Origin is a biographical drama film, written and directed by Ava DuVernay, based on the book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Pulitzer Prize winner, Isabel Wilkerson. The book explores racism in the United States as an aspect of social stratification like those found in Nazi Germany and modern India. Like the movie, my intention is not to explore or defend Wilkerson’s hypothesis. Nor is this a review of the brilliance that is Ms. DuVernay as a filmmaker. Although, I’ll have to mention it because the film is extraordinary and will undoubtedly sustain its significance in cinema for decades to come.
According to Rotten Tomatoes, 82% of critics find Origin to be “certified fresh.” 98% of audience reviewers agree. The movie is brilliant. Since seeing the film, I have found myself in conversations and spirited debates about what constitutes greatness in cinema, the categorization of black film, the snubbing of female directors, the existence of caste systems, the poisonous remnants of American Slavery, antisemitism, Asian hate, and so on.
However, none of that find its place on Shine TYC. Shine TYC is where we see the world through the lens of our faith. We resist the common conversation and elevate our thinking to align with our faith in the most contemporary context. So, while as a screenwriter I love to debate the artistic merits of the story, I am more compelled to illuminate the call to action that is found “over black” at the end of the movie, the dedication of Wilkerson’s book: ”To the memory of my mother and father who survived caste and to the memory of Brett who defied it.”
I heard God clearly as I sat in the sparsely inhabited theater. Racism, sexism, other “isms,” and caste systems rooted in the darkness of hatred and fear leave us with a call to action. As people of God, those claiming to follow the teachings of Jesus to love everyone as ourselves, we have a mandate when faced with such things: Survive and Defy.
We are all created in the image of God. We are who God says we are in Psalms 8, made a little lower than angels and crowned with glory— all of us. Origin serves as a beautifully forced reminder of what happens when we forget this fact so directly stated in the scriptures. When we forget who we are or refuse to acknowledge the glory of God in others, we find ourselves soiled in systems of hatred, embittered by the truth of American Slavery and it’s fallout, denying, ignoring, or celebrating mass genocides wherever they occur in the world. When we fail to acknowledge the existence of God in everyone, we find ourselves on the wrong side of everything.
When we fail to acknowledge the existence of God in everyone, we find ourselves on the wrong side of everything.
In Origin, the current state of the world is likened to a house we’ve all inherited. None of my white friends owned slaves. None of my Black friends were slaves. Yet, we find ourselves navigating old roads that history continues to patch, rather than repave. We get emotional. We get defensive. We get angry. We get indignant. Eventually, because it’s all so exhausting we retreat to our segregated comfort zones for a breather. The work to repave these roads is daunting. Who will do it? Well, I argue that it should be the people of God, those referred to in 2 Chronicles 7:14— the people for whom God will restore the land.
The notion of Wilkerson’s dedication is that her Black parents survived the caste system in America, while her white husband, defied it. This sends a message that you are called to either survive or defy the system based on your hierarchical placement in it. I would argue that Wilkerson’s parents and her husband had to both survive and defy the system simultaneously. Brett had to defy the system in his choice to marry Isabel while surviving the backlash of speaking out against racism and injustice. The Wilkersons had to survive the systemic racism that denied them many opportunities while defying its intentions by raising a Pulitzer Prize winning daughter. Survive AND Defy.
God has made it clear that we are all crowned with glory, created in the image of God. If you are a true Christian or simply believe you are a decent human being, then you must believe that we are all who God says we are and must resist seeing ourselves and others in ways that don’t align with God’s image and description of us. Every day we must wake up with the intention to defy anything that opposes God’s truth and survive the messages that deny God’s love for us. We must survive and defy the caste. All of us.
Thank you, Ava. Thank you, Isabel. Thank you, God.
TOYI ELIZABETH 