On Friday we finished up the film Bread and Roses. The film left me with mixed feelings.
Maya, the main character, is young,
lively, loving, defiant, and mischievous. It seems that in her blood is the tendency
to trick others – taking the man’s keys while he’s in the shower, pressing all
the buttons on the elevator, carting Sam around in the trash can, locking the
clerk in the bathroom. She uses manipulation to fight back against injustice.
In general, I think that Maya’s
clever tricks were good and well deserved. But the one I have problem with is
the robbing of the gas station. She used her manipulative abilities to commit
crime. Maya is a robber – there’s simply no way around it.
However, Maya robbed the gas
station not for her own benefit, but for Ruben’s, which lessens the degree to
which Maya can be criticized. To respond to the injustice of Ruben being fired,
Maya committed and injustice – stealing somebodies money. Does that make it
right? I can’t see Maya as a blameless hero; her intentions may have always
been just, but not her actions.
Maya, like everyone, is imperfect.
Her mental strength and will-power were instrumental in the janitors’ fight for
better working conditions. She loves her family and friends. She was willing to
give up her job so that others could keep theirs. In many ways, Maya is a good
person, but she is not a perfect person.
Now I want to discuss the concept
of the movie. Maya enters the country illegally, gets a job, and then demands
higher wages and benefits. Looking at this objectively, I see a problem.
Imagine if somebody just walked into your dorm or apartment or house and
started demanding things from you. Why is it ok at a national level?
I acknowledge that the metaphor I
just gave oversimplifies the situation. Many people who come into the country
from Latin America are escaping terrible living conditions. Coming to the US
may be the only hope. Are we supposed to send them back, lock them out, and
look the other way while they starve? That’s inhumane.
The whole issue of illegal
immigration vexes me – it’s not right to neglect immigration laws, to neglect
the border – it’s also not right to treat human beings like trash. Do I celebrate
Maya and her friends improving their lives? Yes. Do I think that there is
something wrong with entering the country illegally? Yes. I’m not sure where I go
from here…
Thomas, I like your point of view and I extremely like the comparison of Maya coming into the country illeagly and demanding higher wages and you compared it to someone coming into your dorm or appartment. I did not think of that until you stated it.
ReplyDeleteMy reaction to the movie was different once it got to the part where Mayas sister told Maya excatly what she has done in order to have the life she has. It shocked me and at the same time disgust me. I felt sympathy for Mayas sister at what all she has done. No one should ever have to do those kind of things to better themselfs.
Thomas, what an interesting point of view. I like the way you are able to see and explain your views from both sides. I also had mixed feelings, though you articulated them a lot better than I would have. I agree with you that to a point, there is definitely reason to celebrate--they got what they were after, right? But at the same time, at what cost were they able to have their demands met? Maya was one of the main people stirring things up to try to meet their needs, yet she still ends up being deported for committing a crime for basically no reason. It was her fault, to an extent, that Ruben got fired in the first place. If she wouldn't have caused problems, he wouldn't have needed the money. Also, she put the jobs of many at risk making the decisions she made. It turned out to work out for most of them, but if it hadn't worked out in a good way, she would have been to blame. It was definitely an interesting movie, and Maya was definitely a strong character involved. Maybe not always for the best reasons, but she definitely knew how to get what she wanted out of people.
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