Diverse Perspectives Sociology and Human Services

SOCIOLOGY AND HUMAN SERVICES

Sociology and Human Services: Diverse Perspectives

Summary of the Article

Following is the article critique of “Black women often ignored by social justice movements” written by Stewart M. Coles (https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2020/07/black-women-social-justice). The article reflects on the racial and gender discrimination that Black women have to face. The feminist movements for this specific ethnic category are not helping Black women but adding to their stereotyping (Coles, 2020). The consequences they have to face afterward further amplify the racial gap, even an ‘intersectional invisibility’ regarding gender. 

The perspective that it reflects is racial and gender discrimination. Racial discrimination because Black women face the disparity based on their skin color and ethnic background as this race has been a victim of slavery for several decades. Gender discrimination is another element discussed in the article as Black women have to experience disadvantageous behaviors from others, even Black men, based on gender. The unequal treatment sometimes leads to sexual harassment in police or bus stations, as cited in the article. 

The diversity issue addressed is based on the discrimination observed in every aspect of Black women’s lives. It could be in the workplace, lifestyle acceptability, stereotyping in regular lives, and insensitive attitudes towards Black females compared to White ones. More cases of domestic and sexual abuse are reported for Black women compared to White women from their partners. The article highlights that the anti-racist movement seems to contribute more towards their marginalization rather than providing support on the contrary. 

Racial discrimination is important since it is an evident violation of human rights, specifically under the U.S. Constitution. However, a thorough eradication of this international violation does not seem to be deployed in the form of a doctrine (Bradley, 2019). Any law perpetrator should be punished, even within schools, so accurate preventive measures are taken for the better mental health of Black people. 

Discussion of Alternative Perspective

An alternate perspective of racial discrimination is the privilege it could provide for Black women. For example, being free of the fear that a Black female would be followed late into the night after getting off the bus and walking home would be a benefit. Eliminating the fear that she might be sexually harassed at night would be a free world that racial support could offer. It could be deemed an affiliation within the same race that could help Black females earn advantages that are not possible among White people. 

Interestingly, Whites have mentioned they suffer from racial discrimination since Blacks have formed their community of support and association that they enjoy for racial benefits (Phillips & Lowery, 2018). Although White privilege is about enjoying more social benefits that non-White people do not, it could be more of the psychological collaboration among the Blacks that Whites do not offer each other in the name of racialized welfare (Cuncic, 2020). 

It should be noted that privilege is not only enjoyed by those dominating races, such as the Whites. It could be an alternate belief for Blacks as they exhibit a maintenance motive for getting associated and being privileged with each other within the same racial group (Phillips & Lowery, 2018). They receive a positive self-identity and self-regard by staying within the same herd. 

Just as Whites have been fulfilling their motives for obtaining aggregate consequences, Blacks could also make use of this herd psychology for benefitting from and giving benefit to the entire community. It is a strategic defense that Black women could also formulate for their gender within the same race against men. However, it would not be the numerical majority of women displaying normative standing for their gender rights; it would be a strategic alliance among themselves that would help them claim their gender benefit in terms of relevant power. It could be conducive to their psychological wellbeing and agglomerative health outcomes due to systematic racism and collective action for change (Stepanikova & Oates, 2017; Ulug & Tropp, 2020). 

As the selected article accentuates that Black women are more likely to face sexual and domestic abuse than White women regarding their partners, Black women are even less likely to report it. They constantly remain threatened by violence and brutality within their race as men have a superior role within the community. It is a long-held belief within our societies that men have a dominant position due to the defined roles and responsibilities of the female gender (Heise et al., 2019). This conventional viewpoint creates a social hierarchy and is interpreted as deeply patriarchal since masculinity appears as a threat to Black women in the same manner. Hence, gender privilege could be perceived as a valued accommodation for Black females within the minority group that is valuable and favorable for them.  

Conclusion

One basic limitation of understanding one perspective of the article would be remaining oblivious to the unique point of view that could serve its entirety. A person’s version of reality might obscure his larger comprehension of the world, and the cross-sectional analysis could serve as a value-added factor for the exposure. One side of a coin is not a generalized representation of the mistakenly holistic picture of the issue. 

My perception of this experience is that it could be problematic that I keep blaming the Whites for racial and gender discrimination against Black women. The view could be incomplete as the self-assurance could not be able to give me a complete reality that exhibits the whole story. There is an evolutionary adaptation of racial privilege that certain races do enjoy as they feel secure within the same type of people and their collaboration. 

The most challenging aspect of this paper was to find how, despite extensive research evidence that Blacks have been victims of racial discrimination for ages, the racial privilege could be an operational factor working its wonders on the other hand. Finding a new perspective on what we have been taught through the years is challenging to construct and a frame that might appear seamless in the beginning.