The Jim Crow Laws, the Member of the Wedding and the Irony of It All

The Jim Crow Laws, “The Member of the Wedding”, and the Irony of it All

In his book, “God’s Country; America in the fifties,” Ronald Oakley provides his readers with an accurate account of African Americans living during the 1950s. Oakley describes the 1950s as a time period where the racial divide that existed between blacks and whites was more evident then the decades before, particularly for those living in southern regions (Oakley 187-89).With the Jim Crow laws in effect mandating “separate but equal facilities” between blacks and whites, many of the blacks were forced to live as a “sub caste in their own land” (Oakley 189). The Jim Crow laws placed more emphasis on the idea of “separateness” rather than “equality.” As a result many blacks suffered tremendously from economic depravation and discrimination and were still “at the bottom of the political, social, economic, cultural, and educational ladder” (Oakley 187).

In 1954 however, the black population brought on a new desire for change. This can be seen in many of the protests for equality and justice that emerged. Oakley describes this important time period as the forefront for the civil rights movement that occurred later on during the 1960s. (Oakley 190). Although there were successful advances such as the Brown vs. Board of Education (1954) that promoted the idea of desegregation, it would still be a long time before blacks would reap the benefits of what they were fighting for which was peaceful racial integration. The majority of the white population (particularly in the south) fought hard against these advances that were devised to promote the integration of the white and black population. This is because many of the whites in the south believed in the idea of white supremacy and believed that God made them [the white population] to control blacks, furthermore making the idea of racial integration “immoral.” This became evident when segregationists emerged all over the former confederacy (southern states) to defy the implementation of the Brown decisions by the judges of the federal district court. Oakley elaborates on the protests.

The defiance took many forms, including flagrant disobedience of court orders, mass rioting, the bombings of the homes and business of black and white desegregation, supporters, and region wide attempts to propagate the southern point of view through newspapers, books, magazine articles, letters to friends outside the south, radio programs, literary tracts, pamphlets, and scientific books (Oakley 195).

Furthermore, although many advances were made to integrate the black and white populations, the uproar and dismay that followed created even more divide between the two races when they were forced to share common spaces.

Irony can be seen in the fact that racial divide increased despite the efforts by many to end segregation and promote the integration of races. The fight against the Jim Crow laws that happened in the 1950s-60s was initiated to end segregation so that African Americans could take advantage of equal common spaces and have the same advantages as the whites. However, as stated prior, these efforts just angered many of the whites and, provided even more separation and divide between the two races. This type of irony can be seen in Carson McCullers 1950s award winning film, “The member of the Wedding” where steps were taken by the writer to protest the notion of racial divide and the Jim Crow laws by depicting the African American maid cast in the movie as an influential woman rather than an “illiterate stereotypical mammy character.” This was very important because up until the 1950s black women in Hollywood were always depicted as dumb, illiterate mammy figures that did nothing but serve their masters. By directors, such as McCullers, portraying African American females in a more favorable light they hoped that society would see that the two races were similar and there should not be a divide between the two. However, what the viewers end up seeing through the maid’s character is division; ultimately no matter how close the maid gets to the “white population” the viewer sees that she is still seen as an outsider.

This film revolves around a 12 year old white tom boy Frankie Addams, who feels disconnected from the world, especially after she discovers that her brother is engaged and will be getting married soon. Frankie resides in a small conservative southern town with her distant father who is never there. She has no friends except her two companions, her six year old cousin John Henry West and her family’s African American Maid Bernice Sadie Brown in whom Frankie confides in. The irony of racial divide is not emphasized in the plot itself but the symbolism of divide is within one of the main characters Bernice Sadie Brown. Although she is the maid to Frankie’s family in a conservative southern town, she exhibits qualities that break stereotypical views of how a typical African American maid should act. Her ability to act as an intelligent motherly figure to Frankie and console her during her time of need forces the viewer to forget that she is вЂ?just the maid’ and that she is part of the family. Breaking these molds and shedding these stereotypes can be seen as a symbolic way of fighting against the idea of Jim Crow laws. She is showing the viewer that she is not separate from Frankie and the rest of the characters and is not just a dumb subservient slave. Her specific use of vocal characteristic and physical mannerisms proves that she can be a role model and assume the role of a mother figure to Frankie who lost her mother when she was younger. At the same time, Bernice’s ability to prove how similar she is to Frankie and her family, and her ability to cross racial boundaries ironically show us that she is still very different from the white population. We are constantly reminded of both how similar and how separate and different she is when associated with Frankie’s family. As stated before, although efforts were made to show how close and similar the two races were by ending the “divide” we consequently see more of a divide.

Bernice Sadie Brown as a Mother Figure; similarities

Bernice Sadie Brown is one of the most interesting and powerful mother figures in film during the 1950s. Where most African American females cast in films during the 1950s exhibited roles of dumb mammy like maids who had no say in anything they did, In “The member of