Southside with You (2016)

[bunniefuu]

Lunch is almost up, honey. Okay.

Hmm.

Yes?

I thought it wasn't a date.

It wasn't, and it isn't.

Thought you said he was just another smooth-talking brother.

Going to an awful lot of trouble for just another smooth-talker.

Mom, you know I try to look my best no matter where I go or who I'm going with.

It's fun to look pretty.

He's a colleague. Okay, if you say so.

Hello? Hi, Bar.

Aren't you supposed to be on your date?

I've got a few minutes before I need to leave.

You're not checking up on me now, are you, Toot?

Well, maybe I am.

But it's a grandmother's God-given right.

You have a bad habit of being late, and if you're late to the first date, I can promise you there won't be a second.

I won't be late. I appreciate it.

How's Gramps? How's Gramps? He's Gramps.

He's got his bridge game on Tuesdays and Thursdays, golf on the weekends, but when he's home and bored, well, what can I say, Bar, he drives me up the wall.

Well, thank you, baby. Of course.

So, where you going looking so raggedy?

Girl's got herself a date. Mm.

It's not a date, Daddy.

He's the summer associate I told y'all about, the one from Harvard Law.

I mentioned I worked legal aid, and he invited me to a community event at the Gardens. Huh?

Yeah, 'cause it doesn't get more romantic than broken plumbing and underfunded schools.

TAnd tell me the young lady's name again.

Michelle Robinson.

She's my advisor at the firm, remember?

And tell me again what she looks like.

Well, she's tall.

Ah. What else?

What else would you like to know?

Well, where's she from?

Chicago.

Uh-huh. Which part?

The side that's predominantly black.

Okay, so she's...

Yes, Toot, her skin is of the darker persuasion.

Good.

So long as you're happy, Bar, that's all that really matters.

Thanks, Toot.

Now, I gotta go, or I will be late.

Okay, love you.

I love you, too.

So, what's this boy's name? Barack Obama.

Barack-a-what-a?

He's half-white.

His father's from Kenya and his mother's white.

So, why isn't this a date?

We work together. It's inappropriate.

Mm. Maybe, but you are spending the day with him.

Yeah, the meeting sounded interesting.

Well, even if it's not a date, the least thing you could've done is run a brush through your hair.

You look real nice, Meesh.

Thank you, Daddy.

This heat, this heat, this heat!

Hey, uh, women wearing the freeze hairdos, y'all doing that to keep cool during the summer?

Sounds like a plan to me.

What are you doing to keep cool?

What are you doing to beat this heat?

Speaking of hot, hot, hot!

Janet's bring the heat with the number one single in the country.

I miss it so much when I don't hear it.

I know you do, too.

So I'm playing it for me and for you.

# Shot #

# Like an arrow going through my heart #

# That's the pain I feel #

# I feel whenever we're apart #

# Not to say that I'm in love with you #

# But who's to say that I'm not? #

# I just know that it feels wrong #

# When I'm away too long #

# It makes my body hot #

# So let me tell ya, baby #

# I'll tell your mama #

# I'll tell your friends #

# I'll tell anyone whose heart can comprehend #

# Send it in a letter, baby #

# Tell you on the phone #

# I'm not the kind of girl who likes to be alone #

# I miss you much #

# Oh, boy, I miss you much #

# I really miss you much #

# M-I-S-S you much #

# I miss you much, baby #

# I really miss you much #

# M-I-S-S you much #

# I'm rushing home #

# Just as soon as I can #

# I'm rushing home to see your smiling face #

# And feel your warm embrace #

# It makes feel so g-g-g-good #

# So I'll tell you, baby #

# I'll tell your mama, I'll tell your friends #

# I'll tell anyone whose heart can comprehend #

# Send it in a letter, baby, tell you on the phone #

# I'm not the kinda girl who likes to be alone... #

Hi. Hello.

You're late. I was hoping you wouldn't notice.

It's okay, I expected it.

You were late for your first day of work.

You noticed that, too. Yeah.

I'm your advisor, I'm supposed to notice.

Do you live here alone? No.

No, this is my family's house.

My parents still live here and, apparently, so do I.

Should we?

Oh, uh, yeah. Car's down this way.

All set? Mm-hmm.

# I can tell you how I feel about you... #

You're on that account, right?

Which account? Bottlecap?

Yeah.

Everything cool?

Why, what did you hear?

Some of the juniors said you weren't happy with the work.

They're wrong.

They weren't disparaging you.

They were impressed that an associate stood up for herself the way you did.

It's not the work. I mean, it is the work.

It's tedious, but that's to be expected.

Second year associates get the grunt work.

I can live with that.

I'll complain about it, but I can live with it.

It's the trademark suit that's got me fuming.

I take it you did not agree with the judge's decision.

I completely agreed with the judge's decision.

And I told Thompson six months ago that we would lose if we tried it like a trademark dispute.

I was basically silenced for voicing a dissenting opinion.

Hmm. There's no real contribution at our level.

There's only the illusion of contribution.

Get ready, buster. You're on deck.

Are you sure it's the firm you're frustrated with?

Shouldn't we be getting to the meeting?

We have some time. It's not for another few hours.

What?

I thought we'd swing by the Arts Center.

There's an Afrocentric exhibit that's supposed to be...

Wait. What is this?

What is this? I don't know.

I mean, taken at face value, that's a pretty existential question, Michelle.

What happened to the meeting?

It doesn't start till 4:00, so I thought we'd see some paintings, maybe grab a bite to eat.

We don't have to.

Barack, you seem like a really sweet guy.

But how many times do I have to tell you?

We're not going out together.

Well, Michelle, thank you for saying that.

You seem like a real sweet girl, but I have to correct you.

We are in fact out, and we are in fact together.

But not on a date. This is not a date.

It doesn't have to be.

Barack, I don't want it to be.

You know, usually women I meet are willing to look past my hideous appearance and get to know the real me.

If I thought you were hideous, I wouldn't have set you up with Gina.

Gina's very attractive.

Now that's true. Gina is very attractive.

This is not a date.

That's okay. I'll go at your pace.

Barack, there's no pace to go at because there's no anything to speak of.

I am your advisor at our law firm.

It would be tacky. You keep saying that.

And you keep ignoring it. For good reason.

You're my advisor insomuch as you introduced me around at the beginning of the month, and you showed me how to use the copy machine.

Which, by the way, I still can't figure out.

So, some advisor.

Secondly.

It's not "our" law firm. It's your law firm.

I'm just here for the summer.

And while you're here, it's inappropriate.

So you think I'm attractive enough to set up with your prettiest friend...

You think she's that pretty?

You and I share a lot of the same interests.

I don't know that that's true. We both love Chicago.

I get it. You think we have a lot in common.

And maybe we do, maybe we can be friends.

But if you can't understand this, then you can't understand me.

It's hard enough being a woman at a giant corporate law firm.

For all the talk of equality that goes around and all those filled quotas, I'm still surrounded by mostly men.

So I gotta work just a little bit harder to earn everyone's respect.

I gotta work a little bit harder to be taken seriously.

Now add on that I'm black.

All that extra work I put in to compensate for being a woman?

Being black erases that and brings me back down to zero.

So now I'm working double-time just to be seen for who I am and what I'm capable of.

Now, how's it gonna look to a guy like Thompson if I swoop in and start dating the first cute black guy who walks through the firm's doors?

The liberal-minded people will think it's precious, and the close-minded people will think it's pathetic.

You think I'm cute? I didn't say that.

Some of the secretaries described you that way.

Nice dodge. Listen, listen.

We're a few blocks away.

Why don't we go in and check out the exhibit?

I'd still like us to go to the meeting a little later.

It would mean a lot to me.

Okay, it's not a date.

Fine. Until you say it is.

Oh. That's Ernie Barnes.

You read that in a brochure?

No, I'd spot a Barnes a mile away.

You know, Barnes is a real interesting brother.

Did you watch "Good Times"?

Not a family staple. Really?

There was a black family in Chicago that didn't watch "Good Times"?

We are more of a "Brady Bunch," "d*ck Van d*ke" kind of family.

Those kids on Euclid Avenue, man, I'm telling you, they had it good.

Dy-no-mite!

Do you remember that?

Yes, I remember the line.

That character's name was J.J. Right.

He was kind of a screw-up.

Would steal here and there, couldn't read or write, talked jive.

You know, just a bad TV stereotype, right?

Mm-hmm.

But, see, as the show progressed, J.J. developed this interest in painting.

As it turned out, he actually had a lot of talent.

But he didn't take it seriously.

Not until his dad, who was this tough blue-collar guy, encouraged him to keep painting.

He saw it as his son's only way out of the projects.

What did he paint? Black ghetto life.

They were crisp, exaggerated, very colorful.

His style was a lot like these.

That's because Ernie Barnes did all the paintings for the show.

Hmm.

My brother would love this.

Craig, right? Yeah.

How did you know?

I may have overheard you talking about him at the office.

Stalker.

Yeah, but who's the bigger Looney Tune, the stalker or victim who willingly goes to a museum with the stalker?

Willingly?

I'm more inclined to describe this as a hostage situation.

I'm that bad, huh?

Oh, hush.

Craig sh**t hoops?

He's decent.

Pickup games? Office league?

He's an assistant coach at Illinois Tech.

No kidding.

I assume he played ball at school?

Yeah, at Princeton, and then for a couple of years in the BBL.

He actually got drafted by the Sixers, but they never played him.

What?

I'd say "decent ballplayer" is a gross understatement.

He was decent.

Great is NBA.

Uh, no. Good is college.

Great is your brother. Super-human is NBA.

I think I came to my realization when I missed varsity my junior year of high school.

Cut class for a week after that.

Why?

Oh, I was hapa.

So in everyone's eyes, I shouldn't have just made the team, I should've been the best.

What's "hapa"?

Hawaiian for "mixed."

Hmm.

Maybe they didn't expect you to be the best.

Maybe you put that expectation on yourself.

Makes me think of Gwendolyn Brooks.

"The pool players.

Seven at the Golden Shovel.

We real cool.

We left school.

We lurk late.

We strike straight.

We sing sin.

We thin gin.

We jazz June.

We die soon." "Die soon."

Room Ful A'Sistahs.

What do you like about this one?

I guess it reminds me of our house on Sundays.

The boys would be upstairs watching football, and the girls would be downstairs singing around the piano.

You sing? I play.

Any good? I'm not bad.

My aunt Robbie was a piano teacher, so I started young.

How old? Four.

That's young. Not for my mom.

She started us early on everything.

Reading...

French lessons.

You speak French? Mm.

Are you fluent?

I know a few words.

I never would've taken you for a Frenchie.

I mean, any other language but French.

It's just so... sentimental.

Il Ne faut pas Se fier aux apparences.

What does that mean?

It means, things are not always as they appear.

Turkey on rye coming right up. Thanks.

Here.

It's on me.

Okay, okay.

And now, the grand finale.

What, no good?

That was sweet of you, but I don't like pie.

No, you're mistaken.

This is not a slice of pie, this is a slice of heaven.

Mm.

Who doesn't like pie?

I'm an ice cream kind of girl.

Oh, yeah?

Which flavor? Chocolate.

Ugh!

What, you don't like chocolate ice cream?

I don't like ice cream, period.

Now that's weirder than not liking pie.

Not when you spent a summer in high school working at Baskin-Robbins, it's not.

I overdid it.

They had Baskin-Robbins in Hawaii?

You do know Hawaii is part of these here United States, don't you?

It just seems so foreign.

Honolulu's pretty normal.

Played hoops all day. Went to a good school.

Then again, there's a lot about my high school years I do not remember.

Why?

Let's just say a lot of it got lost in a cloudy haze.

Oh.

Because you smoked a lot of marijuana?

Yes, because I smoked a lot of marijuana.

I had a lot of growing up to do.

One time, when I was nine years old, I go to this girl's birthday party, and I show up, and it's me and 20 girls.

I'm the only boy there.

When I asked them why, they all just started laughing at me.

I remember running all the way home. I was mortified.

What made you think of that?

I don't know, just popped in my head.

I could never figure it out.

Hey, you're a smart lady. Why were they laughing at me?

They probably had crushes on you.

Hmm.

I mean, everything's backwards when you're little.

When a boy likes you, he pulls your hair.

When you like a boy, you kick him in the shins.

You do any shin-kicking back in the day?

If you were on the playground, and you were brown and cute, watch out.

You, uh... doing any shin-kicking these days?

Are you inquiring about my personal life?

I might be.

Well, the answer is no.

Tell me more about your... grade-school Casanova years.

No, no, I couldn't have been less popular.

The kids in Indonesia used to throw me in the swamp and call me "Blackberry."

Indonesia?

Yeah, I lived in Jakarta for a few years.

I'm not kidding. We had crocodiles in the backyard.

But... but why were you living there? I mean, how did you end up there?

Lolo, my mother's ex-husband, was from there and went back for work.

We went with him. But where was your dad?

He was back in Kenya.

And you didn't wanna live with him?

It wasn't an option.

Anyway, I didn't have to suffer at the hands of my Indonesian tormentors for long.

I moved back to Hawaii when I was 10.

My mother wanted me to get a better education.

Well, did you?

I don't know.

How would you rate my level of education?

You're like that jive-talking stereotype from "Good Times."

So, what about you?

What about me?

You're Ivy League through and through.

Craig got the natural smarts.

I just worked my butt off.

I'm sure your mother made sure of that.

She never had to.

Education was always priority number one.

My dad would stand for nothing less.

And there was no way Craig and I were gonna disappoint him.

What's he like?

He's the greatest man in the world.

He told us from day one, education was the key to our happiness, and he didn't let us forget it.

What's he do for a living?

Operations engineer for the Water Department.

Basically, he fixes the boilers.

He's been there since '68.

That must be where you get your work ethic.

You don't know the half of it.

Well, tell me, then.

You're asking a lot of questions.

You don't have to answer them, Michelle.

Can you keep what's said outside the office... outside the office?

Michelle, I've been trying to get you outside the office for a month now.

I'm serious.

Yes, absolutely.

My dad has MS.

That why you live at home?

It's better to be there and to help out.

He's on crutches now.

Still gets himself to work every day.

You know, they're lucky to have a daughter like you.

I'm lucky to have parents like them.

Is your mother still alive?

Oh, yeah. Still in Jakarta.

She's a wonderful lady.

But you don't see her much.

No, she has her own life.

But she's brilliant, warm...

Truly wonderful.

And she's white. Snow white.

Born in Wichita, Kansas.

You were born in '60? '61.

Hmm.

A white woman and a black man getting married and having a kid back then.

They were ahead of their time.

You want the God's honest truth about my folks?

Sure. Okay.

My mother thought Harry Belafonte was the most handsome man on the face of the planet.

Yeah, I'd say chocolate was her favorite flavor, too.

No, really.

I think their attraction was that simple.

My father looked like Nat King Cole, and my mother looked like Patsy Cline.

Whoo!

Not bad at all, Miss Robinson.

Those drummers were incredible.

Yeah, they were. Mm.

I wonder if they were African.

Why? Well, it could be a ritual.

I was part of one while visiting my family's village in Kenya.

What were the rituals for?

Prayer, mostly.

Hey, do you believe in God?

You like to go straight for the jugular, don't you?

You have a real nice jugular.

Real defined, real sexy. Watch it now.

Growing up, we went to church on Sundays, but...

I don't know.

I believe in some sort of guiding spirit.

But I also think God helps those who help themselves.

I think I saw that on a bumper sticker somewhere.

That's how you know it's good. Ah.

And your religious proclivities?

Let's just say I'm still evolving.

What were you raised? Nothing, really.

My mom didn't associate with any one religion.

And your father, was he like you?

About the only thing my father and I had in common is that we both went to Harvard.

The only difference is, he got kicked out.

You still got two years.

Think that's enough time for me to develop a drinking problem and burn through all my student loans?

You don't like talking about him.

There isn't much to say, unfortunately.

That can't be true.

It is true.

His life was incomplete.

In every imaginable way.

He married my mother, they had me, he left.

Went to Harvard, got kicked out, never got his Ph.D.

Got a job at the Kenyan government, got fired.

Never found a stable job again.

Had a few too many drinks at a bar one night, got behind the wheel, never made it home.

He died when he was 46. His life was incomplete.

Even his tombstone is blank.

No one bothered to have it engraved.

No one bothered? All that family over there?

No one had the money.

You'll do it.

When you have the money, you'll go back there and have his name engraved.

You think you know me well enough to make that prediction?

No.

But I am a pretty hopeful person, so I'll just say, I hope you do it.

We should probably get to the meeting.

# The world is yours # # Hey, young world #

# The world is yours # # Young world, young world #

# The world is yours # # Young world #

# It may cause concern #

...Denby of "New York" magazine thinks Spike Lee's new picture is gonna cause them black folk to riot, but Chicago's native son Roger Ebert calls it a masterpiece.

Have you seen it? Who's seen it?

What's the good word? You rioting yet?

Hit the phones and let me know, and if you haven't checked it out yet, do the right thing and see it now!

Dying to see this movie.

Sounds interesting enough.

Blick, Thompson, and Cohen were talking about it in the office.

And Thompson said the film might be r*cist towards white people.

No, he didn't.

He didn't mean anything by it.

He's just a little out of touch, that's all.

I'm just tired of being two different people.

I played that game at Princeton, and I played it again at Harvard.

There were white kids at school who would talk to me in class, but if I saw them out on the quad, and they were with their other friends, they would walk right past me without so much as a nod.

Now, obviously, the firm is not like that but sometimes when I'm leaving Southside in the morning, headed for the Loop, I feel like I'm leaving Planet Black and landing on Planet White.

Come on, you got wooed, just like me.

You got wined and dined.

You saw the corporate culture, the racial culture.

You knew the score, and you still said yes.

You sure it's the firm you're frustrated with?

That's the second time you've asked me that question.

It's the second time you haven't answered it.

What are you suggesting?

Take the Bottlecap case as an example.

Once you made your point, why bother pressing further?

To try and get through to Thompson. Come on, you knew you wouldn't.

Like you said, you're a second year associate.

Thompson wants you doing research, interfacing with the clients, preparing his arguments.

The grunt work, right? Right.

But if I don't speak up, what's the alternative?

Shut my mouth and sit there looking pretty?

First of all, you always sit there looking pretty.

Second of all, I'm not suggesting you silence yourself.

I'm just wondering why you chose to work at a corporate firm where you knew your silence would be expected.

And really what I'm wondering is why you're wasting the fight you have inside you on battles you can't win and issues you don't care about?

Excuse me?

You think because we spend one afternoon together and you tried to buy me a sandwich, you're entitled to pass judgment on the choices I made in my life?

You think I'm wasting my life. Now, I never used those words.

You didn't have to use those words.

You used other ones, and they stung just as much.

Why?

If you really loved what you were doing, would you be bothered by what I said?

No.

You'd tell me to go screw myself, and you'd go on your merry way, making tons of cash and doing trademark law for the rest of your life.

And how do you know that's not exactly what I plan to do?

Because you spent two years of law school in Gannett House, working pro Bono cases for poor, single moms.

And my guess is that it kills you to know you can't put the same passion and intelligence towards cases that actually mean something.

You're more than welcome to pass judgment on your own father.

You know what, you're more than welcome to pass judgment on me.

But quite frankly, it sounds like you know me about as little as you knew him.

Michelle... And the biggest offense is, this is coming from a guy who quit community organizing for Harvard Law, only to take a summer position at the same corporate firm he's railing against.

Now that is the height of hypocrisy.

I apologize. I meant no offense.

Barack!

Ladies!

Hey!

Oh...

So happy to see you guys.

Looks like we got a full house today.

Well, everyone heard you was coming, Barack.

We all wanted to get a look at our Harvard man all grown up.

Does a year and a half change a man?

No, but apparently it gets you a lady.

And finally a sista.

How you doing, sweetie?

My name's Bernadette. Oh! I'm Michelle.

Very nice to meet you.

I'm Janice. Hi.

We was your boyfriend's ladies while he was working here in the Gardens.

Oh, we're not... Platonic ladies, Janice.

Don't go giving her any ideas.

We did everything together.

Except the sexy stuff.

Hmm. Now this is a real man you got yourself here.

Just going right over there.

Tommy, my man!

B!

Oh, it's so good to see you.

Yo, Rafiqa!

This Barack's woman, Michelle.

He done well for himself. Mm-hmm.

Welcome.

Janice, we're not together.

You say this Barack's girl?

No, Kyle, this Barack's woman, Michelle.

Y'all married and shit?

Kyle, watch your mouth. Your ass in church.

Y'all married?

No. We're not together.

At all.

Let me tell you a little something about Barack.

My son LaJuan wanted to be in the Navy since he was playing with toy boats in the tub.

But growing up in the Gardens, ooh!

Little by little, the place was getting to him, and he was starting to get the same ideas as every other young n*gro around here.

Thinking there ain't no place for 'em outside these walls.

And even if there was, ain't no way out.

Well, in comes Barack.

And every time he come by the house to talk business, he sets aside a little time to talk with my LaJuan about Navy boats.

I don't even know how Barack knew about Navy boats.

And he could've been making up names, for all I know.

The USS this and the USS that.

Didn't matter.

He kept LaJuan interested.

He told my boy that he could be anything if he worked hard enough.

You see, he didn't have a father to tell him that.

And you know what?

He made it out. Mm, mm.

My son is sailing across the seas on the "USS Dakota."

Looking all fly and professional in his military uniform.

Hands off, girl. That's my boy you talking about.

Afternoon, everybody. Afternoon.

Afternoon. Afternoon.

Right, right, right. Okay now.

Today, you know we here to discuss the Community Center.

What Community Center?

Look, I know.

I know the city's decision was a disappointment, all right?

No, Tommy, it was more than a disappointment.

It was six months of our lives down the drain.

Okay, hold on. Everybody, just hold on.

It was a disappointment. But it wasn't all bad.

See, now we got ourselves not one, not two, but three foundations to fund our Community Center programs when the time is right, and I got that in writing.

Now, how in God's name are they supposed to fund our Community Center programs when we ain't got no Community Center?

That's right. That's right.

Well, that's the dilemma we here today to solve.

Now, what we have to do first is take a look at why the City Council said no.

Well, what difference does it make? They say no to everything we ask for.

Now, that's just not always true, Curtis.

Now, we got that job center up and running.

We got people's apartments on hold for them while they rehabbing.

Look, all I know is this, Senator Torrance got himself a state grant to build a church that he's gonna preach in, and Alderman Said helped him get it.

Meanwhile, my little girls can't go but a mile up the road to play for all the gangs running around the Gardens, pushing they dr*gs, littering they garbage, sh**ting they g*ns like this is the Wild West or something.

sh**t, our kids can't even go play in they friends' house across the street at the Gates.

The Senator got himself a church, our kids got themselves the shaft.

Okay, okay, okay!

There's a lot of issues to address, and I know better than anyone else.

Come on, I've devoted my life to helping this community, but we got to stay focused. That's right.

Look, we got to take our anger and channel it towards the goals we set, and right now that's the Community Center.

Now, you know from past experiences, we got things done because we honed in on one issue, we pressed, we squeezed, and we screamed until somebody finally listened.

It's taking too long. We tired of screaming.

Well, then ain't nothing gonna change. Well, maybe it can't.

Huh?

Look, I disagree.

And I'm sure our guest here disagrees, too, because I seem to recall when he was standing here in my position, by this podium, a year and a half ago, y'all got something done.

I seem to recall, with his guidance... your patience and persistence, y'all got that asbestos problem cleared up.

Got them toilets fixed. The pipes cleaned.

Now, I know when times were tough, this brother right here... had a lot of motivational words for us.

And I'm gonna ask him to come up and say a few right now.

'Cause I'm gonna tell you something, we might be down for the count...

but we ain't out.

Brother Barack, would you come on up?

It's all you. Thanks, bro. Thank you.

Thank you.

It's good to be back.

It's good to see all of you.

I missed that musty smell up here.

Looks like Pastor Mike hasn't gotten around to filling in that hole in the roof.

No.

Think we're gonna have to organize a meeting just to get that leak fixed.

But listen.

I, uh... I feel your pain.

I do.

It's...

It's a part of me now, that pain.

Sometimes it hits me like a heart attack, hundreds of miles away in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Now, I could be listening to a lecture in class, or studying in the library... or watching a movie, or talking to a friend... and I think of all of you.

I may have gone on to a different life at Harvard... but you know what I've realized?

I never left the Gardens.

Now...

Tommy deserves some credit here, folks.

Our fight with the City Council two years ago was proof that these victories do not come easy, and they don't come big.

They are few and far between.

But you gotta use them like building blocks.

One by one, one on top of the other, and little by little... you got yourself a building.

And that's exactly what you need in this case, is a building for your Community Center.

Now, I feel your disappointment.

But the truth is... you're in a good position right now.

Still ain't got no Community Center!

All right, all right. All right.

Tommy got funding pledges. That's real.

That's money down the line, and that's hard to secure.

Now, I know it's not the whole package, but think about it.

Now all you need is a building.

You're halfway there.

Now, the Council said no to the building, but that was before you had funding pledges secured with the help of Brother Tommy here.

So now, when you remount your campaign... you have something to bring to the table.

You're contributing.

And the folks downtown like to see us contributing.

Makes 'em feel like the money they give you is gonna be put to good use.

Just wanna know that you care.

And Tommy's right when he says we need to take a look at why they said no.

Not because it's the right decision, but because you've gotta understand where they're coming from.

You've gotta understand the city's motivations, its self-interest in order to align them with your own.

We turn self-interest into mutual interest.

So, let's give the council members the benefit of the doubt for a moment.

Let's say they want you to have your Community Center.

Okay, okay. But let's say for a moment that we got some good folks on that Council, and they'd like to see your kids have a place to go after school and play.

Yeah, right.

Now, I believe there probably are a few.

So, if we've got some good-hearted folks there... why can't they get your funding request approved?

Getting paid to say no.

Okay, Curtis, I hear you, I hear you.

Anyone else? Don't care enough.

All right. Any other ideas?

Maybe they don't think they can.

That's what I'm thinking, Kyle.

I don't think they believe they can get it done.

Even if they wanted to.

They know developers don't wanna build in the Gardens.

There's nothing in it for them. No stores. No economy.

These council members don't necessarily want the answer to be no, they just believe it will be.

So, what are you proposing, Barack, that we build the damn thing ourselves?

Almost. Almost, Curtis.

Now, Tommy and I have been discussing this.

And we both think you might wanna consider changing the goal slightly.

Refocus your efforts on obtaining a land designation.

Now, if you control the land... you can cut a deal with one developer to build everything in the area... on the condition that one of the buildings be the Community Center.

Now, that's more jobs, more stores, and a Community Center for your children.

They just gonna say no like they say no to everything else!

Now, we gotta stop thinking the word "no" is the end of the line, Curtis.

"No" is just a word.

You flip those letters around, you get an entirely different word.

"On." That's right.

As in "carry on."

Say it with me now.

Carry on! Carry on!

They say no, we say... Carry on.

They say no, we say... Carry on!

That's it! There you go!

Harold Washington... My man.

Harold Washington was one of the reasons I moved to Chicago.

When I first came here, every barbershop and chicken shack on the Southside had a squeaky-clean picture of him hanging up on the wall for everyone to see.

You right about that. Still do.

Chicago's first black mayor.

He was our mayor. Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

But even Mayor Washington disappointed in some respects.

He had to face the great truth of our country... that it's not easy to get things done.

The founders made it that way on purpose.

They made it messy... so that no one law, no one government, no one man could decide the fate of everything and everyone.

In very simple terms... we got a heck of a lot of different people with a heck of a lot of different agendas.

But I also believe that people, most people... are basically, at their core, good people.

And so, if at first we don't understand their agenda... the City Council, the Alderman, the State Senator...

we have to try our hardest to understand who they are and what they need.

We have to let go of judgment.

That's a lesson...

I learned today from a friend.

No matter what we think about someone... we never truly know what it's like to walk in their shoes.

But we have to try.

Whether it's a colleague, a family member... or a particular opponent, especially our opponents.

Because where their needs align with our needs... is where things get done.

That's America.

Just a bunch of different states.

States of land, states of mind... states of people.

And it's up to us, all of us... to keep all those different states... united.

Thanks for inviting me.

It's been a while since I've had that kind of connection to real-life struggle.

Me, too.

In high school, my typing teacher gave me an A minus.

I wrote her a letter every day until she changed it to an A.

I celebrated all day long.

But that night, I couldn't sleep.

I kept asking myself over and over again, "Did I even deserve the A?"

Sometimes I forget why I'm fighting.

Or even that I am fighting.

I didn't know I was wrestling with myself about the firm.

I understand that.

You think you're real smooth, don't you?

Why?

Did you know you were speaking today?

No.

Well, not exactly.

I knew there was a decent chance, yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Pretty good setting to bring a girl.

Surrounded by people who adore you.

People who might tell this girl heart-tugging stories about how inspired their sons to join the Navy.

And an inspirational speech that had everybody in awe, Mr. Obama.

Including you?

It wasn't bad.

You sounded a little professorial.

But you definitely have a knack for making speeches.

Thank you.

You know, that being said, it didn't hurt to take you there on our first date.

Our first what? You heard me.

You must have misspoken because according to you, this isn't a date until I say so.

You know, if you don't wanna spend any more time with me today, I'll respect that.

I won't like it, but I'll respect your wishes.

But if you wanna keep hanging... let's call it a date and move on to the next event.

Next event? Drinks and a movie.

You think you're real smooth.

And real cute.

I don't know about the "cute" part.

I mean, they did look good on Dumbo.

Well, I'd rather be Dumbo than the Wicked Queen.

Wicked Queen?

Now, you can't just say any old wicked queen.

From which movie?

There you go. Thanks, Steve.

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Don't even come at me with that "Innervisions" nonsense.

It's a better album all around.

"You and I," "Sunshine of My Life,"

"Superstition."

All great songs. His best.

Not better than "Higher Ground."

"Talking Book" was the first album I ever heard, and if it was the last, I'd be set for life.

That's how brilliant it is. Uh-uh.

Man!

Well, at least we can agree that Stevie is the best.

Mm. At least we can start from there.

Okay, so what about that moment in the church before the meeting?

Which?

I think Bernadette said it, about you finally dating a sister.

Who knows with those two. They love to gossip.

Is it true? Is what true?

That you never date black women.

Not true.

But you did date white women?

I've dated a couple of white women, yes.

And which do you prefer?

Come on, buster, now it's your turn to ante up.

My girlfriend at Columbia was white.

It was pretty serious.

What was her name? Jennifer.

How long were you with Jennifer?

A little over two years.

Mm-hmm...

Columbia was a strange time in my life.

I was reading a lot, figuring stuff out, had very few friends.

Except for Jennifer. Exactly.

She was lovely.

She really was.

She was very caring.

Kept me company when I was lonely.

We fell into that private little universe couples can fall into, where you develop your own kind of language and customs, you know?

I've never had that with anyone other than my own family.

It's nice.

Anyway... when we went to visit her family, they were incredibly gracious to me.

Very nice, open-minded people, but, you know, I looked around at all the pictures on the walls, you know... all the white faces... and I knew I couldn't spend any more of my life living as an outsider.

Does that answer your question?

So, why did you come to Chicago?

To try and make a difference. Mm-hmm.

Thought I would, too.

I thought maybe I'd work civil cases, help women, empower them.

Being at that meeting today aroused some of those old dreams.

Lit some kind of fire.

But those last couple years, the corporate firms descend upon the campus like a pack of wolves.

And they're so appealing.

I wanted to be in a position to pay off my loans, pay my folks back.

Live a little.

Enjoy life.

There's nothing wrong with that.

There's nothing wrong with it until there is.

Yeah. I know what you mean.

I feel like something else is pulling at me.

I wonder if I can write books, or hold a position of influence in civil rights.

Politics? Maybe.

I just wanna do more.

Yeah, so do I.

And maybe just wanting it is enough for now.

Whatever I end up doing, I take comfort in knowing I can't do much worse than my dad did.

That doesn't sound like the same guy who gave that fancy speech earlier.

The one who talked about letting go of judgment.

I've noticed how you talk about your father.

Such an angry way to live your life.

Judging him.

Living your life against his.

You're still fighting him.

But he's not here anymore.

You said earlier you felt his life was incomplete.

Every father's life is incomplete.

That's why they have sons... to finish what they started.

You know, my grandfather was not a very generous man.

He could've helped my dad through college.

But he was so terrified of getting into debt, he refused to lend him any money.

So my dad had to drop out of school after a year.

It took a while, but he forgave my grandfather.

Then he got his job with the city... and he has spent the rest of his life working in that boiler room, making sure not to do to his kids what his father did to him.

You have to forgive your father... so your anger doesn't turn you into him.

You have to forgive him... so you can be better than him.

That's what he would want.

Get his arm! Get his arm! Gary, that's enough!

Gary, that's enough, man!

Gary, that's enough! Shut up!

Radio Raheem! Radio Raheem!

No! Radio!

Radio Raheem! Radio Raheem!

What's the matter?

Be careful. I feel a riot coming on.

Oh!

I'm gonna use the restroom. Okay.

Michelle?

It is you. Your height gave you away.

Avery.

What are you doing here?

Uh... Picking up groceries.

What do you think? We came to the movies.

You did? Yeah.

We partners do that from time to time.

And on occasion, we bring along our wives.

Laura, this is Michelle Robinson, one of our more tenacious associates.

Michelle, this is my wife Laura.

So pleased to make your acquaintance.

Likewise. Likewise.

I think Avery mentions you at least a dozen times a day.

Are you here alone?

Me? Um...

I'm with a friend.

Actually, I have to go.

What did you think of the film?

What did I think? I liked it.

All the hoopla leading up to it, I had to see for myself.

Oh, what did you think? Compelling.

Though the ending was puzzling and more than a little infuriating.

Barack!

Avery! Wow!

Having a Sidley Austin reunion here.

We just came from a community meeting that we attended as colleagues and friends, and just thought it might be a good idea to stop and see the movie since it's something everybody was talking about.

Um...

Thank you for that illuminating explanation.

Laura, this is one of our summer associates, a very talented young man, Barack Obama.

Very pleased to make your acquaintance.

Pleasure's all mine.

So, you got around to seeing the movie, I take it?

Yes, yes, we did.

In fact, I was just explaining to Michelle how angry that ending made me.

Why would the delivery man have thrown the trash can through his employer's window?

He must've known his actions would cause the mob to riot.

Seemed totally irrational.

Let me put it to you another way, Avery.

I'm all ears.

If Mookie hadn't thrown the trash can, maybe the crowd would've turned on Sal and his sons.

So instead of the store being destroyed... they might be dead.

And Mookie knew the insurance would cover the damage to the store.

He was saving Sal's life.

I never would've considered that perspective, Barack.

See, that's why we need a guy like you full-time.

Michelle, make sure to treat him real good.

We want him sticking around.

We'll see you both Monday. Good night.

Good night. Night.

You know I only said that to make Avery feel better.

Mookie threw that trash can 'cause he was f*cking angry.

What a coincidence seeing him here.

It's really wild.

It wasn't a coincidence. It was cosmic justice.

I knew damn well going out with you was the wrong thing to do.

Pun intended.

And don't even try to convince me otherwise, Barack, because there is nothing you can say.

Nothing?

I can't tell you that Avery doesn't give a hoot about seeing the two of us out?

"Make sure to treat him real good."

That was not okay, Barack, by any measure.

It was smarmy.

You don't think that was laced with anything?

You don't think he meant anything by that?

Maybe he did. So what?

First thing Monday morning he is gonna spread this juicy little anecdote around the office like wildfire.

You know, none of this would've happened if you had just respected the boundaries I laid out.

But you refused.

You didn't respect our working relationship.

And now that's all there's going to be.

I don't want any...

It's pretty good.

You want some?

Sure.

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