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

Abstract

Few scholars have considered the racial socialization that Black mothers offer to their daughters on racial discrimination and violence or how mothers’ other social identities (social class and ethnicity) may influence their discourse on these topics. To address this gap, we used consensual qualitative research methods to explore the racial socialization that 47 Black college women recalled from their mothers on racial discrimination and violence during their formative years. The following themes emerged: (a) the nature of Black mothers’ socialization on racial discrimination (consistent messaging, messaging focused on sons, more socialization in response to police shootings, anti-Black messaging from immigrant mothers, and absence of messages) and (b) the ways that mothers socialized their daughters to respond to racial discrimination (self-advocacy, get home safe, code switching, and take the high road). Participants described how their mothers’ socialization messages reflected their personal race-related beliefs and experiences including perceptions of the United States racial climate. Our findings highlight the need for socialization in Black family contexts that addresses the unique and intersectional experiences of Black girls. In particular, scholars and practitioners must draw attention to how racism and sexism contribute to the state-sanctioned violence that Black women and girls experience.

Investigating Longitudinal Associations Between Racial Microaggressions, Coping, Racial/Ethnic Identity, and Mental Health in Black Girls and Women

“…Black women represent an especially important component of Black girls’ family context (Collins, 2005; McLoyd, Hill, & Dodge, 2005) and can act as a developmental reference, as they may have already experienced what Black girls are encountering. Previous research suggests that members within the Black familial context, specifically mothers, play a critical role in transmitting protective factors to help girls navigate their developmental process throughout the life course (Leath, Butler‐Barnes, Ross, & Lee‐Nelson, 2020; McHale et al., 2006). Black mothers may aid in helping Black girls reject racism‐related experiences by instilling ethnic/racial pride and providing them with counter messaging and Black female role models (Crooks, King, & Tluczek, 2020; Townsend, 2008).…”

Smart Homes and Families to Enable Sustainable Societies: A Data-Driven Approach for Multi-Perspective Parameter Discovery using BERT Modelling

“…It includes the following keywords: black, racial, race, african, racism, family, health, hispanic, social, black woman, american, woman, slavery, segregation, child, black, white, african american, racial ethnic, black family, and research. The parameter discloses several important dimensions in academic literature including the person's identity and how it can be affected by the families and places they visit [166] [167], how freedom, justice, and equality are constrained by social and political conditions [168], family, friends, or members of the same racial group reporting racial discrimination incidents [169], racialized discrimination against multiracial families [170], racial socialization and how parents transmit race-related messages about race and racism to their children through racial socialization [171], the online genetic-genealogical networks and genetic relative match role in the reconstruction of historical and genetic connections between white and black families which could break racial barriers and help uncover the family history knowledge of slavery [172], and the school experience impact on blacks and their families [173].…”

“They Just Keep Coming”: A Study of How Anti-Black Racial Violence Informs Racial Grief and Resistance Among Black Mothers

“…Their findings expand upon a few other studies indicating that vicarious racial violence can contribute to significant forms of psychological distress among Black mothers (Joe et al, 2019;, particularly as mothers think about what to communicate to their children about the disparate racial norms in a society that devalues Black people McNeil Smith et al, 2016). Evidence suggests that the psychological distress that some Black mothers experience in response to vicarious racial violence, derives in part, from the uncertainty of whether they or their loved ones will have the same type of racialized encounter in the future (Joe et al, 2019;Leath et al, 2021;Mehra et al, 2022). Thus, as more scholars consider how vicarious experiences of racism influence Black family processes, it is necessary to examine the interplay between Black mothers' exposure to vicarious racial stressors and their racially specific emotional regulation and coping skills .…”

“…As some of the earliest racial socialization agents for their children, Black mothers have a foundational influence on how Black youth understand, process, and navigate racial bias and discrimination (Jones & Neblett, 2017;Neblett et al, 2008;Varner & Mandara, 2013;Varner et al, 2020), and scholars have documented Black mothers' critical role in preparing youth to cope with racial discrimination in ways that support a strong sense of self (Brown et al, 2010;McHale et al, 2006) and protect their psychological wellbeing (McNeil Smith et al, 2016;Saleem et al, 2020;Smith-Bynum et al, 2016). Yet, less of this work considers the influence of vicarious racial trauma (Leath et al, 2021;Threlfall, 2018), or the ways that Black mothers may use racial grief as a resource for sociopolitical change (Joe et al, 2019). Drawing on in-depth interview data from the summer of 2020, we consider the possibilities of Black maternal politics (Lawson, 2018) by exploring how Black mothers' exposure to vicarious racial violence informs their narrations of racial stress, coping, grief, and resistance.…”