Norma Rae Page #6

She's broken her ass

for this organization!

She doesn't see her kids!

Doesn't have time for bath!

Is this the Catholic Church?

Are we canonizing her?

It's your game.

You're damn right!

Make it stick or get out!

Get out anyway!

I'm sorry, Mrs. Webster.

I don't want to hurt the

union. I'll quit if you want.

Weren't you supposed

to be typing letters?

Yeah.

Hey. It's me, Norma.

OK, it's I, Norma.

Forget the grammar.

We got to talk.

Maybe we could meet at my break.

OK.

I was making sure my kids

got home from school.

Your kids are with my

kids buying candy.

That's why dentist

bills is busting me!

Uh!

Come on! Come on, boy!

Come here, boy!

You thinking union?

You want union? You'll get union.

Break it up! Break it up!

Break it up!

You all right?

Yeah.

What started this?

They put up a letter saying

blacks are taking over the union,

that they're going to

push the whites around.

We'll take legal action.

Get me the letter.

They're watching me.

How's your memory?

I don't know the

pledge of allegiance.

Write down a line at a time.

It's like the time

I pinched a lipstick.

Did you get caught?

I went back for curlers.

"Dominate it

"and control it

"as you may

"see fit.

"If now...

"if now..."

Damn! Damn, damn, damn!

"...you black employees,

by joining the union,

"can dominate it and control it

"as you may see fit.

"If..."

Where's the rest?

That's all I could get.

Mata Hari.

They watched us every minute.

Here's our chance to nail them.

Don't tell me you can't remember.

You copy it line for line.

You get the date and signature.

I'll get fired.

I'll run you a benefit.

Thanks a lot.

Want a massage?

Go to a massage parlor.

Either we get beat,

or we don't get beat.

I got three kids, bills,

and an unhappy husband.

I'll do it, but keep off my back.

Reuben, I'll tell you something.

What?

You've been away from home

and you're getting crabby.

Reuben, you need yourself a woman.

Funny you should mention it.

Tonight's the night.

What would Dorothy say?

"Wear a rubber."

You can't copy this!

It's on the board.

I'm going to copy it!

You better not.

I'm taking down every word!

It's my break!

I'm copying every word!

Stay out of my way!

I'm copying it!

Hello, Norma.

You know who I am.

Put the pencil and paper away.

Stop it right now.

You're going to leave!

The law's going to come after you!

Mr. Mason, I started this,

and I'm going to finish it.

"Serious violence."

Let's go to my office.

Why did you make personal

calls on company time?

Spell out your names for me.

Don't be foolish, Norma Rae.

Nobody here is on my side,

and I'm not leaving until I

set down all your names.

I want you off the premises now!

Phone your husband!

Have him fetch you!

I want you out quick!

Norma Rae.

Forget it!

I'm staying put!

Right where I am!

It's going to take you,

the police department,

the fire department,

and the National Guard

to get me out of here!

I'll wait for the sheriff

to take me home!

And I ain't gonna budge

till he gets here!

Come on down now, Norma Rae.

Come on down, now.

You heard what I said. Come down.

Lamar.

I want you to put it in writing

that Sheriff Lamar Miller

is going to take Norma Rae

Webster straight home.

I want you to sign it,

and I want you to hand it to me.

Don't tell me what to do.

You're getting nothing

from me in writing.

You want her off the premises?

Take her out.

I'm not sure I should

get in the same car

with you and nobody else.

Lamar, I ain't gonna bite you.

A police car?

You're taking me to jail!

No! No! No!

Quit that now!

No! No!

You're going to jail!

No!

Get her in there.

No! No!

No!

Get in there now!

No!

Get her in.

Get in there.

No!

Ahhh!

No!

Webster, Norma Rae.

704 Priester Road, Henleyville.

She's white.

Female, 31.

Occupation, textile.

Fair complexion, brown

hair, brown eyes.

Arrest number, 2238B.

Charge, disorderly conduct.

Norma Rae, you go with her now.

Might as well sit down.

You got one phone call.

Better call Sonny.

I'll be calling my union organizer.

The first time you're in is bad.

It comes with the job.

I saw a pregnant woman

on a picket line

get hit in the stomach with a club.

I saw a boy of 16 get

shot in the back.

I saw a guy blown to hell and back

when he tried to start his car.

You just got your

feet wet on this one.

Norma, you all right?

I put the kids to bed.

Craig?

Honey, wake up.

It's Mama.

I want to talk to you. Come on.

Put your arms around my neck.

Alice, Millie, wake up.

I want to talk to you, sweetheart.

Come in the living room.

Come on. Atta girl.

I love you kids.

That's the first thing.

And Sonny loves you.

You got the both of us.

The second thing is

I'm a jailbird.

Now, you're going

to be hearing that

and a lot of other things.

But you're going to

hear it from me first.

Millie.

Your daddy.

His name was Buddy Wilson.

He died four months

after you was born.

Craig.

I wasn't never married

to your daddy.

And he wasn't Buddy.

And he's not Sonny.

He's another man.

And there have been

others in my life.

You're going to be

hearing about them, too.

I'm not perfect.

I made mistakes.

Millie, these are

pictures of your daddy.

Craig, I got pictures

of your daddy.

They belong to you.

If you go in the mill,

I want life to be better

for you than it is for me.

That's why I joined the union,

and that's why I got fired for it.

You understand me?

Now, you kids,

you know what I am.

And you know that I believe

in standing up for

what I think is right.

Go to the bathroom

before you get into bed.

Take your pictures.

Go on.

I'll take a bath.

There's lice in that jail.

She had one call,

and she called you.

She knew I could make bail.

You come in here,

you mix her up, turn

her head all around.

She's all changed.

I didn't want her to

be a front-runner.

What's going to happen to us now?

She stood on the table.

She's a free woman.

Maybe you can live with it.

Maybe you can't.

Busted my shoelace.

There's another one in the drawer.

I busted that one last week.

Did you ever sleep with him?

No.

But he's in my head.

I'm going to see you

through getting tired,

getting sick,

getting old.

I'm going to see you through

anything that comes up.

And there's nobody else in my head.

Just you.

Folks, ballots tabulated for

the O.P. Henley Company,

against the union, 373.

Folks,

the count for the union, 427.

We got it in!

Union! Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

Union! Union! Union!

You going to drive

straight through?

Yes.

You better stop for

coffee, stay awake.

I got a thermos in the car.

Well...

Well?

Well.

Well.

Ah, so.

What are you going to do now?

Live. What else?

Drop me a line once in a while.

Anyone read your mail?

My mother.

I'll send you a copy

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