The Ancestors force us to see the truth

The Underground Railroad

by Kathia Woods

In this time when our country is dismissing the foundation of which it was built on free labor, it seems timely that Amazon is releasing The Underground Railroad by Barry Jenkins. The series based on Pulitzer prize winner Colson Whitehead book details the heroic escape of Cora Randall from her Georgia Plantation to freedom. Slavery is a big part of this story, but it's about something much bigger. It also has to do with ideologies and intentions. It's about man's inhumanity to man, as well as Stockholm syndrome.

We first met Cora at the Georgia Plantation. She appears to be in her late teens, but she is determined. Her mother abandoned her when she was about ten years old, leaving her to fend for herself. Several incidents occur in episode one that send Cora in a new direction. The first involved a young child, and the second involved the erasure of her heritage—two things that stand out are food and religion.

One of the most substantial ties we have to the continent is Religion, not Christianity but African Religion. Our ancestors believe in God and spirits, one of them being protection. It's that belief that sustained us through the worst of times and helped bind us to each other in this horrid thing called Slavery; Cora understood this. She also understood food was more than a resource. Gardens were another part of the legacy. In those gardens were the seeds from Mother Africa. 

The person responsible for much terror against the freedom-looking slaves is a character name Ridgeway. A slave catcher portrayed by Joel Edgerton. He is assisted by a young Black boy named Homer. Ridgeway, Homer and Cora are intertwined in this entire series. In them, we see the complexity of this fabric that is Slavery.

The Underground Railroad, unlike the previous series, doesn't just show the inhumanity of being enslaved. In all honesty, the pace is deliberately slow to help us comprehend the amount of time and patience required to attain freedom. Barry Jenkins took great care to depict horror not for shock value, but to help the viewer understand what drove Cora to move forward in the first place.

The train is more than an idea in The Underground Railroad, it is present and active. Jenkins beautifully shows the arrival of the train and how it gave refuge to Cora. He relied on the mythology of Colson Whitehead’s imagination to cover the miles away from the plantation. Sadly, many on the way who were considered allies still hindered Cora's progress with their agendas.

This series is more than just the nightmare of slavery. It's also about how others perceived negroes. Many felt that Slavery was inhumane but had unique ideas on how to deal with Black people. This notion that if Black people were taught to read, etiquette, and trade, they would become productive members of society. This thinking insinuates that Black People were uncivilized and gives a false sense of freedom.

The other theme explored in The Underground Railroad is Religion or, better yet, Christianity. Cora encountered many of the faith. These individuals had no qualms reiterating that Christianity told them to be tolerant and that she should be grateful for their mercy. This falsehood is sadly still practiced in today's time. Imagine someone telling you that they don't like you, but the only reason they haven't killed you is their faith in God. It's harrowing how Cora didn't lose her faith in all of humanity enduring this type of rhetoric on top of the horror she already witnessed.

The reason we are willing to endure this journey is not just Barry's masterful direction but Thuso Mbedu. Her performance as Cora is not an overpowering act but a masterfully crafted puzzle. We care about Cora because of Thuso. Many of the scenes in this series require her to dig deep. She doesn't have the luxury of a scene partner in many moments. Abedu shines brightest when she is alone in her thoughts, trying to stay sane as the world crumbles around her. We are willing to sit through many excruciating moments because of her performance. Expect her name to be mentioned come Emmy season.

Joel Edgerton as Ridgway is equally brilliant. Edgerton has built a career in bringing unlikeable characters to life. Ridgeway is a difficult person.  A slave catcher who travels with a young free Black boy to assist him. Their relationship is a complete oxymoron. He never refers to the slaves he catches as he or she, but "it" this helps him disassociate himself from their humanity however with Homer things are different.

Homer is the oddball in this triangle. He suffers from Stockholm syndrome. Chase W. Dillon, who plays Homer, doesn't view Ridgeway as the enemy but more a father figure. Also, Homer is amazingly comfortable in aiding Ridgeway in catching his fellow negroes. He also has disassociated himself from his community. Ridgeway calls him by his name and views him as a person. It is an odd thing to see because neither addressed the hypocrisy of the situation; to them, it's simply a business transaction. It's also visually complexing seeing this young boy adding this horrid white man to capture his people. As disturbing as the relationship is, it works thanks to Dillon's mature performance. He's a boy in appearance, but he's navigating a very adult world successfully.

While all the above is occurring, Barry gives us some insight into free Black communities; this is important because it shows a different side to the Black experience in 1800's America. Many Blacks found solace in creating Black towns. In that environment, many were able to build up businesses and gain personal as well as economic freedom. The Underground Railroad also demonstrated how many weren't willing to sacrifice this freedom to help their formerly enslaved brother and sisters.

The Underground Railroad is being released when we have had many works centered in Black Pain. Some of this work hasn't been executed in Black people's favor. The Underground Railroad is not included in the poorly executed. It meticulously connects the dots of what it was like to survive in a country that never saw you through Cora's journey. Barry understood that this needed to be a series vs. film because there so much to unpack. It's not an easy watch but an important one. As stated in the opening of this review, we need this series. Not us the descendants of the enslaved but those that will want you to believe that Slavery was but a small stain in American history.  We owe it to the Cora's that fought so bravely for a glimpse of the promise to keep telling the truth. Barry Jenkin's understood the weight of this project as seen in each frame.