Comments on: To all the Precious girls out there, I’m sorry. http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/11/to-all-the-precious-girls-out-there-im-sorry/ Fresh Thought. Fresh Perspectives. Fresh Debate. Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:39:06 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: sarah http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/11/to-all-the-precious-girls-out-there-im-sorry/#comment-8608 sarah Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:56:42 +0000 http://thefreshxpress.com/?p=11101#comment-8608 I’m so glad you talked about how this story defies the poisonous idea that all need to do is take “personal responsibility” and make “better choices.” The choices people have are not a product of their making but are presented to them by society (why is a 12 year old in Indonesia’s choices to work in a sweatshop or be sold as a sex slave and George Bush’s choices were to go to Yale or some other Ivy League – these choices were historically shaped and socially conditioned). I also appreciate @CLoren’s comments about the strength and humanity of Precious – this, to me, was one of the most important things about the film. An article in Revolution Newspaper (which I posted in a comment on a different article too), made this point: “These are people that rarely fill the movie screen, people living in the bottommost part of our society—”fat Black girls” and “welfare mothers” who are usually only ever blamed, hated or looked down on, if looked at at all—but they are full humans, and here, portrayed as such.” People should check out the whole piece, THE POTENTIAL OF PRECIOUS GIRLS EVERYWHERE, http://www.revcom.us/a/184/precious-en.html I’m so glad you talked about how this story defies the poisonous idea that all need to do is take “personal responsibility” and make “better choices.” The choices people have are not a product of their making but are presented to them by society (why is a 12 year old in Indonesia’s choices to work in a sweatshop or be sold as a sex slave and George Bush’s choices were to go to Yale or some other Ivy League – these choices were historically shaped and socially conditioned). I also appreciate @CLoren’s comments about the strength and humanity of Precious – this, to me, was one of the most important things about the film.

An article in Revolution Newspaper (which I posted in a comment on a different article too), made this point: “These are people that rarely fill the movie screen, people living in the bottommost part of our society—”fat Black girls” and “welfare mothers” who are usually only ever blamed, hated or looked down on, if looked at at all—but they are full humans, and here, portrayed as such.”

People should check out the whole piece, THE POTENTIAL OF PRECIOUS GIRLS EVERYWHERE, http://www.revcom.us/a/184/precious-en.html

]]> By: sarah http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/11/to-all-the-precious-girls-out-there-im-sorry/#comment-8607 sarah Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:27:08 +0000 http://thefreshxpress.com/?p=11101#comment-8607 I'm so glad you talked about how this story defies the poisonous idea that all need to do is take "personal responsibility" and make "better choices." The choices people have are not a product of their making but are presented to them by society (why is a 12 year old in Indonesia's choices to work in a sweatshop or be sold as a sex slave and George Bush's choices were to go to Yale or some other Ivy League - these choices were historically shaped and socially conditioned). I also appreciate @CLoren's comments about the strength and humanity of Precious - this, to me, was one of the most important things about the film. An article in Revolution Newspaper (which I posted in a comment on a different article too), made this point: "These are people that rarely fill the movie screen, people living in the bottommost part of our society—"fat Black girls" and "welfare mothers" who are usually only ever blamed, hated or looked down on, if looked at at all—but they are full humans, and here, portrayed as such." People should check out the whole piece, THE POTENTIAL OF PRECIOUS GIRLS EVERYWHERE, http://www.revcom.us/a/184/precious-en.html I’m so glad you talked about how this story defies the poisonous idea that all need to do is take “personal responsibility” and make “better choices.” The choices people have are not a product of their making but are presented to them by society (why is a 12 year old in Indonesia’s choices to work in a sweatshop or be sold as a sex slave and George Bush’s choices were to go to Yale or some other Ivy League – these choices were historically shaped and socially conditioned). I also appreciate @CLoren’s comments about the strength and humanity of Precious – this, to me, was one of the most important things about the film.

An article in Revolution Newspaper (which I posted in a comment on a different article too), made this point: “These are people that rarely fill the movie screen, people living in the bottommost part of our society—”fat Black girls” and “welfare mothers” who are usually only ever blamed, hated or looked down on, if looked at at all—but they are full humans, and here, portrayed as such.”

People should check out the whole piece, THE POTENTIAL OF PRECIOUS GIRLS EVERYWHERE, http://www.revcom.us/a/184/precious-en.html

]]> By: CLoren http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/11/to-all-the-precious-girls-out-there-im-sorry/#comment-8591 CLoren Sat, 28 Nov 2009 19:20:49 +0000 http://thefreshxpress.com/?p=11101#comment-8591 When I read Push by Sapphire for the first time, I was 13 years old, attending school in one of the "hood" parts of Brooklyn. By that time, Push had already become one of the books that every black girl HAD to read. I didn't realize until after I left New York City that this book was still very unknown. To this day, only 7 years later, it is still one of the most inspiring, memorable, and real books I've ever read. I've always been an avid reader, I especially loved books by black authors, but this book was didn't feel like a book to me. It was like I was talkin to my homegirl. I could easily imagine Precious as a homegirl because I she was another girl trying to make it in the world, even if that world seems to put everything against her. She's constantly hoping for something better, she KNOWS there's something better, even if she felt could never reach that something, she knew it was there. Not only that, she ACCEPTED the help she was given, even if it was reluctantly. Because of the people that I knew and interacted with living in Brooklyn, her life obviously sucked really bad, but it wasn't far fetched. I feel like many people who've seen or read the story aren't seeing the big picture, they're focusing so much on the terrible things that happened that they completely miss the HUMANITY. Her mother and father weren't mean just to be mean, they just didn't know how to love; hurt people hurt people. Even though she is barely literate, Precious has an admirable sense of self; writing is how she expresses her life, without being judged. As a writer myself, I know how it feels to have absolutely no one except your notebook. When you're that alone, your notebook IS a person. How can we be so stuck on the terrible things in this movie that we can't even celebrate the amazing growth, the perseverance, the audacity to not become a victim of her environment? Precious is the girl I hope to be. Even in the worst of the worst of the worst of situations, she chooses to live, not just to survive, but to thrive. A bad situation stays a bad situation unless your mindset changes to see that it's just a situation, situations don't last forever. We can make it out of the darkness. When I read Push by Sapphire for the first time, I was 13 years old, attending school in one of the “hood” parts of Brooklyn. By that time, Push had already become one of the books that every black girl HAD to read. I didn’t realize until after I left New York City that this book was still very unknown.
To this day, only 7 years later, it is still one of the most inspiring, memorable, and real books I’ve ever read. I’ve always been an avid reader, I especially loved books by black authors, but this book was didn’t feel like a book to me. It was like I was talkin to my homegirl. I could easily imagine Precious as a homegirl because I she was another girl trying to make it in the world, even if that world seems to put everything against her. She’s constantly hoping for something better, she KNOWS there’s something better, even if she felt could never reach that something, she knew it was there. Not only that, she ACCEPTED the help she was given, even if it was reluctantly. Because of the people that I knew and interacted with living in Brooklyn, her life obviously sucked really bad, but it wasn’t far fetched. I feel like many people who’ve seen or read the story aren’t seeing the big picture, they’re focusing so much on the terrible things that happened that they completely miss the HUMANITY. Her mother and father weren’t mean just to be mean, they just didn’t know how to love; hurt people hurt people. Even though she is barely literate, Precious has an admirable sense of self; writing is how she expresses her life, without being judged. As a writer myself, I know how it feels to have absolutely no one except your notebook. When you’re that alone, your notebook IS a person. How can we be so stuck on the terrible things in this movie that we can’t even celebrate the amazing growth, the perseverance, the audacity to not become a victim of her environment? Precious is the girl I hope to be. Even in the worst of the worst of the worst of situations, she chooses to live, not just to survive, but to thrive. A bad situation stays a bad situation unless your mindset changes to see that it’s just a situation, situations don’t last forever. We can make it out of the darkness.

]]> By: m. lauren http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/11/to-all-the-precious-girls-out-there-im-sorry/#comment-8526 m. lauren Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:25:52 +0000 http://thefreshxpress.com/?p=11101#comment-8526 I am reading the book right now, I started it awhile ago and couldn't finish it.. but I picked it back up and cannot stop thinking about it.. I am disgusted yet intrigued.. There are so many people.. not just poor people on the street.. but people who have everything that go through abuse like this, who are tortured by life.. There are so many people that we want to help, but many times just don't know where to start, or are fearful by facing mirror images of ourselves.. volunteering and helping people takes more courage and stamina than people would think.. because you don't just grab a little kid at the YMCA, take him to the playground & he's automatically a better person.. it takes time to build relationships and understand in order to help.. and time is what a lot of people don't believe they have.. Basically I am saying, we all need to let go of whatever selfishness holds us back from helping others and just do it.. I cannot wait to finish the book and see the movie.. although I am tramautized by much of what I've read.. I am reading the book right now, I started it awhile ago and couldn’t finish it.. but I picked it back up and cannot stop thinking about it.. I am disgusted yet intrigued.. There are so many people.. not just poor people on the street.. but people who have everything that go through abuse like this, who are tortured by life.. There are so many people that we want to help, but many times just don’t know where to start, or are fearful by facing mirror images of ourselves.. volunteering and helping people takes more courage and stamina than people would think.. because you don’t just grab a little kid at the YMCA, take him to the playground & he’s automatically a better person.. it takes time to build relationships and understand in order to help.. and time is what a lot of people don’t believe they have.. Basically I am saying, we all need to let go of whatever selfishness holds us back from helping others and just do it.. I cannot wait to finish the book and see the movie.. although I am tramautized by much of what I’ve read..

]]>