Fighting for Their Rights Throughout The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, characters are constantly standing up for what they believe in. Rosaleen stands up for her civil rights, Lily stands up for freedom from her dad, the Boatwrights and the Daughters of Mary stood up for the equality of women and African Americans. When Rosaleen heard of the signing of the civil rights act, she immediately went to register to vote, and when Lily was acting like she was stupid, she stood up for herself. When Lily’s dad was abusing her and not allowing her to do with her life what she wanted, Lily ran away from home in an attempt to find her own way through life. As African American women, society put the Boatwrights at a lower level than men and white people, and so they create their own organization in which they are special. Throughout the novel, Rosaleen Daise, Lily Owens, and the Boatwrights all stand up for what they believe in, signifying that people can only get past the expectations of society by fighting for what they think is right. In standing up for her beliefs of civil equality, Rosaleen moves past the set place that society has placed her in. Upon the signing of the Civil rights act, Rosaleen spends hours practicing her signature so that she will be able to register to vote without being rejected. When Rosaleen was on her way to vote and she was questioned by racist white men, she retaliated by pouring her snuff juice on their feet. After the white men beat her and insisted on an apology that they didn’t receive, Rosaleen was brought to the police station with Lily. Upon arriving at the station, the white men were waiting for her, and Rosaleen stopped walking. “‘Come on Rosaleen,” I said. ‘What can they do with a police man right here?’ That was when the dealer lifted the flashlight over his head, then down, smashing into Rosaleen’s forehead. She dropped to her knees. I don’t remember screaming, but the next thing I knew, Mr. Gatson had his hand clamped over my mouth. ‘Hush,’ he said” (35). In this scene, Rosaleen knows that because she is black, she will not get the defense from the police that Lily expects her to get. However, because she does not believe that the white men are any better than she is, she does not give in and apologize to them, even if it would end the beatings. Rosaleen believes that she deserves every right that white men have, and so she refuses to give in to the white men who are trying to bring her down. She continues to refuse to go against her beliefs, even when she is beaten to the point where she has to go to the hospital. At a later point in the novel when Lily has helped Rosaleen escape from the hospital and ran away with her, Rosaleen asks Lily if she has a plan. When Lily gets angry and says she doesn’t have one, Rosaleen snaps and says, “Well, you sure had one back at the hospital, coming in there saying we’re gonna do this and we’re gonna do that, and I’m supposed to follow you like a pet dog. You act like you are my keeper. Like I’m some dumb nigger you gonna save” (53). Rosaleen is upset that Lily is treating her as if she is a lesser human being because of her skin color. Rosaleen is the senior of the two, but because she is black, it is Lily who is doing all of the bossing around. However, this is against what Rosaleen believes, and so she retaliates, getting angry at Lily for treating her this way. In the end, all of Rosaleen’s time spent defending her beliefs pay off. She becomes part of a family where she is accepted and considered an equal, and she finally is able to register to vote. When Lily stands up for herself against the set path that society has caused T. Ray to put in front of her, Lily breaks free and is able to live a life that she is happy with. Because she is a female, T. Ray thinks differently of Lily, and thinks that her only choice is to go to beauty school. However, with the support of a teacher, Lily realized that she wanted to be a professor or a writer when she grew up, and she began reading books. However, T. Ray was completely against this. “What kind of person is against reading? I think he believed it would stir up ideas of college, which he thought was a waste of money for girls…” (15). T. Ray was raised to believe that girls are not smart, and have a set role in society, one that does not require proper education. He thinks that Lily needs to go to beauty school so that she can get married to a proper man who will take care of her. However, this is not what Lily agrees with. Lily still wants to get a proper education so that she can become a writer or a professor. Lily stands up for her beliefs by smuggling books into the peach stand so that he can read them, and by attempting to write books and poems. When T. Ray is treating Lily with the same cruelty that he always does, Lily comes to the realization that the only way for her to live the life that she wants for herself is to run away. “Now I looked at his face. It was despising and full of anger. ‘As long as you live under this roof, you’ll do what I say!’ he shouted. Then I’ll find another roof, I thought. ‘You understand me?’ he said. ‘Yes sir, I understand,’ I said, and I did too. I understood that a new rooftop would do wonders for me” (26). Lily realized that she would be much more able to follow what she believes in by living somewhere else, and so she runs away. This eventually comes out to improve her place in society when she ends up living in Tiburon, where she is accepted for who she is by the Boatwrights, and where she is able to go to school and learn what she wants to learn without being told that it was wrong. Despite being black women, the Boatwrights stand up for themselves in society and create a world in which they are able to be happy in. The Boatwrights have their own beliefs and so they create their own religion called the Daughters of Mary. They worshiped Our Lady in Chains, who was an image for freedom for blacks and women. “‘The people called her Our Lady in Chains. They called her that not because she wore chains…’ ‘Not because she wore chains,’ the daughters chanted. ‘They called her Our Lady in Chains because she broke them’” (110). The Boatwrights worship Our Lady in Chains because it gives them confidence that they will one day be able to break free from the metaphorical chains that society has covered them in, in an attempt to keep them from be equal to white men. August Boatwright believed in supporting and helping Lily by accepting Lily into her household, despite Lily being white. Even though this was against the norm in society, it was something that August believed in, and thus that she fought for. When T. Ray tries to take Lily back and comments on the fact the he doesn’t know the Boatwrights, August steps in and says, “Lily can have a home here for as long as she wants” (297). August says this because she believes in Lily being a part of her family, and she is willing to save her from T. Ray. In the end, by standing up for what she believes in, The Boatwrights are able to give themselves happiness in their lives and have Lily become a part of their loving family. Throughout The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, there are many times during which characters choose to stand up for what they believe in, even when it is the harder choice to make, and in the end it improves the quality of their lives and allows them to move past the set roles that society has for them. Rosaleen Daise stands up for her equality to white people, Lily Owens stands up against the sexist views of her father that are keeping her down, and the Boatwrights stand up for the rights of woman and blacks. By standing up for their beliefs, all of these characters have improved their lives and gone past the expectations of society.