Persuasive Essay On Black Women

“I am a black feminist… I recognize that my power as well as my primary obsessions come as a result of my blackness as well as my womaness, and therefore my struggles on both of these fronts are inseparable” … As a woman of color, I find that some feminists don’t seem terribly concerned with the issues unique to women of color—the ongoing effects of racism and post-colonialism, the status of women in the Third World, working against the trenchant archetypes black women are forced into (angry black woman, mammy, hottentot, and the like). (Gay 173).

One of the the most controversial topics of discussion in our nation is the Black Lives Matter movement. This movement has sparked up immensely because of the President in office right now, Donald Trump, and many events transpiring around the nation. The country is at separation between the people who think that Black Lives Matter is a real issue and the people who think it is not. Without a doubt, people need to be considered equally, no matter what is said at the end of the day. America was founded on the idea that every man that walks on the soil will have just as equal opportunities as the next, no matter the race. Three essential reasons people are determined to fight for this cause is to end job discrimination, stop police brutality, and gain equal rights within society.

For decades black Americans have been treated as animals, looked at as if they are monsters, and killed like bugs. Actions like Police brutality and racism is what caused Black Lives Matter. The creation of the Black Lives Matter was a response by the black community to give a voice to black Americans affected by the increase of wrongful deaths due to the law enforcements and vigilantes across the country. This has been going on for so long that it seems like we are stuck in the past. For years, even decades black Americans have had to live the struggle of being equal. Even when things are going good and we think we finally have the same rights, something happened to change that. It is time to shed a light on the real purpose of Black Lives Matter and why they are important to today's society.

The systematic, oppressive dehumanization of black womanhood was not a mere consequence of racism. It was a calculated method of social control, manipulation, and misogyny. With capitalism on the forefront of the American society during the Reconstruction years, and a booming manufacturing economy was on the rise, white supremacy capitalism patriarchy needed a group to be at the very bottom of the social hierarchy, a scapegoat. That scapegoat was black women. Manumitted black women showed that when given the same opportunities to live their lives like humans, they surpassed and excelled in all areas. Their success was a direct challenge to the racist ideologies that darker races were inherently inferior. Racist

As stated in Webster's II Dictionary, a woman is defined to be an adult female human. In today's society being an African American woman is a rigid task to live up to. It means to reside to what their ancestors have left behind, which means to be stronger than ever. Rosa Parks was strong, Harriet Tubman was also strong, and Jezebel was even stronger. So what exactly does it mean to be a woman? It means to stand up for what is right, even if that means sacrifice, it means to be strong whether it be physically, emotionally, or mentally. African American women are perceived to be the backbone of the family, meaning that even though the male may support the family financially, that the women have the emotional and mental part in the bag.

Despite the women in this group that struggle and overcome adversity in a word that’s meant to suffocate them, there are a few black women who fail to realize there magic. Some of my sisters fall short due to negative public perceptions with professionalism which causes them to shy away from investing in their future. These few outsiders who didn’t get the unwritten code/norm of what a black woman must represent allows the degradation of our group to continue.

Black Woman Studies is an interdisciplinary field of study, that examines gender as a social and cultural construct, the social status and contributions of women, and the relationships between power and gender. Women are held to this standard of being the one to cook, clean, cater to her spouse and care for the children but it should be more than that. When women go above their expectations, they are accused as being wrong and are sometimes told to not pursue their dreams. Women should be held on the same scale as men in society, this method could prevent gender issues.

Black women’s bodies have always been seen as different. They are deemed as exotic and highly sexual because of the protruding nature and curvaceous shape of their hips, butts, and breast. An example of this exoticism and ridicule can be traced back to the early 1800s. Sarah Baartman, also known as the “Hottentot Venus” became an object of fascination, degradation, and humiliation. Her features were not foreign to Khoisan Women. However, the Europeans who kidnapped her and the people who went to view her body as an exhibit could not believe how big her butt, breast, and hips were. Sarah did not fit into the white standardized image of the body, so her body was seen was unnatural and even un-human. One online magazine writer asserts that, “what

In the same way, the Spelman College administration, faculty, and students that disregard the West End community that surrounds the college only contribute to the erosion of our community and our people. Although this is not a “language” of hate, it is a clear display of indifference which communicates the same thing. Choosing to disregard the homeless, pay little attention to the gentrification that is rampantly kicking our people out of our community, or ignore ways to provide opportunities or exposure to the high school students in our own back yard; are we truly activating black love as political resistance or are we ignoring the needs of the people that are around us every day? We need to realize that there are two vehicles that drive the future of the black community: one of black love and one of black hate. Realize that, although society drives black hate we can be passengers in that car. We can disagree and reject their ideology, all the while internalizing it. Even though we are not driving, our inability to articulate black love as fluently as we articulate black hate, allows black hate to trump black love. Therefore, in our lives, in our homes, in our communities, and on our HBCU campuses the darkness and degradation of blackness thrives by separating us from our own people and making it seem normal to demean ourselves, our race, and our people. Is this behavior not subtly mimicking those of the oppressor? Although some our actions contradict our feelings toward

Imagine not being in total control of your own life, having someone else tell you what you can and cannot do. Being a prisoner and constantly being policed everyday and every second in a world that does not want to set you free and allow you to advance into your full potential. Black women have to live in world that does not see them or treat them as equals. They have to work ten times harder than anyone else, and then they only break the surface. It

Throughout history women have also been treated less than men. Women are seen as beings that should be seen but not heard. Women should stand by her spouse and agree with them. Women are taught to be a doubtful follower and never to lead. But, black women have always been treated less than this for lifetimes. At one point, black women were only seen as property and not even seen as people. Black women have to endure with being at the bottom of the totem pole. They are penalties for being a woman and penalties for being black. The stories that we have read the following weeks highlight black women struggles in different eras of time.

Three years after BLM launched a nationwide uprising against police violence, what's next for the movement? In this special section, a leading African American historian explores how the group is forging a powerful new form of civil rights activism. Plus: How police in 1970s Detroit unleashed an undercover execution squad, and the modern-day rise of "warrior policing."

As African-American women address social issues that are important to their life experiences, such as class and race, instead to acknowledge “common oppression” of gender inequality, they are often criticized by “white bourgeois feminists” (hooks, 2000). Their ability to gain any form of equality within society is tarnished by such groups as they develop a “fear of encountering racism” from simply joining this movement (hooks, 2000). As white men, black men, and white women oppress them, their issues are often ignored due to reoccurring stereotypes and myths that claim black women are strong, independent, and “superhuman” (hooks, 2000). It becomes extremely difficult to seek liberation and equity within a “racist, sexist, and classist” society, as their gender and race causes them to be at the “bottom of the occupational ladder” and “social status” (hooks, 2000, pg. 16). As black women are perceived to demonstrate strength and dynamic qualities as white women perpetrate the image of being

Thousands of Africans put their lives at risk as they go on a boat journey in search of what they think would be a better and easier living. It is a journey that begins with hope, but often ends in despair. “We all travel to get to plant a new life. We Africans we believe that if you go to Europe your life is good.” In the film Black Girl directed by Ousmane Sembene discussed a common situation that happens to most Africans who take the risk on moving to Europe. This film explores the different complex dynamics of a post -colonial period through the eyes of a Senegalese servant named Diouana. She is painfully reminded of her racial identity. It starts with a ship arriving in a harbor in France. She has heard great things about moving to Europe also known as the colonial motherland. The film shows her having flashbacks that take place in Dakar before her upcoming trip. She talks about shopping and and new fashionable clothing she will buy. She dreamed of her family members dying of envy when they think of her living in France.

In this time of age, the struggle for equal rights is still a continuing battle that everyone in this modern generation are fighting to gain. Racism is something we have all witnessed throughout the years. There are many definitions of race because it all depends on when, where, and how the word is being portrayed. Back in history, in 1865, slaves were abolished and racism was finally over and the movement of civil rights ended segregation. Unfortunately, although racism was considered “over”, colored people are still being treated unequally. The United States constitution created laws to protect all color in America, but that law has been abused by the same people that were supposed to protect it. Racism has violated the human rights in the constitution article 19th amendment, the amendment to the United States Constitution which was designed to guarantee equal rights for all citizens regardless of sex as well as color and seeks to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment and other matters. The beauty of the Constitution is that it makes no set law other than faith in the wisdom of ordinary people to govern themselves. Faith in the wisdom of the people is exactly what makes the Constitution incomplete and crude. Amendments are what many would call addendums to contract things that are added as time goes on.