Everyone has Equal Rights

 

Everyone has Equal rights

 

Equal rights are fundamental and pertain to the idea that everyone must enjoy equal rights irrespective of the color of their skin, their gender or origin. From the paper, it is evident that over time attaining egalitarianism has not been easy, not to mention in the setting of the third world countries. Regarding gay’s rights it is understandable that people argue about legal rights but what about systems that promote discrimination? Watching the movie The Help which is set in the 1960s Civil Rights Movement really make one understand what it was like living under a race apartheid system and fighting for ones rights. It through the account of Black domestic workers in Jackson, Mississippi this movie gives a spritual and insightful view into living under racist oppression. This also shows the LGBTQ+ people’s courage to aspire for equality, the hardships and tenacity that were compulsory for standing up against the stained racism of that era

 

At the time of the 1960s, racial discrimination in America was well and truly alive, most distinctly in the southern part of America. Policies or stately laws socialized black people as a subordinate race to the White people and stripped them of their civil liberties. This separation was practiced in almost all aspects of life, they included the type of house one could build or the area they could reside in, the kind of jobs one could get, and the schools one could attend. In The Help this particular aspect of the racial discrimination is shown through the two lead dark skinned black maids, Aibileen and Minny who working for white employers in Jackson Mississippi. The film was insightful of the extent of the racial segregation and the fight for equal rights for the blacks in the society.

 

Aibileen is a black and relatively submissive woman, who works as a maid for a white family, in charge of an Adoption Day, we met at, is young white child. Despite all she does to help towards running the household, she is discriminated and considered less than what men are. This is as close as she gets to serve defiance because the courage that she manages in the workplace is modest. However, Aibileen is obliged to be so vital for the success of the family and the birth of a new generation since she is Black and no matter how educated, professional, or hardworking, she was supposed to stay in her place, not rise against the White people. Thus, the protagonist Tami Taylor tries to influence the child, Mae Mobley, in the questions of love and equality though her experience, to teach the girl something that she might learn in her White family about racism. This is the reason why Aibileen is on the safe side of plotting; she knows how to support-the society treated her as a supporting actor, a dumb servant.

 

On the other hand, Minny, another Black maid in the film, supposes to be brave and not to hesitate to say what is in her mind. She is employed by a continue and racists boss, Elizabeth Leefolt, who does not only disrespect her at work, but also always humiliates her possible. While others are happy to succumb to this treatment, Minny will not allow this and instead, she will try to flee or do things that may endanger her. Such a scene is memorable and shown when Minny decided to bake a pie for her employer and unknowingly put poison in the pie as a sign of rebellion. Although this is a minor way of resisting, it is the major way of battling the dehumanization she undergoes. Minny’s character is an example of how one can resist the racism of the south with passive aggressiveness or with outright rebellion.

This movie also brings out a clear call of segregation of the Black from the White nations. These divisions were not only in that Blacks were confined to their own areas geographically with whites living in their own areas as well, but were also evident in the ways in which Black people were treated in areas that were open to them in addition to those which were not. For instance, the maids in the film are forbidden to share the same facility with their employers, and must not eat from the same table. Such racial divisions perpetuated the belief that Black folks were inferior beings, entitled to fewer civil liberties and freedoms. It wasn’t only social but structural, involving institutions that ensured that segregation socially remained the law.

 

Aibileen and Minny’s fight is about the blacks’ rights during the black oppression period of the white supremacy, Civil Rights Movement. Of course the film is set and takes place in the 1960s in Mississippi, however the problems that are reflected in the picture such as racism and discrimination, violation of African Americans’ rights and segregation were topical all across the United States of America at the time. All the characters in The Help perform the fight to fight against all these injustices despite the need to use force, strength, or voice. Aibileen and Minny are the embodiment of protesting against the unheard and violating rights of African American people during that time when they were discriminated against with no chance for change by the white community.

 

 

However, one can identify another sub theme that also has relevance in the movie and that is the fight for equal rights whereby the character of Skeeter Phelan, a white young woman is also keen on fighting for equal rights. Skeeter employs the privilege she has as a journalist to inform the maids’ story and narrates it through the book she writes. A good example of allyship is Skeeter’s participation in interaction with Aibileen and Minny. She puts her own life and character on the line, taking on the job to denounce the prejudice Black ladies suffer in the houses of their employers. It is also worth paying attention to Skeeter who is a white woman who becomes an activist for the rights of the colored women and who uses her gender privilege to draw a attention to this problem. Lastly, The Help is a source of information about the life of black maids during the period of segregation, talking about various manifestations of the struggle against racists. Although Aibileen and Minny’s stories bring on novel results that castigate the black servants in a societal structure Skeeter portrays gives an understanding that the fight for equal rights is not just about trying to do away with certain laws but has more to do with changing the entire framework of a society. The conflicts which are depicted in the movie remain topical to date, as the society strongly requires equal rights and opportunities for each colored person.

"Stand up. Stand up for what's right."