Rape Toward Women Of Color Summary

Imagine being one of the black female victims in the plantation south, and not having the voice to revolt against immorality experienced frequently because of White southerner males. The unthinkable feeling of white males having full access to a female’s body without her consent, and using her for their personal amusement reveals that discrimination and inhumanity existed in the era before slavery was abolished. For this reason, Deborah Gray White wrote the book known as Ar’n’t I a Woman? to highlight the brutal actions of these white southerner males that made miserable circumstances for black slave population to survive. The way she brought forth the reality and the vicious mentality of the White southerner males manifest that the status

In a time period when women were considered inferior, as were blacks, it was unimaginable the horrors a black woman in the south had to endure during this period. African women were slaves and subject to the many horrors that come along with being in bondage, but because they were also women, they were subject to the cruelties of men who look down on women as inferior simply because of their sex. The sexual exploitation of these females often lead to the women fathering children of their white masters. Black women were also prohibited from defending themselves against any type of abuse, including sexual, at the hands of white men. If a slave attempted to defend herself she was often subjected to further beatings from the master. The black female was forced into sexual relationships for the slave master’s pleasure and profit. By doing this it was the slave owner ways of helping his slave population grow.

White explores the master’s sexual exploitation of their female slaves, and proves this method of oppression to be the defining factor of what sets the female slaves apart from their male counterparts. Citing former slaves White writes, “Christopher Nichols, an escaped slave living in Canada, remembered how his master laid a woman on a bench, threw her clothes over her head, and whipped her. The whipping of a thirteen-year-old Georgia slave girl also had sexual overtones. The girl was put on all fours ‘sometimes her head down, and sometimes up’ and beaten until froth ran from her mouth (33).” The girl’s forced bodily position as well as her total helplessness to stop her master’s torture blatantly reveals the forced sexual trauma many African females endured.

Cleveland, Ohio is a diverse city, and to prove that they are as diverse as they say, Cleveland decided to host the Gay Games and the Republican National Convention (RNC). The question to be asked is: why did Cleveland bid for both the Gay Games and the RNC? Perhaps Cleveland wanted to prove to the world that the community is not horrible like people believe. Although Cleveland has had some heinous crimes, the city as a whole wants to prove that they are not all awful people. Cleveland has more to offer than what the media has portrayed. Cleveland is not filled with gangs and people in poverty. Obviously gangs and poverty is present in Cleveland, but most major cities have people in poverty and gangs; therefore, Cleveland is no different. The predicament is most cities do not gain as much media attention as Cleveland. Within the last two years alone, Cleveland has made major headlines (in a negative perspective), but now Cleveland wants to make headlines in a more positive manner. Hosting the Gay Games and the RNC, Cleveland is moving in the right direction.

African American women faced tough challenged and they overcame to become equal with men in today's society. Society cannot forget that enslaved women never stopped trying to become equal and fight the racial judgments and their sexual abuse that left them traumatized. The exact number of women who were raped and carried the child of a man who was not her husband will never be known but narratives and testimonies have led us to believe that hundreds had been raped. African American women who spoke out led us to discover a hidden part of the history of slavery

White explores the master’s sexual exploitation of their female slaves, and proves this method of oppression to be the defining factor of what sets the female slaves apart from their male counterparts. Citing former slaves White writes, “Christopher Nichols, an escaped slave living in Canada, remembered how his master laid a woman on a bench, threw her clothes over her head, and whipped her. The whipping of a thirteen-year-old Georgia slave girl also had sexual overtones. The girl was put on all fours ‘sometimes her head down, and sometimes up’ and beaten until froth ran from her mouth (33).” The girl’s forced bodily position as well as her total helplessness to stop her master’s torture blatantly reveals the forced sexual trauma many African females endured.

As the issue of race and rape often entangled with one another, it was often observed that the issue of skin color greatly determined the punishment for crimes committed. White men on one spectrum were more than likely to not be convicted for the rape of an African American woman and were rarely convicted for raping white women. On the other hand, African American men were recommended for the death penalty if found guilty of raping a white woman; although most (if not all) were hung if even suspected of the act. The negative connotation of African Americans, more specifically African American women possessed by the Caucasian race can even be traced back into literature of the early 1900’s. An article published by a white southern woman in a periodical titled “The Independent” on March 17th, 1904 stated, “Degeneracy is apt to show most in the weaker individuals of any race; so Negro women evidence more nearly the popular idea of total depravity than men do. They are so nearly lacking in virtue that the color of a Negro woman’s skin is generally taken (and is quite correctly) as a guarantee of her immortality…I sometimes read of a virtuous Negro woman, hear of them, but the idea is absolutely inconceivable to me.”, (Cook,

As the author points out, “African American women were wanton, licentious, promiscuous. White men (who had obviously engaged in sexual acts with African American women over the decades, given the range of skin colors among African Americans) could not be accused of raping ‘bad’ women. ‘Bad,’ amoral women did not need or deserve protection” (30). The history became the past that kept hunting the black women. As the victims, instead of receiving a fair treatment from the community, they were blamed just because of the history that they did not have the intention for that to

This paper presents an integrative approach to a women surviving abuse over the course of 15 years. Working with racially victimized women who have experienced violence in their relationships. Domestic violence can be as simple as emotional abuse with words to something as severe as murder to murder suicide. For women who experience abuse in childhood or adulthood, the assumptions are that surviving includes seeking help. This article presents an exploratory study on the prevalence of victimization in the lives of Caucasian, African American, and Latina women, if and to whom they disclosed their victimization, and where they turned for services and support. The results indicate Caucasian women turn more to traditional, therapeutic sources compared with African American women, who tend to use tangible supports. For the purpose of this research, I interviewed two women of color who were both the victim in their younger years and how they survival and the affected it had on their lives. However, when controlling for a number of key variables, the ethnic differences disappear. The fact is, domestic violence occurs across all socioeconomic statuses, classes, races, and cultures. Implications for further research and practice conclude this article.

Slave women were forced to comply with the sexual orders given, if they resisted, consequences were in forms of physical beatings. Violence was a willful effort in keeping African women in a state of hopelessness, depriving them of any feelings of control. The women had no choice but to obey, and after generations there were numerous “mulatto” offspring. At times, women slaves hoped that having sexual activity would increase the chances of having their children be liberated by the slave holder, but at the end, many mulatto kids were forced into slavery. The mulatto child symbolizes domination and vulnerability due to the fact that the white man and the black woman both held a meaning through their color of skin. The white man reflects domination for the reason that he has violently beaten slaves’ hence building fear in them, resulting in slaves to perform hard labor for they feared for their lives. As the color white symbolize pureness, slaveholder did not view objectification as a bad thing, on the contrary, they thought they were doing a good. White men mainly viewed African women as sexual objects that can be used whenever they felt like it, resulting in black women feeling meaningless for they felt ‘dirty’ in the eyes of

It is well known that black slaves in America faced many trials and tribulations, however, there are cruelties which women faced with the institution of slavery which were exclusive to their gender. For slave women, sexual harassment, and rape

In her book, Sexuality & the Black Church: A Womanist Perspective, Kelly Brown Douglass makes a powerful supposition when she said, “The violation of Black sexuality by White culture is about nothing less than preserving White power in an interlocking system of racist, classist, sexist, and heterosexual oppression“(Douglass, p. 12). In Dr. Renita Weems, class Women, Faith and Leadership class, she described this experience as an act that is applied to mistreat an individual or group based on race, class and gender, referenced as Intersectionality (Weems, 2014). This is not a unique concept for since 1619, black men and women have been subjected to ignorant and superficial sexual characterizations.

During 1931 through 1937, trial happened for innocent young black men. In 1931 the 9 young black men were falsely accused for the rape of two white women. On March 25, 1931 the 9 young black men illegal aboard the train to get a job. After aboard the argument and fighting occurred with white men when black men were looking for the job. When white men got kicked out of train, they reported to white security guard then 9 black men were arrested.

Richard felt that black people were a victim of circumstance that erupted into often outrageous

Most people think that rape is about sex but it is not. If rape was about getting sex the person would just go and have sex with someone who wants to give it to them. Paying for sex is better than going out and raping someone. Rape is also called sexual assault. Rape is about having power and control over someone. Rape is defined as one person forcing another person, without his or her consent and using violence or threatening violence, to have intercourse or other forms of sexual activity. Usually when people hear about rape they think of a man raping a woman, but rape can happen to anyone. It is one of the worst things that can happen to someone. Some people think that rape is