For the inaugural issue of "Issues of Our Time," we have published critical reactions on the film, The Help, which is based on Kathryn Stockett’s best-selling book. The movie has generated some intense visceral reaction, and we believe that a serious critical analysis of the film is required and needed. We have an impressive lineup of thinkers and emerging scholars from history, women studies, American studies, English, rhetoric, African and African Diaspora studies, journalism and mass communication, law, library science, philosophy, popular culture, theological seminary and media work.

The issue includes short critical essays, video, poem, and historical narratives that provide a vastly different reading and landscape that Stockett fail to see and address. With 30 contributions in total, this is proving to be the definitive response to The Help.

The editorial of this inaugural issue is free. The editorial is a must read. We recommend you read it first to gain a better understanding of "Issues of Our Time," the historical framework of American south, civil rights, freedom riders, and the plight of international domestic workers.

Editorial: Issues of Our Time on The Help (free to read, but requires registration to JENdA:

Table of Content (visit site to see the entire 30 contributions)

< http://www.africaknowledgeproject.org/index.php/jenda/issue/view/124>