From the sassy and take-no-nonsense girlfriend in 'Baby Boy' to Brad Pitt’s mother in 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,' this Oscar-nominated actress is memorable and remarkable.
Sometimes it’s a turn of phrase. A gesture. A look that makes a role memorable. African American actresses have built careers; gone from the bottom of the credits roster to headlining blockbusters because of their ability to turn a small part (3 minutes of screen time or less) into a door opening opportunity. Remember for instance, Halle Berry’s crack head in Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever
While her roles embody all the Hollywood stereotypes still in circulation a la Donald Bogle’s, Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies & Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films
Links:
[1] http://www.theroot.com/users/michelebrown
[2] http://twitter.com/share
[3] http://www.theroot.com/printmail/5740
[4] http://www.theroot.com/javascript: void(0);
[5] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0783230389?ie=UTF8&tag=rushmorecom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0783230389
[6] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/082641267X?ie=UTF8&tag=rushmorecom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=082641267X
[7] http://www.rushmoredrive.com/Editorial/Taraji_P_Henson_is_For_Real.aspx?fid=e9b83a15-39de-43d6-bffb-9fb8921148ef
[8] http://www.theroot.com/views/bigger-movie
[9] http://www.theroot.com/views/slumming-it-mumbai
[10] http://www.theroot.com/views/sister-soul
[11] http://www.theroot.com/category/views-tags/taraji-p-henson
[12] http://www.theroot.com/views/Culture
[13] http://www.theroot.com/print/5740
[14] http://www.theroot.com/views/africa-renewed-sense-potential
[15] http://www.theroot.com/views/its-not-your-grandmothers-naacp
[16] http://www.theroot.com/views/will-there-ever-be-unity-africa