Youth Perspetive with Desiree Harrison

The Hate You Give: What it means to me? By Desiree Harrison

As I sat in my chair watching the new movie the hate you give, I felt a very deep connection to the main character Starr Carter played by Amanda Stenberg. I could relate to her as a teenager with the way she dressed and how she wore her hair. Even our style of clothes was the same so her character was relatable.

Reflecting on the movie, I could relate to where she lived and the neighborhood was filled with drug dealers and violence. We live in a society where we can't even ride our bikes out after dark without the fear of it being kidnapped or shot. As I compare this movie to my background, the women in my neighborhood cannot walk down the street without the fear of being robbed, raped, or kidnapped here on the south side of Chicago.

The title of the movie stands for Thug Life "The hate you give little infants f***s everybody." Unfortunately, this is one of the most accurate lines in the world. It's almost like a twisted game that everyone play's. I feel like the men and women in our communities struggle to find food and they depend on food stamps to feed their small children. The women struggle to find a decent job that pays enough to support a family.

Meanwhile, men then are forced to start selling drugs and doing other illegal things to help support their family. The crazy thing is that the illegal activities lead to them being arrested going to prison leaving their children. Fathers that go off to prison not only leave their teenagers but leave behind small babies that will grow up without a father to teach them how to climb trees, how to become men or be their daughters first love. A man is the protector and provider of the family.

Just as Starr’s father Maverick “Mav” Carter played by Russell Hornsby in the movie The Hate You Give. He was a former drug dealer who turned his life around and opened up his own grocery store in the neighborhood. Maverick taught his children the rules for living in the hood and when they get pulled over by the police.

In the movie Starr (Amanda Stenberg) almost lost her baby brother after he picked up a gun to defend his father. The two cops yelling at the child with their guns pointed at him as if he was a criminal. However, Starr refused to lose her baby brother and refused to keep silent honoring the signs of Thug Life so she stepped out in front of him to say no, enough.

That particular scene in the movie made me think of my neighbor. What if we as a community stand together and say “Enough” with the drug dealers, gangs, and police brutally. Can we make a change? I honestly believe that we can end the Black on Black

crime and the Black on White crime. It takes one minute to talk out an issue instead of fighting. Going from an argument to picking up a gun does not solve the problems. We need to not be the pawn in their game. We need to stand out and stand up. Don’t’ be silent anymore. The Hate You Give can be reversed with education and resolution. I loved the movie “The Hate You Give” which is based on the bestselling novel by Angie Thomas.