For decades, scholars have attempted to analyze issues of race and racism in America. W.E.B. Du Bois contributed greatly to the theoretical body of work related to the intersection of race and class. In the early nineteen hundreds he professed: “The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line. Although the social environment is ever evolving, in today’s twenty-first century society, this statement still rings true. The passing of time has made it possible for a solid theoretical establishment of race and class as one of the primary, lingering social issues in America. However, what scholars have not been able to establish is a harmonious plan of action to eliminate this problem, and mitigate the impact of its existence
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The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman”. Why is this? The status of black women in America is largely due to her image (West, 2012). With the perpetuation of institutionalized negative images of the “Mammy, Jezebel, Sapphire, and their homegirls”, and the contemporary “hoochies, freaks, hoodrats, and chickenheads” black women are consciously and subconsciously viewed as the angry, combative, hostile, caregiving, domestic servant, welfare queen who is sexually irresponsible, promiscuous, a freak, gangsta girl, who is a subordinate, nurturing, self-sacrificing, strong, workhorse who sacrifices her own health out of necessity, and societal pressures (West, 2012). These images are “rooted in history, shaped by structural inequalities such as race, gender, and class oppression, and are further reinforced by scientific, popular, and social science literature, as well as the media, politics, and the law (West, 2012). African American women are commonly represented as non-feminine, independent, and overpowering, and are often portrayed as unnaturally powerful with regard to relationships, sex, finances, and physical prowess (Taft, Bryant-Davis, Woodward, Tillman, & Torres, 2009). According to Taft et al. (2009) “such representations have incorrectly led some social scientists to hold …show more content…
job training programs that discourage higher education and redirect black women to low-paying jobs) based on the widespread believe of these stereotypes, “black women’s formal education opportunities become circumscribed, effectively limiting their occupational options” (West, 2012). For W.E.B. Du Bois, education was a saving grace of sorts for the black race. Instead of the widely accepted belief of his time that blacks were inferior, Du Bois believed that blacks we “culturally challenged by historical contingencies” (Morris, 2015). While some of the black leaders of his time were promoting respectability politics and advancement by way of submission and trade school education, Du Bois propagated advancement through education and civic engagement (Morris, 2015). If we believe, like Du Bois, that education is imperative to the empowerment and uplifting of the black race, and stereotypes and objectification limit the educational opportunities of the black women today, how does she have a chance to lift herself up from the proverbial muck of her
The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman”. Why is this? The status of black women in America is largely due to her image (West, 2012). With the perpetuation of institutionalized negative images of the “Mammy, Jezebel, Sapphire, and their homegirls”, and the contemporary “hoochies, freaks, hoodrats, and chickenheads” black women are consciously and subconsciously viewed as the angry, combative, hostile, caregiving, domestic servant, welfare queen who is sexually irresponsible, promiscuous, a freak, gangsta girl, who is a subordinate, nurturing, self-sacrificing, strong, workhorse who sacrifices her own health out of necessity, and societal pressures (West, 2012). These images are “rooted in history, shaped by structural inequalities such as race, gender, and class oppression, and are further reinforced by scientific, popular, and social science literature, as well as the media, politics, and the law (West, 2012). African American women are commonly represented as non-feminine, independent, and overpowering, and are often portrayed as unnaturally powerful with regard to relationships, sex, finances, and physical prowess (Taft, Bryant-Davis, Woodward, Tillman, & Torres, 2009). According to Taft et al. (2009) “such representations have incorrectly led some social scientists to hold …show more content…
job training programs that discourage higher education and redirect black women to low-paying jobs) based on the widespread believe of these stereotypes, “black women’s formal education opportunities become circumscribed, effectively limiting their occupational options” (West, 2012). For W.E.B. Du Bois, education was a saving grace of sorts for the black race. Instead of the widely accepted belief of his time that blacks were inferior, Du Bois believed that blacks we “culturally challenged by historical contingencies” (Morris, 2015). While some of the black leaders of his time were promoting respectability politics and advancement by way of submission and trade school education, Du Bois propagated advancement through education and civic engagement (Morris, 2015). If we believe, like Du Bois, that education is imperative to the empowerment and uplifting of the black race, and stereotypes and objectification limit the educational opportunities of the black women today, how does she have a chance to lift herself up from the proverbial muck of her