Racial discrimination reached its peak in mass media in the 1960s with the start of the civil rights movement. The American South was on the front lines in the battle for equal rights not only for black men, but also for black women. Unifying through the terrors of racism brought the cause hope and a fighting chance. Kathryn Stockett uses the characterization of Minny Jackson through her views of herself and other characters in her novel, The Help, to expand on the conflicting ideas of African American women's ideology, Africana womanism. Africana womanism is a branch of womanism that focuses more on racial discrimination than on the equality of women in a man's world. It was developed by Clenora Hudson-Weems in the 1980s to contrast certain ideas of feminism. The bonds between men and women of African descent share a closer bond that makes feminism less important to black women (Aldridge and Young 205-17). Africana womanism looks more toward a future for all African Americans than toward a future for women. The bond between African descendants, however, may not be strong enough when it comes to domestic violence. Miss Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan's point of view depicts Minny as a strong, no-nonsense maid with a suspicious mood toward white women and a strong bond with African Americans. tradition. As Miss Skeeter interviews Minny for her book, Minny expresses her "fury against white people" and her love of food (Stockett 194). Minny's hatred of white people is linked to that of African feminism, but her love for food is the only love she really has due to her home life. Cooking is normally passed down from generation to generation as a sort of tradition....... middle of paper ......s not only between help and employers, but also issues between black communities and white. In the eyes of her friends, she is a strong woman who tends to have a bit of a temper, but her true fears resurface over time. The tight-knit group of handmaids shows the true sense of unity that African feminism embodies in the black community. Kathryn Stockett is able to successfully portray an African American woman through her characterization and the ideology of Africana womanism in The Help.Works CitedStockett, Kathryn. Help. New York: Amy Einhorn, 2009. Print. Aldridge, Delores P., Carlene Young. "African Womanism: An Overview." Outside the Revolution: The Development of African Studies. Lexington Books, 2000: 205-217. The University of Missouri-Columbia. Internet. April 11 2014.