“No [Right] Way to Be a Black Woman”: Exploring Gendered Racial Socialization Among Black Women

Abstract

Using the theoretical lenses of intersectionality and racial-ethnic socialization, we conducted a focus group study with 29 Black women. We analyzed transcripts via a grounded theory approach for the sources of messages about skin color and hair and for participants’ responses to these messages. Family members were the primary source of messages about skin color and hair. Peers and the media also communicated such messages. Messages ranged from endorsement of Western standards of beauty to an embrace of darker skin colors and natural hair texture. Rather than serving as passive recipients of messages, participants sifted through and reconciled messages with varying degrees of resolution. Their accounts reflected their intersectional experiences as Black women representing a variety of physical attributes. We discuss the influence of these physical attributes on their individual racial-gender identity development in light of a second burgeoning Black hair movement in the United States, that embraces Black natural hair. Findings may help families and others build understanding of, and increase sensitivity toward, the intra- and interpersonal implications of colorism for Black women. Findings may also inform institutional policies (e.g., school, work) and practices to reduce barriers and improve consequences for the Black women navigating these settings.

Black Girl Blues: The Roles of Racial Socialization, Gendered Racial Socialization, and Racial Identity on Depressive Symptoms among Black Girls

“…The second dimension, internalized gendered racial oppression, refers to whether and how frequently one's parents speak negatively about Black women (i.e., Black women have bad attitudes; Brown et al 2017). Prior research suggests that hearing oppressive messages from parents increases the likelihood that Black women will internalize negative attitudes about themselves (Davis Tribble et al 2019), which has been associated with symptoms of depression (Jerald et al 2017). This dynamic and the broader influence of gendered racial socialization, however, has not been thoroughly investigated among Black adolescent girls.…”

“…This finding is consistent with Way et al (2013) study, which illustrated that the racial identity attitudes of Black youth were influenced by their awareness of gendered racial stereotypes. In this case, it appears that the more parents deliver oppressive messages about Black women to their daughters, the more likely they are to internalize them which can result in feelings of resentment or shame about their Blackness (Davis Tribble et al 2019;Jerald et al 2017). These findings are consistent with Settles (2006) description of the Intersectionality framework, such that adolescent participants may "often see themselves not as Black people or as women, but in terms of the intersected identity of a 'Black woman'" (p. 599); thereby providing support for a compound negative effect when receiving oppressive messages regarding their identities.…”

Using Card Games to study cultural differences in men’s social talk about prostate cancer

“…The focus groups were conducted with a focus group observer. The role of the observer was to capture non-verbal interactions between the participants, which were used to complement recorded and transcribed records of the focus groups, such as used by BreAnna et al (2019) in their focus group research exploring gendered racial socialisation among black women. The observer notes were particularly important in the methodology discussed in this paper, for noting non-verbal cues that can manifest actions such as inclusion and exclusion.…”

What Happens If They Come for You? An Exploration of Mothers’ Racial Socialization on Discrimination With Black College Women

“…Studies have consistently found that mothers are the primary source of racial socialization messages in Black families (e.g., T. L. Brown et al, 2010; McHale et al, 2006; McNeil et al, 2016); still, we know little about the ways in which Black mothers contextualize and communicate knowledge on racial discrimination and racialized violence to their daughters (Tribble et al, 2019). How do Black mothers prepare and protect their daughters for a world where Breonna Taylor’s killers—Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove—walk freely among us?…”

“…Thomas & King, 2007;Varner & Mandara, 2013), fewer scholars consider the unique messaging that Black mothers offer to their daughters about racial discrimination or how Black mothers' other social identities (e.g., social class and ethnicity) influence their discourse on these topics. Studies have consistently found that mothers are the primary source of racial socialization messages in Black families (e.g., T. L. Brown et al, 2010;McHale et al, 2006;McNeil et al, 2016); still, we know little about the ways in which Black mothers contextualize and communicate knowledge on racial discrimination and racialized violence to their daughters (Tribble et al, 2019). How do Black mothers prepare and protect their daughters for a world where Breonna Taylor's killers-Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove-walk freely among us?…”