HR in Film Today

Brother to Brother, 2004

Close your eyes and imagine being black during the early 1900s -- wave goodbye to freedom. Now imagine being gay or a female and black -- beg for your freedom. In the film Brother to Brother, directed by Rodney Evans, artists of the Harlem Renaissance struggle to sell their work due to their skin color, sex and because of their lifestyle. Black female writer, Zora Neale Hurston, and gay black writer, Wallace Thurman, both had their worked turned down, in the film, by a white publisher because it wasn't commercial enough, it was to black and factual. 

The publisher loved Hurstons work, but he had some "minor" adjustments he wanted her to take care of. It was mainly the fact that her writing was up to commercial white standards. It was too vernacular for the average reader, their target audience. The audience the publisher had in mind where all white, to him this black english would almost be incompressible for them. To him this wasn't english, but Hurston then acknowledged "this language is negro language". The publisher told her that Nigger Heaven was a best seller and written by a white person. Implying that theres a huge market for this subject and even better one for a book written with a more authentic voice. A voice translated into white english. "I'm not speaking for these people, I am these people." Hurston refused to act as some kind of spokesperson for blacks, she refused any ideas for language adjustments from the publisher. Hurston left with dignity, integrity and pride. 

In Thurmans case, the publisher thought it was to accurate but fanciful enough. "Public wants danger, sex and violence coming from Harlem." The white reader was accustomed to hearing about the crimes and wrong doings from minority communities. It was so different from what they, whites, were experiencing that it intrigued them. To them, it was a kind of movie, a distant and exciting event. Thurman disagreed with the suggestion to present another evil Harlem facade, it was degrading and untrue. The publisher also added that he should play up the drugs and Thurman responded: "No drugs, it's untrue to the character". The publisher continued to push Thurman to make his writing more dramatic and fanciful, but Thurman had enough and marched out the office with dignity, integrity and pride. 

They had all the right to stand up for what they had created. They both had created a accurate and celebratory representation blacks. They didn't further away from the dark truth but chose to instead celebrate instead mourn. If they would complied to the publishers demand they would not have been as influential as they are. Only those who provoke and push peoples boundaries have an everlasting impression on their audience. 

Through so much hard work, discrimination, harassment Hurston and Thurman persisted. Because of this persistence they were able to achieve all they and affect the millions who have read their work. Now their international icons and helped further a movement for acceptance, love and peace for all.