I realize I may be in the minority, but I’m not really
interested in the soon-to-be released motion picture, The Help. I read the book and I’m a huge fan of
Tony Award winning actress, Viola Davis, but I’m simply sick of the age-old romanticized
story of the Black woman domestic.
Hollywood seems to love this story and despite adding a
twist here and there, it’s the same plot, i.e., Imitation of Life, Corrina
Corrina, Hattie McDaniel and Butterfly McQueen in Gone with the Wind and Louise
Beavers’ Beulah, Esther Rolle as Florence Evans in Maude. Many of these storylines deftly
illustrate the deep, nurturing and loving bonds these characters develop with
their charges, but they also ignore the power dynamics of the relationship… the
maid is a servant, her boss is in control and the story arc often includes
the family eventually learning that the occupation of maid does not define the
capacity of maid’s intellect, emotional capacity, etc.
Maybe this story hits a bit too close to home because my
maternal grandmother, Nina, was a domestic and in spite of the warm, fuzzy and sincere feelings many have for their
Black childhood housekeepers, there’s a flip side to every story. My mother’s memories
are filled with longing for the weekends when her mother would spend the night
at home with her and her father, as opposed to the weeknights when she worked
as a live-in. I often wonder if the children she cared for ever considered the
sacrifices made by my grandmother in regards to the caring of her own family
and children in order to make a living and meet the demands of taking care of
them?
