Discrimination In The Watsons Go To Birmingham

In the film, The Watsons Go to Birmingham, the family travels from Flint, Michigan to Birmingham, Alabama for the summer to visit family. The family consists of Mr. and Mrs. Watson and their three children: Byron, Kenny, and Jodie. Before they leave, they are unaware of the struggles and danger that is happening in Birmingham. Soon, they will witness first-hand the awful effects of segregation and discrimination by the people of a different color.
Bryon is the oldest of the three children. In his town, he is known as a trouble maker. Skipping school, picking on other kids, including his brother and always getting into troubling situations. Initially, his parents decided that he should stay down in Birmingham for the summer because of his

antics. Down in Birmingham, he heard the stories of what his cousins have done.

His cousins decided to join the fight to end segregation by marching down the streets of Birmingham to allow integrated schools in the city. The police fighting back with violence and the message of Martin Luther King Jr. are fueling the people who are fighting with determination in their hearts to be treated as equal. Bryon is eager to help by marching with them and if I can recall, he marches with them once. He sees that the black people in Birmingham are treated differently. They are downgraded and treated like dirty people. When Kenny and he go into the restaurant, the waitress treats them like they are horrible, disgusting people. Another scene in the movie is when the kids and the guy who lives with their grandma go to the movies but they cannot go in the same entrance as the white people. They have to go into the back and can only sit in the balcony

seats. Bryon does not understand why this is happening but he cannot change the law. In the movie, Bryon goes from a troubled kid to a person who stands up for his family and friends. Within the movie, he grows up after seeing the life that his extended family lives in. He starts being grateful for the things he has and thankful that things in Michigan are not as bad as they are in Birmingham. He protects his family and grew from his childish, antic ways.
Kenny is the middle child of the family.

He is the smart one of the family and always gets bullied because of it, especially by his brother. He tries to convince his brother to stop doing the things he does but it does not work that well. He looks after his younger sister Jodie because in the movie, she is portrayed as Kenny’s friend that he spends time with the most. When they move, Kenny does not understand why they are going to visit family. He expects that it will be a nice trip and that Birmingham, Alabama is just like Flint, Michigan. In reality he witnesses the events unfold right before his eyes. When he hears his cousin’s stories, he is afraid and does not want to go through it. Also, when he goes into the restaurant, he confused when the White waitress will not serve him a hot dog because of his skin color. He does not understand why someone would just be that cruel to another person just because they are different skin tones. He also gets tired of Byron telling him what to do. He believes he is old enough to do things on his own so he ignores his warning not to go into this whirlpool. In the movie, Kenny is visited by a black mist figure that appears to attack him in the whirlpool and he almost drowns. After this incident, Byron saved him but Kenny continues to be afraid of this black mist even when he returns home. I suppose that the black mist could represent the fight against civil rights. That the Black people should not be ashamed of who they are and fight

for freedom. Another scene in the movie is when the family goes to watch Jodie sing in the church. This church becomes a representation of the famous Birmingham Church bombings which lead to four girls getting killed. Kenny again sees the black mist as he is searching for Jodie in the rubble, hoping she is not one of the victims. He gets scared and runs away and his sister tries to reassure him that she is not a ghost in front of him but survived the tragedy. Kenny changes from this shy, smart kid to someone whose eyes have opened to the real struggles of people who are not as fortunate as they are in Michigan. He still remains scared of the mist and hopes that nothing will happen like that again.
Jodie is the youngest of the family and watches for Kenny and Byron the best she can.