Forgotten Mother

“Forgotten Mother” is a personal and sensitive exploration of the relationship between Alice, a black domestic worker, and Adrienne, the white child she raised. This half -hour documentary follows Adrienne’s return to her birthplace, now Zimbabwe, where she is reunited with Alice. In what was formerly white-ruled Rhodesia, it was common for black women to leave their families in rural areas to seek jobs as domestic workers in the city. These women would live on the premises of their white employers and take care of the children. Although they worked for the same family for long periods of time they were excluded from white family life. Despite the imposed racial and cultural segregation, a strong and unique bond often developed between domestic workers and the children they cared for. There was, however, little acknowledgment of the significance of this relationship. “Forgotten Mother” bears witness to the strength of this relationship and its ability to rise above the constraints of the system from which it was born.