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chrishayla-a123 · 3 years ago
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Black Identity
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In the movie The Hate U Give the main character struggles with her identity and code switching throughout the course of the movie. Code switching and knowing your place is what a lot of People of color must go through to be accepted. Should people of color have to hide their personalities or struggle to know who they are because society likes to tear them down and make them bad people? Is it ok to be yourself in a society formed against you? How can you fix the issue if you code switch? The Hate you give shows how Stereotypes affect the black community, its shows how police brutality continues to affect us today, and it demonstrates how the Black Lives Matter movement is looked down upon even though it was made to give African Americans voices to speak up about the injustices done to the community.
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Silence is never the option
The message in the movie is very impactful. Star witnesses Khalil get shot and killed by the police. After the incident she is integrated and scared to speak up while she is the only witness. She battles with finding herself and what she stands for along with getting justice for her friend. Throughout the course of the movie, she must choose a side to stand for. Loses friends and cuts off family when she chooses to put herself first and finally stand up for what is right. A lot of what is going on is the movie is what a lot of people of color are going through with self-identity and feeling safe in their skin. It is not fair that people of color must change their appearance or ways they present themselves since that is what society deems acceptable but that is the case today.
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Why do people Code Switch?
Code switching is necessary to advance professionally and educationally .In “The Hate U Give” Star and her family alter the way they dress and speak depending on who they are around. This is also known as code switching in which Star explains how she participates in the act because of the school she goes to and the people she is around. Star changes when she is around her family or in her neighborhood because it's something she believes she must do. in Code switching is a strategy for black people to successfully navigate interracial interactions and has large implications for their well-being, economic advancement, and even physical. “For black people and other racial minorities, downplaying membership in a stigmatized racial group helps increase perceptions of professionalism and the likelihood of being hired.” (Big Idea Series) Why do I have to alter who I am to be successful? People of color are held to certain standards and one mistake or something that screams black culture to other people will determine how they view them. There are many instances where this is an issue that a lot of people experience is discrimination of their hair. A lot of people of color do not feel comfortable with their natural hair because it is seen as unprofessional or unclean.  Some have been known to not get jobs or promotions because of it. People of color will then go out their way to match the standards and appear how out white society has deemed acceptable. A 4-year-old Chicago boy was forced to take his corn rows out since it was not the dress code. Taking away the way people of color can present themselves and act is taking away their cultural identity forcing them to code switch to be scene.
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Why am I considered dangerous?
African Americans struggle with mental health due to negative racial Stereotypes. Negative stereotypes about the black community promote police brutality since people of color are considered dangerous because of the color of their skin. Racism can be described as “A system in which one group of people exercises power over another on the basis of skin colour; an implicit or explicit set of beliefs, erroneous assumptions, and actions based on an ideology of the inherent superiority of one racial group over another, and evident in organizational or institutional structures and programs as well as in individual thought or behaviour patterns.” (Henry & Tator, 2006, p. 352) When Star witnesses Khalil get shot and killed the officer thought he was armed and dangerous at the time he shot him. Khalil only had a hairbrush in his hand in which the officer assumed it was a gun. The stereotypes correlated with African Americans is that there all dangerous or thugs because of the color of their skin. There are many instances where the police officers feel threaten or assume African Americans are dangerous for example Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Daunte Wright, Andre Hill, Mannuel Ellis, Atatiana Jefferson, and many more African Americans were victims due to police brutality. How can skin be a weapon? “A 1997 study conducted by Peffley et al indicated that whites who hold negative stereotypes of African-Americans judge them more harshly than they do other whites when making hypothetical decisions about violent crimes and welfare benefits.” (Green) This is just one of the many examples people of color have been through. History continues to repeat which continues to cause more issues as it affects the Black community.
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Black Lives Do Matter.
The black lives movement was created to give voices to the unheard. Police brutality against African Americans promoted the Black Lives Matter movement. When star had witness Khalil get shot, she tried her best to conceal her identity out of fear the police officers would do something to her or fer family. There is a scene when they were at a restaurant her dad was getting attacked even almost arrested by police officers for defending his kids. As soon as they recognized who the star was and saw she was the witness they got scared. “There have been numerous protests and riots due to police officers not being indicted for killing unarmed young black men, and with these protests a new social movement was formed that started out as a twitter hashtag that is entitled #BlackLivesMatter.” (Siscoe, 2016) The Movie ended in a Black Lives Matter Riot in which Star chose to stand up for the racial injustice. Khalils death opened her eyes to how society is towards the Black community. The protest causes the police to come and throw tear gas at them, but the First Amendment states they are allowed to protest. The Black Lives Matter movement was created after the death of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. “It aims to be a political and ideological intervention in a society where black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. Its goal is to rebuild the Black liberation movement. The Black Lives Matter Movement is trying to move the mentality of those in America away from “us versus them” and in doing so truly free black lives from inequality.” (Siscoe, 2016)
No Justice No Peace
Racism and stigmas still exist even after years of fighting for “freedom” The black community has to code switch to feel secure, but it sacrificed their personal identity. African American struggle with their mental health due to the racial stereotypes. Police brutality triggered and uproar and people wanted justice to cause the Black Lives Matter movement. “Police brutality in terms of oppression made by governmental system has been the predominant factor in this specific novel by Angie Thomas. Hence, a close evaluation of the study can give rise to a certain belief that if Khalil has not been a black, society would have responded in a completely different manner.” This is all relevant currently because it is still very today. There are still many people of color needing justice for their family members. How will someone ever feel safe and secure if everyone is against what they look like. People of color are not thugs, and they are not violent criminals. When you continue to oppress them and put them in situations where they do not do well and are subjected to the system what do you expect to happen? Change will not happen if people cannot open their eyes and see the issues right in front of them. The Hate you give was a revelation and everyone should watch it at least a few times to really grasp the message in what its saying.
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