Angie Thomas: Writing a Better Future

An interview from The Telos Channel – listen to it here

What does it take to imagine a future better than the one you’ve inherited?

Angie Thomas grew up in Jackson, Mississippi—one of the most segregated cities in the US. As a kid, she escaped into stories for survival. But in them, she found something more than survival. She found the possibility of a better world.

Inspired by her faith, she writes that better world into existence today in her bestselling young adult novels, like the New York Times best-seller and major motion picture, “The Hate U Give”, about 16-year old Starr Carter wrestling with the weight of her best friend’s fatal shooting at the hands of a police officer. Angie sees her writing as an opportunity to not just speak honestly about the issues her community faces, but also to inspire hope. That the next generation can grow to build a better world, a world where equity is somehow possible. Angie’s work and life are an example of our second principle of peacemaking: Equity.