVante's reactions may have been different if their scenarios were even slightly different. Starr spent much of the book worrying about using her voice, and thought that came from a place of real fear, I think may people struggle to speak up from a place of anxiety, even when they are not in real danger like Starr. Starr was forced into her role, and if she had not been Khalil's friend, or had moved out of Garden Heights when she was young, I wonder if she would have taken any real stance or chosen to remain quiet despite her anger. Her presence at the riots, though the climax of the story, was a coincidence; in fact, she didn't want to be there at all. I'm not sure what my question is, but I think it's interesting to consider how thin a line exists between leading with your voice and remaining silent (even when you don't want to).
Ok everyone, can we push this discussion past the novel and talk about what the reading the novel has taught us about the protests all over the world after George Floyd was killed? One reason to read these novels is to see how they can help us understand reality around us.
I think the novel exactly mirrors what has happened to many people in the real world. In my opinion, it demonstrates how using your voice is the first step, but isn't necessarily the last one. We see all these protests and riots happen, and they come from very different places. As we saw this year in places like Oregon, there isn't an exact path from rioting to success; instead, police violence was escalated as a way to quell rioters (much like the police presence and violence at the riots in the novel). However, this doesn't mean we shouldn't speak out against injustices, because there were also successes. If there had just been one or two protests or riots, there wouldn't have been sustained change because it would either lose steam or be quelled. However, as protests spread quickly this summer, we did see serious reforms or reallocation of policing funds in some areas. It came with a heavy price of increased violence, curfews, and even the National Guard being sent into communities, but this summer demonstrated that the riots do work if given time. It takes a long, sustained effort, though, and that requires everyone participating.
However, I do have another thought on these riots. Because it is poor communities that are over-policed, they are also the communities in which these murders occur and are subsequently the first location for riots. We see this in the novel, but also in real life, with the start of riots in Minneapolis. Since this summer, there have been countless accounts of police literally tear gassing people's homes, attacking neighborhoods, etc. Because the communities where murders happen are where riots begin, we also see local stores etc harmed, which only further harms the local community. Certainly, some of the most intense violence we saw this summer was in places like LA and Portland. However, I posit that the majority of damage done in protests and riots happens to the most vulnerable communities. The cost of protesting, both emotionally and financially, falls on people like the inhabitants of Garden Heights. I don't know how we can change this, but I think we need to try. Protests in the wealthy areas of major cities demonstrated that using your voice is especially important when you're more privileged, because if only the people in Minneapolis or Garden Heights spoke out against injustice, they would immediately be silenced or hurt. I think middle and upper socio-economic classes must use their voices, because currently it is the lower ones who are most hurt by both the police themselves and by the protests afterward.
Drawing a comparison with protesting and current events with the BLM movement I found very compelling and hard-hitting the scene where Starr's classmates decide to "protest" to skip class. I think this scene makes a lot of commentary on fake activism and opportunist. In the past months, we were witnessing of many companies using BLM as a way to profit or gain publicity, models going to protests just to take pictures and pose, the black square trend, etc. It makes us examine if our activism roots from actual outrage and care, or it is just out of fear of judgement and to save face.
In the novel we see protesting and rioting as somewhat 'the tip of the iceberg,' when enough is enough. The protesting and rioting not only come as a sign of people raising their concerns but also a sign of their frustration and anger. The George Floyd killing was not something that was new to the black community. They have seen this happen countless times before but I think watching a play by play of their black brothers life being taken through their phone screen was a breaking point for them. They black lives matter movement had been raising its voice before through protest but I think what transpired after the George Floyd killing was a a testament to the anger they felt inside. Similarly to Starr not being able to just go home after officer 115 was not charged, black individuals could not sit still this time. They saw their ancestors, their parents fight for the same thing that they see being committed now and that fueled their voices. The mass protest that we have seen happen across the world, the rioting, the black-out moments was not only them speaking out but them screaming that they are tired of being feared, filled with fear, killed, and disadvantaged. The avenue that they took to protest the George Floyd murder was as drastic and severe as the situation was. Through allies, rallying together and going out on the frontline even in the midst of a pandemic they were able to get some justice but that is a just a step for what they hope to achieve.
I found this novel very eye-opening. I think especially in the U.S. there was a noticeable shift in the conversations of people in my generation after George Floyd was killed. Social media was heavy with reposts and messages supporting BLM, talking about the protests, and the injustice of police brutality. For many white people, that's also where the conversation ended. As a white woman in a primarily white state and neighborhood, I noticed two kinds of conversations. Ones where people with similar beliefs would talk about the injustice of police brutality and all agree that its a problem and sharing what they personally did about it, and ones where people completely disagreed and there was never any positive conclusion or productive discussions. There became discussions on "black lives" versus "blue lives," "black lives" versus, "all lives," etc. Many of these conversations that were being held never dug deeper than the problem of police brutality and racism. Very rarely did I see white people talk about the issues of white supremacy.
After reading "The Hate U Give," I believe it even more now that white people need to read stories about personal black experiences beyond social media posts. As a white person, I've never needed the "cop talk," I've never had to wonder if my race was a factor in how I was treated in society. Reading novels that allow the reader to get a closer look at the experiences of black people and black communities, if anything, is beneficial in fostering stronger empathy and compassion for black lives. A novel will never compare to understanding an in-person personal experience, but it can be the closest one gets to it if they don't share those experiences. Overall, this novel taught me what kind of thoughts goes through black individuals' minds when these events occur, when their families are threatened, and when they experience racism in casual dialogue.
After reading "The Hate U Give," I believe it even more now that white people need to read stories about personal black experiences beyond social media posts. As a white person, I've never needed the "cop talk," I've never had to wonder if my race was a factor in how I was treated in society. Reading novels that allow the reader to get a closer look at the experiences of black people and black communities, if anything, is beneficial in fostering stronger empathy and compassion for black lives. A novel will never compare to understanding an in-person personal experience, but it can be the closest one gets to it if they don't share those experiences. Overall, this novel taught me what kind of thoughts goes through black individuals' minds when these events occur, when their families are threatened, and when they experience racism in casual dialogue.
I think that during COVID and the current world that we are living in, the importance of voice persisted, further proving to me its significance. I think that the novel shows us that there comes a point at which people have had enough and I would argue that these come in waves. Accordingly, they never actually end but they slide into one another and peak at various times. Throughout the novel, it was fear that various people and groups used to keep Starr quiet and I think that these feelings also existed earlier this year because of the virus. That said, both Starr and protestors following the murder of George Floyd showed that fear cannot be the reason we do not speak out. Where Starr found safety and protection with her friends and family, protestors this year geared up with masks to protect themselves and the health of others. Like Hillary noted, sometimes protesting and rioting is the only remaining method available to express one's frustrations, which means that we often must physically and mentally prepare and protect ourselves.
Hi Nicole,
I appreciate your point of how despite COVID, the importance of voice has persisted. When the voices of the oppressed have been silenced for so long, protests and riots serve as a method for which citizens can unite in raising their voices, to demand change, and to be heard. I believe that the power of voice is incredibly important, and the protests this summer after the murder of George Floyd served to represent that. Despite the pandemic, individuals all over the world took to the streets to speak out and demand change, which was incredibly powerful. I think that no matter what circumstances surround us, we may struggle to understand where to start when looking to address injustice however, we will always be equipped with our voices.
I appreciate your point of how despite COVID, the importance of voice has persisted. When the voices of the oppressed have been silenced for so long, protests and riots serve as a method for which citizens can unite in raising their voices, to demand change, and to be heard. I believe that the power of voice is incredibly important, and the protests this summer after the murder of George Floyd served to represent that. Despite the pandemic, individuals all over the world took to the streets to speak out and demand change, which was incredibly powerful. I think that no matter what circumstances surround us, we may struggle to understand where to start when looking to address injustice however, we will always be equipped with our voices.
*In my last post, I mixed up Maya and Hailey. I did that often throughout the novel because I did watch the movie back in June and the star who plays Hailey is named Maya in a tv show I used to watch called Girls Meets World so my apologies everyone!
There is an article that discusses this exact question. I will leave it below.
https://www.dailylobo.com/article/2020/06/the-hate-u-give-still-relevant-in-a-racist-justice-system
I think this book is foreshadowing, if you will, to the events of 2020. Multiple black people are shot and killed for doing absolutely nothing. Jogging, sleeping, breathing, etc.
Here is an article with the video of the pastor who ran with a tv to prove that racism killed Ahmaud Arbery.
https://www.insider.com/white-man-carried-tv-while-running-arbery-killing-vide-2020-5
The novel has taught me that it is important to speak out against all forms of racism, including passive because as shown by Maya, passive racism becomes passive-aggressive to just aggressive. It taught me that more than one person needs to speak out and it cannot just be from the harmed group themselves because as proven for the past 400 years, nobody is willing to listen to the marginalized group shout that they are marginalized. People with privilege need to step in, and they need to not be "saviours". It is not about "saving the race", it is about making all races equal. It is about giving all races a platform for their voices, their cultures, their histories, and it is most importantly about not getting defensive when being called out. I honestly think that when it comes to racism, I learned most from this novel to relate to the real world (aside from a literal black killing by a white police officer), between the interaction of Hailey and Starr. Hailey was very racist, and not just to black people but to any non-white people. She made inappropriate Chinese jokes to their other "best friend" Maya. The girls never confronted Hailey because they were all "friends" and it can be hard to call friends out. I have learned from this novel and from the issues in 2020, that no matter who it is, even if it is yourself, call out racism. Call out friends, family, co-workers, superiors, companies, etc.
There is an article that discusses this exact question. I will leave it below.
https://www.dailylobo.com/article/2020/06/the-hate-u-give-still-relevant-in-a-racist-justice-system
I think this book is foreshadowing, if you will, to the events of 2020. Multiple black people are shot and killed for doing absolutely nothing. Jogging, sleeping, breathing, etc.
Here is an article with the video of the pastor who ran with a tv to prove that racism killed Ahmaud Arbery.
https://www.insider.com/white-man-carried-tv-while-running-arbery-killing-vide-2020-5
The novel has taught me that it is important to speak out against all forms of racism, including passive because as shown by Maya, passive racism becomes passive-aggressive to just aggressive. It taught me that more than one person needs to speak out and it cannot just be from the harmed group themselves because as proven for the past 400 years, nobody is willing to listen to the marginalized group shout that they are marginalized. People with privilege need to step in, and they need to not be "saviours". It is not about "saving the race", it is about making all races equal. It is about giving all races a platform for their voices, their cultures, their histories, and it is most importantly about not getting defensive when being called out. I honestly think that when it comes to racism, I learned most from this novel to relate to the real world (aside from a literal black killing by a white police officer), between the interaction of Hailey and Starr. Hailey was very racist, and not just to black people but to any non-white people. She made inappropriate Chinese jokes to their other "best friend" Maya. The girls never confronted Hailey because they were all "friends" and it can be hard to call friends out. I have learned from this novel and from the issues in 2020, that no matter who it is, even if it is yourself, call out racism. Call out friends, family, co-workers, superiors, companies, etc.
I think that Starr has a hard time coming to terms with finding her voice because of a few things that circle around the theme of her feelings of being alone.
When she was young, her best friend died - only she and Khalil could relate to each other. Khalil died, she could relate to herself because her other friend died before Khalil, but nobody else could relate to her because Khalil was the only one that related to her, and he died. Her white friends could not relate because they were white and didn't have any friends die from a police shooting, or a criminal shooting. While her black friends could relate to the pain of losing Khalil and her other friend, Natasha, they could not relate to seeing someone get murdered. (At least this is what we can assume since Starr never found anyone who could relate to her, so even if anyone from the community could relate to her, their presence wasn't known, which still made Starr feel alone.)
So, she was alone. She was unique, with only herself to relate to because her experiences were not experienced with anyone else other than Khalil. When he died, she felt alone, and it can be hard to speak up when trauma has happened to someone repeatedly and nobody else can fully understand. She may also have not spoken up because she felt that she alone could not change the system, and to try would only be harming herself more by putting herself in danger of police, and the criminal justice system, the media, and her relationships with her white friends at school, as well members of in her community.
I think she found her voice once April Ofrah came into the picture. Until that point, she was just coping with Khalil's death, and even though she was blowing up Tumblr with BLM matters and news of Emmett Till, she never spoke out to Maya about it until much later, when the pressure became too much and Maya went from being passively racist to passive-aggressively racist. When Starr met April, she finally had someone who may not have been able to relate to her but was someone who could encourage her, empower her, and someone who was a role model because she fought for black people's rights as a lawyer and an advocate. Once April met Starr, she knew it was important to guide her, and so she got her an interview on TV with the press. Starr needed baby steps to speak out because 1) She had never spoken out about these issues outside of social media, and 2) there was still the issue of danger. If you alone are speaking out, you become an easy target.
When Starr's class left school to "protest", and many of them used that as an excuse to skip class, including her friend Maya, she refused to follow along. This in its own way was protesting the protest because the majority of kids weren't protesting for the right reasons. So all students who stuck inside and worked with Starr, actually kinda protested the protest with her. Small stuff like that, speaks big volumes and Starr gained confidence from this.
Once the rioting occurred at the end of the novel, Starr had been through two deaths, a court case that failed her, and interrogations that accused her and Khalil of his own death. There were people in the streets upset, and rioting was occurring and tear gas was tossed by police officers, and at this point, Starr has everything she needs to speak out 1) an audience willing to listen to her, back her up, and be witnesses, 2) a target audience all gathered in the same place at once - making it easy for her to talk to them all and making it hard for them to deny that she spoke out or that they knew this was an issue since there were many witnesses, and 3) she has a support system that was rooting for her (such as Seven, Chris, April, etc.)
So as perfectly summed up by the video that Minahil shares, people loot because they feel it is their best chance to have a good livelihood, which in its own way violates Article 25 of the UDHR since they do not have an adequate livelihood if they need to loot clothes, food, money, technology, (that one could argue is a necessity in order to use as a safe network to contact friends/family/emergency workers/etc.)
Others may loot as a form of punishment - kinda like the Bible story version where if Jews spilled blood on their doorsteps, God knew to pass their homes to target the Egyptians. Similar to that story, in the novel black businesses bordered up their doors to show they are with the protestors and not against and to ask for no harm unto them. Looters often exploit businesses that have proven time and time again to exploit the looters. For example, looters may rob a Walmart because they feel that Walmart doesn't respect black employees and needs to be taught a lesson.
Here is an actual issue involving Walmarts racism that was written this past June!
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/walmart-exploits-black-lives-while-paying-lip-service-black-lives-ncna1231493
I think people riot and loot in general as a form of "rough justice" which is discussed in criminology. According to Colins Dictionary on the definition, "If you describe someone's treatment or punishment as rough justice, you mean that it is not given according to the law."
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/rough-justice
So, for those who riot or loot, they do so because they cannot seem to catch a break, all else has failed, and they still have not gotten their justice, so they take matters into their own hands. If corporations do wrong and get punished by the courts, they are fined a large sum. If corporations do wrong and are not punished by the courts, then looters may feel they need to provide their own justice. The businesses will still lose a large sum of money, it would just be in their products and not their bank accounts. If people do wrong and get punished by the courts, they have to do time, pay a fine, do community service, etc. It's trickier to provide an analogy with people because you can only punish corps and businesses with money. People have multiple punishments at their disposal. So, when rioters make noise, damage property, and give speeches, and become abusive (which is rarely), then this is the last resort they had, and they probably already tried to go through the media and the courts and failed. Peaceful protesting will simply not work because it has been tried and failed, and so people take to the streets.
When she was young, her best friend died - only she and Khalil could relate to each other. Khalil died, she could relate to herself because her other friend died before Khalil, but nobody else could relate to her because Khalil was the only one that related to her, and he died. Her white friends could not relate because they were white and didn't have any friends die from a police shooting, or a criminal shooting. While her black friends could relate to the pain of losing Khalil and her other friend, Natasha, they could not relate to seeing someone get murdered. (At least this is what we can assume since Starr never found anyone who could relate to her, so even if anyone from the community could relate to her, their presence wasn't known, which still made Starr feel alone.)
So, she was alone. She was unique, with only herself to relate to because her experiences were not experienced with anyone else other than Khalil. When he died, she felt alone, and it can be hard to speak up when trauma has happened to someone repeatedly and nobody else can fully understand. She may also have not spoken up because she felt that she alone could not change the system, and to try would only be harming herself more by putting herself in danger of police, and the criminal justice system, the media, and her relationships with her white friends at school, as well members of in her community.
I think she found her voice once April Ofrah came into the picture. Until that point, she was just coping with Khalil's death, and even though she was blowing up Tumblr with BLM matters and news of Emmett Till, she never spoke out to Maya about it until much later, when the pressure became too much and Maya went from being passively racist to passive-aggressively racist. When Starr met April, she finally had someone who may not have been able to relate to her but was someone who could encourage her, empower her, and someone who was a role model because she fought for black people's rights as a lawyer and an advocate. Once April met Starr, she knew it was important to guide her, and so she got her an interview on TV with the press. Starr needed baby steps to speak out because 1) She had never spoken out about these issues outside of social media, and 2) there was still the issue of danger. If you alone are speaking out, you become an easy target.
When Starr's class left school to "protest", and many of them used that as an excuse to skip class, including her friend Maya, she refused to follow along. This in its own way was protesting the protest because the majority of kids weren't protesting for the right reasons. So all students who stuck inside and worked with Starr, actually kinda protested the protest with her. Small stuff like that, speaks big volumes and Starr gained confidence from this.
Once the rioting occurred at the end of the novel, Starr had been through two deaths, a court case that failed her, and interrogations that accused her and Khalil of his own death. There were people in the streets upset, and rioting was occurring and tear gas was tossed by police officers, and at this point, Starr has everything she needs to speak out 1) an audience willing to listen to her, back her up, and be witnesses, 2) a target audience all gathered in the same place at once - making it easy for her to talk to them all and making it hard for them to deny that she spoke out or that they knew this was an issue since there were many witnesses, and 3) she has a support system that was rooting for her (such as Seven, Chris, April, etc.)
So as perfectly summed up by the video that Minahil shares, people loot because they feel it is their best chance to have a good livelihood, which in its own way violates Article 25 of the UDHR since they do not have an adequate livelihood if they need to loot clothes, food, money, technology, (that one could argue is a necessity in order to use as a safe network to contact friends/family/emergency workers/etc.)
Others may loot as a form of punishment - kinda like the Bible story version where if Jews spilled blood on their doorsteps, God knew to pass their homes to target the Egyptians. Similar to that story, in the novel black businesses bordered up their doors to show they are with the protestors and not against and to ask for no harm unto them. Looters often exploit businesses that have proven time and time again to exploit the looters. For example, looters may rob a Walmart because they feel that Walmart doesn't respect black employees and needs to be taught a lesson.
Here is an actual issue involving Walmarts racism that was written this past June!
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/walmart-exploits-black-lives-while-paying-lip-service-black-lives-ncna1231493
I think people riot and loot in general as a form of "rough justice" which is discussed in criminology. According to Colins Dictionary on the definition, "If you describe someone's treatment or punishment as rough justice, you mean that it is not given according to the law."
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/rough-justice
So, for those who riot or loot, they do so because they cannot seem to catch a break, all else has failed, and they still have not gotten their justice, so they take matters into their own hands. If corporations do wrong and get punished by the courts, they are fined a large sum. If corporations do wrong and are not punished by the courts, then looters may feel they need to provide their own justice. The businesses will still lose a large sum of money, it would just be in their products and not their bank accounts. If people do wrong and get punished by the courts, they have to do time, pay a fine, do community service, etc. It's trickier to provide an analogy with people because you can only punish corps and businesses with money. People have multiple punishments at their disposal. So, when rioters make noise, damage property, and give speeches, and become abusive (which is rarely), then this is the last resort they had, and they probably already tried to go through the media and the courts and failed. Peaceful protesting will simply not work because it has been tried and failed, and so people take to the streets.