The Help

This weekend, my sister-in-law and I went and saw The Help.  She had just finished the book for a class she is taking, and wanted to see it since she heard it was very accurate compared with the book.  Me, I just wanted to see it.  I am sure you know something about it, but if you don't, it's about Skeeter, a newly graduated aspiring journalist.  The movie centers around Skeeter's interviews of black maids in the deep south, during Jim Crow law.  Her writings tell the story from the helps perspective, which up until that point had never been done. 

For the first half of the movie, I was pretty upset.  At one point, I even leaned over to Lisa and told her that I wanted to punch someone.  Hearing the southern bells' views about their maids and the black race made my blood boil.  It makes me so sad that there was a world that existed where those thoughts and actions were "right" and "normal."

As the movie went on, I would still get upset, but there were things happening that gave me hope and encouraged me.  Skeeter's eyes were being opened more and more and she was realizing how backwards the views of her friends and family were and could no longer sit back and watch the mistreatment. 

This movie made me upset, laugh, cry and think.  Although it wasn't a current major social issue, it definitely made me appreciate everyone who took a stand against "normalcy" and fought for the rights of those who were seen as worthless.  It really made me want to rush home and hold my boys.  How someone could think the way people did then is far beyond me. 

Despite how maddening this movie may be, I think it's such a good reminder of where we've come from and that we aren't done yet.  There are people, not just black, who are still treated unfairly and we need to be aware and make every effort to treat those who are seen as less valuable with the utmost respect and equality.  We need to throw away stereotypes and see for ourselves the character of the person who is in front of us.  And this movie was a great reminder of that for me.