The_Butler_Summary

Extra Credit September 3, 2013 ! Over the weekend, I saw Lee Daniels’ movie, ‘The Butler’. In the movie, African American citizens are shown as being the lowest of society. It surprised me how poorly they were treated. I’ve always known that during this time period African Americans were treated badly, but i didn’t know it was to this extent. They are greatly disrespected, and they eventually became sick and tired of being treated unfairly. In order to be treated like any other human being, the African Americans chose to rebel. ! Eugene Allen is an African American male who is one of the few colored children who has an opportunity to amount to something early in life. He sees his father’s death, and soon becomes a butler for an elderly white woman. This helps him as he matures and allows him to eventually leave her plantation to eventually become a butler in bigger and better places. ! Like the other African Americans, Eugene was looked down upon for being colored. People gossiped and talked about him, and shared jokes at his expense. However, one day, the opportunity of a lifetime came. He received the opportunity to become the butler in the White House. This was a a huge opportunity for him. Throughout this job, he met many new people, and even learned some secrets about the United States. He even met not only one, but eight presidents in total. Some of these presidents were on the respectful side, and others ignored the colored workers like they were nothing. The colored workers were even sometimes used as publicity stunts. ! In conclusion, Lee Daniel’s ‘The Butler’ gave a visual representation of how African Americans were looked down upon and treated like garbage in comparison to white Americans. It showed the struggles and hard times they endured to gain the rights and equality that they deserved. I really enjoyed this movie, and i would highly recommend it.