Starr Carter is constantly balancing between two worlds: the poor, for the most part a black district in which he lives and a rich, mostly white school, which he attends. The shaky balance between these worlds is irrevocably distorted when Starr becomes a witness as the policeman mortally wounds her best childhood friend, Khalil. In the face of pressure from the community, Starr must find his own voice and stand up for everything he thinks is right.