The Central Character In The Film Pariah

Webster’s dictionary defines pariah as: “outcast, persona non grata, leper and undesirable”. It was thought within the Christian community that Christ himself while on earth was a pariah or an outcast. To many he was a threat to their sense of law and order and as a man of color without means, he created havoc amidst the powers that be. Christ was a man on the margins who ate with tax collectors, Samaritan divorcees and healed the lepers on the Sabbath. He honored his truth.
Alika/Lee, the central character in the film Pariah shows us the multi-faceted truth she is attempting to live through not only as a young woman of color, but also as a lesbian. She has managed to hide it from most of her family, but she has come to a crossroads where
Therefore, she takes much of her “lack of control” out on Lee. As Lee arrives home and is attempting to avert her mother’s harping for being late, we hear Audrey come after her with a vengeance. It is Audrey that insists Lee conform to her ideals and rules. Lee pushes back and makes her escape into the bathroom. While she is sitting on the toilet, she notices a crucifix on the wall in front of her. “Alike turns on the faucet, wets the soap and puts it back in the dish, wets her wash cloth and puts it back on the rack.
She plops down on the toilet and looks up. A crucifix frowns down at her from the wall”. Sadly, it appears that her indoctrination of God/Christ has been one of law and judgement. She averts her eyes, but inside I could almost guarantee that she is feeling judged from that white Jesus hanging on the wall. She might even be thinking, I can’t even go to the bathroom without being judged.
As a young women of color even within her own school experience, she is an outsider. She leaves the home in her “feminine” clothes and arrives at school to change into her “masculine” clothes. “She stares at her reflection in the window and
She too is attempting to find her place in the world and has been indoctrinated as to God’s condemnation regarding her lifestyle choices. We see her thrown away by her own mother as she goes to inform her of her attaining her GED. As her mother ever so stoically cracks the house door just enough to see who has rung her bell, she scornfully points her nose up at Laura as if to say she is disgusted. It is heartbreaking to watch Laura’s attempts at making a connection. All I could think of were the Pharisees and Sadducees as they judged the black preacher (Jesus) for attempting to heal the broken on the Sabbath and empower the marginalized. How does one denounce their own flesh and blood? How did Peter deny Jesus three