Netflix’s Self Made limited series celebrates the persistence and perseverance of Madam C.J. Walker
Review by Angelo Lorenzo
Achievements of people from communities that had been wronged by the oppressive system in history have always existed. Whether it relates to social equality and justice or commerce and the arts, these achievements serve their promising purpose. Not only do they give a name and become the identifying legacy of their proud torch-bearers, but they are also the visible and evident reality and reminders that people who were once oppressed have the capability of changing the world for the better. The concept of changing the world may sound a bit over-the-top, but with the oppressive system not entirely abolished (with the rise of sensationalized nationalism and misinformed xenophobia), an ambition with an action can send ripples of change.
For Madam C.J. Walker, this change came in the form of business. She is the founder of the Madam C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company, a beauty and hair care business that established salons, gave jobs to countless agents, and produced products designed for African-American women. But although the business had ceased operations in the 1980s, the legacy that Walker had paved has become an inspiration for people in similar communities and is now a subject of Netflix’s limited series released earlier this year, Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker.
As the title suggests, the series is an autobiographical take on Walker’s life based on the biographical book On Her Own Ground by A’Leila Bundles (Walker’s great-great granddaughter). With Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer portraying the ambitious and determined titular character, the series details in each of the four episodes the major obstacles that Walker had to go through to achieve success as an African-American entrepreneur in the period between the 1900s and 1920s. An opening monologue reveals her decision to quit being a laundry washer after the painstaking labor resulted to a mild baldness. This is later resolved when she met Addie Monroe (played by Carmen Ejogo and based on the historical Annie Monroe) who introduces her to hair products and treats her in exchange for washing Monroe’s laundry. Walker becomes interested in the products and, as shown in the series, starts selling them with the intent of becoming Monroe’s business partner.
But partnership takes a different turn when Monroe rejects her proposal. Walker, who has experienced first-hand the struggles of African-American women in her time, decides to sell products of her own. Although she takes inspiration from Monroe’s products, she takes her business venture a notch higher with her passionate public speaking skills selling on the streets and her optimism to turn her and her husband’s home into a salon. As her business starts selling, the series goes on with her negotiations with investors to fund for her a factory that generates more of her products, the enthusiastic cooperation of her daughter, the secretive infidelity of her husband and their eventual separation, her struggle with people’s doubts, and her decision to listen to her employees’ statements at a time when their jobs are at risk due to her business merging with a pharmaceutical company.
Like many works based on historical events, the series takes creative liberties to fill the elements of a convincing plot. The portrayal of Monroe as the envious villain out to ruin Walker’s career and reputation, as well as Walker’s daughter being portrayed as a lesbian, has sparked controversy among critics. This is due to the absence of historical evidence that would support their portrayal. But her daughter’s sexuality, as the series depicts, does not in any way affect the primary objective that the historical A’Leila Walker was determined to accomplish — help her mother’s business grow. Monroe, on the other hand, actually played a significant part in Walker’s career as her mentor. They even sold products together before Walker established her own business.
Controversies or inaccuracy aside, the series delivers an important message; and one that is based on reality. It’s the idea that people can make a change when they set their mind to it, and this change can be for the better. The change that Walker made has defied social expectations in her time. A flashback scene in the series reveals a young Walker in the arms of her parents who were former slaves that had been freed by the Emancipation. From her childhood to being a laundry washer to a street seller and then to who would be considered as the first female self-made millionaire in America, Walker is a testament of that change. It led people who aren’t the victims of oppression to believe that despite the odds, she made it.
This is a feat that has been true to countless African-Americans who have made successes of their own. Perhaps two of the biggest names include Oprah Winfrey and Chris Gardner. Winfrey started with her humble beginnings in the television industry, and was even laid off at age 23 when executives thought she didn’t have the face for television. Flash forward to the 1990s and onward to the 21st century and perhaps everyone has seen her universally acclaimed Oprah Show would consider Winfrey to be the world’s greatest interviewer. In the case of Chris Gardner, it’s his grit that landed him a job at the stock market and turned him into a billionaire. Much like Netflix’s limited series of Walker, Chris Gardner’s journey to success has also been adapted into an autobiographical film starring father-and-son duo Will and Jaden Smith in 2006.
Walker’s legacy isn’t just for a personal cause but a testimony for a change that ripples opportunities. Unlike several entrepreneurs with an eye for money, Walker has chosen to uplift the lives of people who have made her company possible. The scene in the series where she responds to her workers’ protest is perhaps one of the defining aspects of her life — both the portrayed character and the real historical figure. By providing jobs and employment to African-Americans in her time — as well as the years that followed her untimely death at a young age of 51 — Walker puts humanity in business. With her products aimed for providing healthy hair and sustainable beauty to their customers, she has made it possible for African-American women to feel good about themselves based on how they look despite the racial stereotypes perpetuated against them in that time period.
With the series celebrating her persistence and perseverance through her obstacles, Walker’s legacy endures. It may even inspire a new generation of self-made successes on the path towards social change.
