9 Ways African American Women Are Oppressed In The U.S

I present the various methods in which women whom identify as African American are oppressed in american society.

I plan to discuss the various ways in which African American women are oppressed in North American culture. As an African American male I share history and culture with the female counterpart that include but are not limited to slavery, fighting for our civil rights, and the birth of hip hop to name a few. African American females are United States citizens like you or me, so when we oppress a category of Americans we are hurting ourselves by hindering progress. Furthermore, statistically speaking African Women are the most well educated group of individuals in the United States.

1. Oppression through stereotypes in adolesence

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African American female adolescence are facing oppression early in life. According to Holcomb-McCoy and Moore-Thomas, "While many African-American adolescent females may not dwell on their racial, gender, or economic status, coping with others' faulty perceptions based on stereotypes is an ongoing and difficult task that will likely impact the adolescents' lives." (Holcomb-McCoy and Moore-Thomas) This article further details examples in which African American females face dual and triple oppression, which include race, class, and gender, and various ways to combat this oppression with African American teens. These African American female youths are being oppressed by stereotypes that affect how individuals of other races, and even men of the same race view them. This article does a good job portraying some stereotypes African American youths face, Ukoha's article. This stereotypes may be detrimental to a black girl's self-esteem. She has dark skin, so she must be ghetto or unintelligent. While on the other side the light skin counterpart or a "red-bone" is seen as desirable or a sex symbol. The overall components that make these females are being overlooked because of misconceptions associated with their skin.

Holcomb-McCoy, Cheryl C., and Cheryl Moore-Thomas. "Empowering African-American adolescent females." Professional School Counseling Oct. 2001: 19+. Academic OneFile. Web. 21 July 2015.

2. Racism towards black females

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Since the emancipation of the slaves and the fight for black civil rights, we have made progress in black- white relations; however there are some people stuck in the ways of the past, and along with stereotypes came racism. According to Pitcher, "There is an old liberalism that persists and that stands in the way of progress…That is the greatest obstacle that I know of to overcoming black-white relations."(Pitcher 84) The racism that has been passed from generation to generation has also been responsible for hindering progress. African American female face the dilemma of racism everyday within social institutions, public areas, or even displayed through the media. In today's society racism is more discrete because it is not as socially acceptable as it was prior to the twenty-first century, so racism is more likely to be discrete through cultural jokes, or malice attitudes to a race on the premise of race and blatantly claim it has something to with individual. In some cases people had the audacity to claim my older sister cannot be successful, and today she has her doctorate in physical therapy, and is happily married. In other words she got her happy ending being an African American female in America facing the brutality of racism.

Pitcher, Alvin. "White Racism, Black Development." Religious Education 65.2 (1970): 84. ProQuest. Web. 30 July 2015.

3. police brutality towards black women

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The African American people as a whole are being targeted; however, African American females are left defenseless against the might of police brutality. I have streamed the internet, and unintentionally found several videos that are recent in which police offers are abusing African American women. I am appalled at the actions these officers are taking. Even if there was some crime committed by these women, the officers are obviously using excessive force. The American people are outraged, and any random person could witness this for themselves just by scrolling down the news feed on Facebook. Watson made plenty of shout-outs; however, the one that struck me the most is, "A 92-year-old great grandmother in Atlanta was shot six times by police officers as they stormed her home without a search warrant." An innocent senior citizen was attacked within the safety of her home, the question is if black females are not even safe within their own homes, where is their safe haven?

Watson, Elwood D. "Violence Against Black Women Is Too Often Overlooked or Dismissed." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, n.d. Web. 31 July 2015

4. oppressed in a marriage

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I also plan to make aware the oppression African American females face within their own marriages. The marriage rate of African American females is on the decline. King brings to my attention that, African American females are becoming ambivalent to the idea of marriage or would rather be single, and without marriage they are able to achieve self-actualization. (King 4-8) The idea of marriage is becoming increasingly a burden to black females, and the concept of marriage for black females is starting to shift. Many African American females not unlike any other race come home to domestic abuse and adultery committed by their spouse. Instead of searching for happiness through a man, and answering to his or her (depending on the gender of their spouse) every whim and need, black females are becoming empowered by pursuing their own aspirations and desires, with the plan to not let marriage hold them down. Gabrielle Karol's article goes into more detail as to why black women aren't getting married. African American women are on the verge of exploring for happiness and self-worth without the necessity of a spouse.

King, A. E. O. "African American Females' Attitudes Toward Marriage: An Exploratory Study." Journal of Black Studies (1999): 416-37. Web. 21 July 2015.

5. one parent households

blackwomenwithotherbrothers.com / Via quickmeme.com

African American females are oppressed by the gender roles that are associated with United States society. King states, "African American women are inextricably linked to rising out-of-wedlock births; single-parent, female-headed families; and child poverty."(King 2) Many African American females are raised in single family households. In the case where one parent of either gender leaves the picture they are usually pushed into a more nurturing role by taking care of their siblings this trait is commonly considered feminine. In many common cases it is often that parents are neglectful of the children thus the older sister is forced to be a mother to her siblings. If the roles were reversed and the individual were a single parent instead of a parent-less child, they may try to play both roles. It is considered common for an African American female to be a single parent. To give you an idea here is some stats and info on single black mothers. They try to father their children and mother their daughters while being the soul provider.

King, A. E. O. "African American Females' Attitudes Toward Marriage: An Exploratory Study." Journal of Black Studies (1999): 416-37. Web. 21 July 2015.

6. The workplace oppression

Via frabz.com

I also plan to address the oppression of African American females in the workforce. African American females not only face oppression for being African American, but also for being female. From the research Alleyne provided, African American employs' received harsher punishments in the work force and experienced racial or cultural jokes directed at them. (Alleyne 2) This article studies experiences faced by African Americans in the workforce. In the study of the thirty African Americans who took part in this study, twenty-five of the participants were African American females. African American females are being discriminated and seen as inferior due to being black and female, which denies them equal opportunity in the workforce. This 7 minute clip shows a great perspective on the oppression of women in the workforce. This includes, but is not limited to: lower pay, less likely to be promoted, and not being taken serious. Maybe if more employers focused on the quality of the employees work, and less in their outward appearance American society would progress farther in the various fields African American females work in.

Alleyne, Aileen. "Black Identity And Workplace Oppression." Counselling & Psychotherapy Research 4.1 (2004): 4-8. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 July 2015.

7. oppressed by the media

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The media harshly represents African American females by portraying negative traits and out dated images. This presents them as the angry black women, or the ghetto black women, or the ratchet black women. Thompson states 'shows that portray black women in a negative light, including reality television series such as "Bad Girls Club."'(Thompson) The media does not hesitate to display the ugly side of an individual persons character, so when people witness one African American female act in this behavior it becomes a stigma that associates with black females as a whole. African American females are also degraded in music videos, and since it is socially accepted, the black females of my generation may be less likely to combat this. This article further reinforces my statement that the media oppresses black women. The media presents black females in this manner to entertain the viewer which inevitably pushes back the struggle that black females face in today's society.

Thompson, Krissah. "Essence: Black Women Still Poorly Depicted in Media." Washington Post.

8. Urban communities

luxury.rehabs.com / Via luxury.rehabs.com

Many African American females are forced into communities where drugs is prevalent, and danger is as common and unexpected as a simple yawn. What acts these females perform throughout the day may lead to severe consequences. These women are becoming addicted to point where they are trading sex for drugs, and often come back home pregnant or with a sexually transmitted disease. It is not these women fault that they were raised in their oppressive communities; they are a product of their society. Sharpe makes the point that, in the 90's cocaine was targeted at inner-city urban communities, and marketed at affordable prices. (Sharpe 3) Furthermore, Sharpe goes on to say, "Literature highlights the prevalence of exchanging sex for crack as a means of habit support among economically deprived and socially isolated demographic groups that make up the urban poor"(Sharpe 4) African American females bodies are being abused as a result of drugs being introduced into their communities.

Sharpe, Tanya T. "Sex-for-Crack-Cocaine Exchange, Poor Black Women, and Pregnancy." Sagepub.com. Sage Journals, n.d. Web. 2 Aug. 2015.

9. discrimination in the health field

Via masterfile.com

African American females are being discriminated in the health field when they try to receive medical treatment. Moffett-Bateau and her peers claim, "I was frequently accused of being a drug seeker, doctors refused to treat me, and pharmacists regularly interrogated me… stories of being profiled when attempting to get pain management, are common in my lupus support group."(Moffett-Bateau) These women are being deprived proper care which may be detrimental to their health, furthermore men of any race are less likely to face the same challenges these African American women face. "This discrimination is compounded for women, as they are less likely than men to receive adequate pain management for chronic diseases like fibromyalgia."(Moffett-Bateau) Renee Bracey Sherman's article goes into more detail about how women of color are denied proper healthcare. We as a species need to weed out discrimination in our health fields because it is resulting in the suffering of innocent people. When these women grow elderly and have children of their own, will they still be suffering, or forced to watch their daughters and grand-daughters suffering? Will they even live long enough to become grand-mothers because they did not get the right treatment, or are we going to come together as a country and say the black women have suffered enough?

Moffett-Bateau, Alexandra. "Chronic Pain, and the Denial of Care for Black Women." RH Reality Check. Echoing Ida, 04 Mar. 2014. Web. 02 Aug. 2015.

The African American female has pushed through the struggles that come with the United States. They face oppression no matter what role in the social hierarchy they play. The oppression they face may discourage some and hinder the progress of others; however, the black female community is still fighting to overcome their oppression.