Acclaimed writer William Faulkner once said “To understand the world you must first understand Mississippi.” This idea permeates the documentary In the Bones, which focuses on the issue of abortion in the state.
The film was shot in the weeks leading up to the state’s controversial 15-week abortion ban. It takes that and then expands upon the existing culture that has railed for years against Roe vs. Wade. But the film doesn’t only tackle abortion. The socioeconomic realities of the state are also discussed. The state has the highest female poverty rate as well as the highest female wage gap in the U.S., and these facts are intertwined to paint a picture of a state at odds with itself.
All classes are represented in the film. Black and white politicians (from both parties) are shown banding together to solve gender issues. White families are shown trying to soothe the pain of absentee parents and teenage pregnancies. The film showcases self-reliance, and you leave not despairing for the characters described but hoping for the best. The system described in the state is clearly working against everyone, regardless of race, social status, or economic standing. But it is the way these characters rise to the challenge that makes the film so compelling.
Kelly Duane de la Vega’s film is an eye-opening spectacle and one that people in every state should see. The film would work for people studying race and poverty in America, sociologists, and political science students.