This still from Joy shows a visceral scene of a woman trapped out in the public, unable to partake in the basic human right and experience of playing with your child. The longing to want that sense of normalcy is unimaginable at this moment. The iron bars trapping her on the outside of the children’s world show us that even in broad daylight, where all can see, we do not know the serious situations people can be entrapped in.
The camera has placed her in the very middle of the screen forcing us to bear witness to her sadness as a barrier separates not only her from the real world but also the viewer. From this screenshot, without context, we see simply a woman of color staring defeated at something we cannot see. This is very much what all of the other people in the scene also see. Just a woman. Both us and them truly have not experienced the hardships and humiliation that this person has faced.
As we see later in the film, she returns to her home. I think to some degree this might be the case of wanting some familiarity, even if it is for a temporary amount of time. At times it is comforting to be in a place in which you understand. You know the rules and how you can go back to Europe. All of this. This horrendous system all exists without the majority of people even knowing it exists. Many will never know. As cliche as it sounds, we simply need to realize that for every situation there is more than meets the eye. Implementing that into your life is harder than it sounds…