The Butler.

[sheshe2]

I liked it because I thought Daniels brought a lot of Black Pain in vivid color, pretty much from the opening scene, with Mariah Carey and David Banner, which was about as ugly and truthful as anything in Black History.

For me, all the scenes with regards to Black Pain was brutal, honest, forthright, and I appreciated them being put ‘in color’. I have seen numerous pieces on Black History, especially with the Civil Rights Movement, but they were usually in Black and White. By bringing those scenes in color, IMO, makes it real for generations who don’t even know their history.

From the background of non-violence resistance and making it clear that this just didn’t come out of the sky and Black folks just decided one day to show up at lunch counters….to the ugliness and terror and horror of the Freedom Rides….to using the actual Black and White footage from the happenings during the Civil Rights Movement…I appreciate Lee Daniel’s choices as a filmmaker.

I was disheartened and yet ever hopeful by the uncanny events of yesteryear like voter suppression, Stop & Frisk, the murder of Trayvon Martin, and basic Civil Rights being fucked with today by a justice system that is still not metering out EQUAL JUSTICE for all.

I’m sure I’ll have more to share, as I continue to process the movie.









http://3chicspolitico.com/2013/08/18/3chics-reviews-lee-daniels-the-butler/

This. I need to see.

[sheshe2]

1. Kick! n/t

[Tx4obama]

2. Four links below to the WaPo articles regarding the real WH butler Eugene Allen...

... that the film was based on.

A Butler Well Served by This Election - 2008
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/06/AR2008110603948.html

White House Butler Eugene Allen Witnesses Swearing-In (of Barack Obama) - 2009
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/20/AR2009012004301.html

Eugene Allen, White House butler for 8 presidents, dies at 90 - 2010
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/01/AR2010040103444.html

White House butler Eugene Allen's humility recalled at funeral - 2010
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2010/04/01/ST2010040103462.html

I hope everyone takes the time to read the articles and also has the opportunity to see the film

[sheshe2]

4. I read them, and I thank you Tx!

White House Butler Eugene Allen Witnesses Swearing-In


Eugene Allen, who worked for more than three decades as a White House butler -- some of those years during an era of brutal segregation when he often had to use back doors despite his employer's rarefied address -- sat in the shadow of the Capitol dome yesterday and watched Barack Obama become the first African American president of the United States.

"I never would have believed it," Allen said, sitting in an invitation-only area. He wore a black cashmere coat purchased for the occasion, a checkered scarf and a Sinatra fedora. "In the 1940s and 1950s, there were so many things in America you just couldn't do. You wouldn't even dream that you could dream of a moment like this."

Allen received his invitation from the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies after The Washington Post published an article about him after Obama's election victory. The report chronicled Allen's White House career, which began during the Truman administration and ended during the presidency of Ronald Reagan, and also told of his 65-year-long marriage to Helene. The couple had discussed plans to go vote for Obama together, but a day before the election, Helene, 86, died in her sleep. On Election Day, Allen went to his voting precinct alone.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/20/AR2009012004301.html

A beautiful man.

[silverweb]

3. Saw it yesterday.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]Beautifully done. Powerful. Brings decades of history into context regarding the current situation, i.e. SCOTUS's neutering of the Voting Rights Act.

[sheshe2]

5. I have to see this silverweb!

Thank you for the powerful review!

[silverweb]

7. I hope you get to see it soon.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]Be sure to take a hankie or three. While there's a good bit of humor scattered throughout the movie, you'll shed some tears, as well.

[sheshe2]

6. Image.

[grantcart]

8. look forward to it