A "Precious" Conundrum

Like many of you, I had been dying to see the new film “Precious” for weeks. After all of the glowing praise and promotional spots on TV and the web, I was eager to experience this movie for myself. I finally saw the film this past Saturday and I am STILL shaken by its emotional intensity. I will probably NEVER see this film again in my life (it was WAY too much for me!); however, I applaud director Lee Daniels’s courage to create such a gripping film that sheds a light on the realities of domestic abuse. As those graphic images from the film replayed in my head on Saturday night and disturbed my slumber, I woke up on Sunday morning grateful that I had seen the movie because it made me realize how blessed I am to have a family that truly loves and supports me. But, at the same time, it also left me with a million questions about how we can help the young girls and women who are living this nightmare every day.

For most of my childhood, I was raised by my sisters Diane and Donna. These women made some HUGE sacrifices for me to be the woman that I am today. Trust me, I was no walk in the park, especially during my moody teenage years. After seeing “Precious” it made me realize just how blessed I was to have them supporting me and my dreams. Because Diane and Donna always kept a roof over my head and food on our table, I had the luxury of stressing about mundane teenage woes such as trying to get a boyfriend, boosting my popularity, and earning passing grades in my dreaded math classes. I cannot even begin to fathom what it would have been like to spend my teenage years experiencing the kind of abuse that Precious endured.

While I this film helped me to put my own life in perspective, I now have a “Precious” conundrum. This movie made me wonder about and ache for the young girls and women for who “Precious” is not a film, but their reality. Most of us saw this film and were able to go back to our comfortable and safe lives. But what about the girls and women that are in real domestic danger? How do we help them? How do we prevent abuse like this from even beginning? Sometimes I hate watching films and documentaries like this because they leave me with more questions than answers. I have no doubt that this film will sweep up many accolades during award season (MoNique was absolutely INCREDIBLE in this movie. She truly scared the SH— out of me!). However, after the hype from this movie has died, how do we use this spotlight on domestic abuse for a greater purpose? How can we keep the “Precious” girls in our communities from becoming another statistic?