Movie "The Help" Covert Racism

The response of White Liberals to the movie "The Help" demonstrates how pervasive covert Racism is in the United States. The film depicts a white journalist, Skeeter, who is the protagonist (played by Emma Stone) writing a book on the experiences of black maids working in Jackson, Mississippi during the Civil Rights movement. Viola Davis plays one of the maids, named Aibileen. Several years later Davis acknowledged she regretted her role in the movie.  She explained, "I just felt that at the end of the day that it wasn't the voices of the maids that were heard," Davis told The Times. "I know Aibileen. I know Minny. They're my grandma. They're my mom. And I know that if you do a movie where the whole premise is, I want to know what it feels like to work for white people and bring up children in 1963, I want to hear how you really feel about it. I never heard that in the course of the movie." Her explanation can be found in the following link:

https://www.businessinsider.com/viola-davis-regrets-the-help-why-2018-9

The thesis of this post is that this covert Racism complements and supports overt Racism and the two forms together comprise systemic Racism.  These forms of Racism are defined at the end of this post.  Many of my white friends in Des Moines who are liberals loved the movie and do not believe it is racist. The response from white liberal friends in Chattanooga was much the same.  The response of my friends seem unfathomable. The racist stereotypes are so obvious that to ignore them seems incomprehensible. For a comprehensive explanation of the stereotypical racist elements in the movie the statement by the Association of Black Women Historians is instructive. It is in the following link.

http://truth.abwh.org/2011/08/12/an-open-statement-to-the-fans-of-the-help/

The movie "The Help" grossed in excess of two-hundred million dollars at the box office alone. Viola Davis starred in the movie and profited mightily from it--she has since voiced regrets for her role in the movie.  The website "Rotten Tomatoes" reviews movies. Eighty-nine percent of the audience and seventy-five of the critics liked the movie. One might expect a higher standard of awareness from critics, but to the extent they mentioned the racist elements of the movie at all they did so in only in a superficial manner. In summary the movie was wildly popular and the racism it embraced was simply ignored.

The stereotypical racist elements in the movie discussed by the Association of Black Women Historians would be sufficient to reveal the racist nature of the movie, but there is more--it is a White Savior narrative.  Skeeter the coming-of-age young white woman is the protagonist of the story and the White Savior.

The following defines the White Savior Narrative:

"The white savior is a cinematic trope in which a white character rescues people of color from their plight.  Certain critics have observed this narrative in an array of genres of films in American cinema, wherein a white protagonist is portrayed as a messianic figure who often learns something about him or herself in the course of rescuing characters of color. . . As such, white savior stories "are essentially grandiose, exhibitionistic, and narcissistic" fantasies of psychological compensation."

The stereotypical racist elements in the movie discussed by the Association of Black Women Historians would be sufficient to reveal the racist nature of the movie, but there is more—the movie is a White Savior narrative.  Skeeter the coming-of-age young white woman is the protagonist of the story and the White Savior. She is the rescuer of the black maids. However,  Certain critics have observed this narrative in an array of genres of films in American cinema, wherein a white protagonist is portrayed as a messianic figure who often learns something about him or herself in the course of rescuing characters of color. . . 

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Systemic Racism as defined by Joe Feagin in his book "Racist America: Roots, Current Realities, & Future Reparations."   

"Systemic racism includes the complex array of antiblack practices, the unjustly gained political-economic power of whites, the continuing economic and other resource inequalities along racial lines, and the white racist ideologies and attitudes created to maintain and rationalize white privilege and power. Systemic here means that the core racist realities are manifested in each of society’s major parts [...] each major part of U.S. society--the economy, politics, education, religion, the family--reflects the fundamental reality of systemic racism."

COVERT RACISM (Wikipedia)

Covert racism is a much less public and obvious form of racism than overt racism. It is hidden in the fabric of society, covertly suppressing the individuals being discriminated against. Covert racially biased decisions are often disguised or rationalized with an explanation that society is more willing to accept. These racial biases cause a variety of problems that work to empower the suppressors while diminishing the rights and powers of the oppressed. Covert racism often works subliminally, and often much of the discrimination is being done subconsciously. 

Almost a better question is, have I ever done roles that I’ve regretted? I have, and “The Help” is on that list. But not in terms of the experience and the people involved because they were all great. . . .I just felt that at the end of the day that it wasn’t the voices of the maids that were heard. I know Aibileen. I know Minny. They’re my grandma. They’re my mom. And I know that if you do a movie where the whole premise is, I want to know what it feels like to work for white people and to bring up children in 1963, I want to hear how you really feel about it. I never heard that in the course of the movie.