|
Domestic service has long been branded as demeaning work: it involves long
hours, menial toil and low pay. Historically, and not coincidentally, it has
been one of the only occupations open to African American women in this
country. As African American women have begun to move away from domestic labor
into other jobs, white-owned entrepreneurial maid services employing primarily
white women have arisen. This intriguing and articulate documentary looks at
the history of domestic work since slavery and the ambivalence felt by African
American women towards it. Offering a sophisticated analysis of the racial and
sexual division of labor in this country, The Maids! is an excellent resource
for women's, African American and labor studies.
A Women Make Movies film. 28 minutes. 1985. Documentary by Muriel
Jackson.
|
