Whitewashing Through Film: How Educators Can Use Critical Race Media Literacy to Analyze Hollywood’s Adaptation of Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give

Abstract

Grounded in critical race media literacy (CRML), we contend that a comparison of The Hate U Give novel and adapted film can allow for more nuanced conversations in the classroom regarding the functions of racism in America, including intersectionality and colorism. When comparing these texts, educators should ground their analysis in CRML. CRML is one way that educators can facilitate the engagement of critical analysis around the representation of racialized people in media. We argue that when The Hate U Give was rendered into a film, a number of the changes weakened the novel‘s counterstory messages around racism and white supremacy.