God's Step Children

God's Step Children is a 1938 American drama film directed by Oscar Micheaux and starring Jacqueline Lewis. The movie is inspired by a combination of elements shared from two previous released Hollywood productions: Imitation of Life and These Three. A young black woman arrives at the home of a black widow, Mrs. Saunders, and begs her to look after her light-skinned baby, whom she cannot afford to feed. At first she says this is temporary while she looks for work, but as she leaves she declares she will never be back. Mrs. Saunders pledges to raise the "poor little darling" as her own, alongside her own son Jimmie. She names her Naomi. Nine years later, schoolgirl Naomi is thought by the other black children to be aloof; they accuse the...