The Jezebel Sticker

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Abstract

ssment done to them either by their dressing or their own “carelessness”. Black women are sexually objectified. Consequently, they are more affected by the bias in the view of their sexual assault.</p><p id="550a">Growing up in Nigeria, the Jezebel stereotype was something I learned, not from books or advice, but from my everyday life. As early as high school, I was conscious of my body and the changes it underwent. A few months ago in my country, a group of women were raped by policemen who arrested them on the grounds of “prostitution”. A few days later, a statement was issued to women, advising them on the importance of staying indoors after evening hours and dressing appropriately to avoid being mistaken for a prostitute. There was nothing said about the men who took these women and abused them.</p><p id="0ab9">The “Jezebel” stereotype is universal. Criminals also use the discrimination of black women to their advantage. In the United States, Robert Kelly, a black R&B singer, was accused multiple times of sexually abusing and trafficking black girls. While his latest crimes were brought to the limelight by the documentary “Surviving R. Kelly”, he had been investigated numerous times for making child pornography and sexual abuse. Many comments and views on the issue reflect the misogynoir in the present society.</p><p id="896d">Various users of social media networks deemed these girls as manipulative and too “seductive”. Others accused these women of looking for a means to extort money from him. Indirectly, they were assumed to have put themselves in such a situation even though most of these black victims were minors-under the age of eighteen. Also, crimes which have black women as their main targets are investigated less or given less attention than when the victims are white or are men.</p><p id="b04a">In another example, Lonnie David Franklin Jr, also known as the Grim Sleeper, is one of many killers that have utilized the negative stereotypes to his benefit. He targeted women who were drug addicts or prostitutes and often dumped their naked bodies alongside roads or in the trash. Many of the women were initially listed as Jane Does. The deaths drew little, if any, media attention.</p><p id="344b">Due to the Jezebel stereotype, the consequences of sexualization, including sexual harassment, rape and even death, are much more for black women than any other group. The article reads, “Black survivors of rape are not only considered more sexually promiscuous than White women (Anderson et al), they are also less likely to have the experience defined as rape, a

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re held more responsible, and others are less likely to believe the incident should be reported to authorities, compared to white survivors of rape.</p><p id="7b50">A recent study found that individuals feel less willing and less obliged to intervene in a situation involving a black woman at risk of sexual assault, compared to a situation in which her race is unspecified.” These studies show how the community, and society as a whole, consistently fail black women.</p><p id="b812">Regardless of the technological advancements and increase in knowledge, the Jezebel stereotype is still pervasive in the minds of most human beings. While significant progress has been made in both racism and sexism, there is still a huge gap between black women and the rest of the society.</p><h1 id="fdd0">Works Cited</h1><p id="281c"><i>Gerber, Marissa, Queally, James. “The ‘Grim Sleeper’ is sentenced to death for string of murders.” The Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2016, www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-grim-sleeper-sentencing-20160810-snap-story.html. Accessed 30 October 2019.</i></p><p id="e2d0"><i>Anderson, Joel R. et al. “Revisiting the Jezebel Stereotype: The Impact of Target Race on Sexual Objectification.” Psychology of Women Quarterly, vol. 42, no. 4, 2018, pp. 461–476, Sage, doi: 10.1177/0361684318791543. Accessed 1 November 2019.</i></p><p id="37e1"><i>Reuters. “Nigerian police accused of abusing prostitution suspects.” New York Post, 6 May 2019, <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/05/06/nigerian-police-accused-of-abusing-prostitution-suspects/">https://nypost.com/2019/05/06/nigerian-police-accused-of-abusing-prostitution-suspects/</a>. Accessed 2 November, 2019.</i></p><p id="be8f"><i>Editorial Board. “On R. Kelly and how we fail black girls.” The Chronicle, 14 January 2019, <a href="https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2019/01/surviving-r-kelly-and-how-we-fail-black-girls">https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2019/01/surviving-r-kelly-and-how-we-fail-black-girls</a>. Accessed 4 November, 2019.</i></p><div id="dfa2" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/an-injustice"> <div> <div> <h2>An Injustice!</h2> <div><h3>A new intersectional publication. Geared towards voices, values, and identities.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*dvs4qJgQaFLgqlGOuphNbA.png)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

A black woman’s life of default sin

The term “misogynoir” was coined by Moya Bailey to demonstrate the double discrimination faced by black women. The world has always been grouped according to minority and majority. The majority and more powerful groups being the Caucasian race, and the male gender. The minority and less powerful group being the black race and the female gender. Black women suffer double discrimination as they are members of both minority groups. Black women have long been surrounded by negative stereotypes, a common one being the “Jezebel”.

The “Jezebel” black woman is a lustful, hypersexual woman who attracts sexual attention whether she wants to or not. This stereotype is portrayed in movies, TV shows and music videos where black girls are paraded about in scantily clad material. This hypersexual image of black women is further encouraged by the obsession with black women’s “booty” and breasts in song lyrics and novels.

Societal occurrences have shown that this sexualization is extended to black female children also. Black girls, who are said to be “fast” or “grown”, are perceived to be less innocent than their male or white counterparts. This plays out in the way sexual abuse of black girls and women is perceived.

History has shown the dehumanization and discrimination of black people. Although black people are no longer declared as subhumans by the American constitution, certain biases are shown against the black community, especially black women- the minority of the minority. “Revisiting the Jezebel Stereotype: The Impact of Target Race on Sexual Objectification” studies the sexual objectification of black women in the United States. The article assesses the two main types of dehumanization: mechanicalistic and animalistic.

Mechanistic discrimination is manifested by likening black people to objects- sexual objectification falls under this category of discrimination. This type of discrimination is common with women in general. Catcalls, body language, and media depictions of women’s bodies encourage the hypersexualization of women’s bodies (Anderson et al, 462). Self objectification comes from internalizing mechanicalistic discrimination, consequent low self esteem, and negative mental health.

Sexualized persons are deemed to be less worthy of sympathy, more deserving of the crime of rape. These objectified people are perceived to be more responsible of the sexual assault and harassment done to them either by their dressing or their own “carelessness”. Black women are sexually objectified. Consequently, they are more affected by the bias in the view of their sexual assault.

Growing up in Nigeria, the Jezebel stereotype was something I learned, not from books or advice, but from my everyday life. As early as high school, I was conscious of my body and the changes it underwent. A few months ago in my country, a group of women were raped by policemen who arrested them on the grounds of “prostitution”. A few days later, a statement was issued to women, advising them on the importance of staying indoors after evening hours and dressing appropriately to avoid being mistaken for a prostitute. There was nothing said about the men who took these women and abused them.

The “Jezebel” stereotype is universal. Criminals also use the discrimination of black women to their advantage. In the United States, Robert Kelly, a black R&B singer, was accused multiple times of sexually abusing and trafficking black girls. While his latest crimes were brought to the limelight by the documentary “Surviving R. Kelly”, he had been investigated numerous times for making child pornography and sexual abuse. Many comments and views on the issue reflect the misogynoir in the present society.

Various users of social media networks deemed these girls as manipulative and too “seductive”. Others accused these women of looking for a means to extort money from him. Indirectly, they were assumed to have put themselves in such a situation even though most of these black victims were minors-under the age of eighteen. Also, crimes which have black women as their main targets are investigated less or given less attention than when the victims are white or are men.

In another example, Lonnie David Franklin Jr, also known as the Grim Sleeper, is one of many killers that have utilized the negative stereotypes to his benefit. He targeted women who were drug addicts or prostitutes and often dumped their naked bodies alongside roads or in the trash. Many of the women were initially listed as Jane Does. The deaths drew little, if any, media attention.

Due to the Jezebel stereotype, the consequences of sexualization, including sexual harassment, rape and even death, are much more for black women than any other group. The article reads, “Black survivors of rape are not only considered more sexually promiscuous than White women (Anderson et al), they are also less likely to have the experience defined as rape, are held more responsible, and others are less likely to believe the incident should be reported to authorities, compared to white survivors of rape.

A recent study found that individuals feel less willing and less obliged to intervene in a situation involving a black woman at risk of sexual assault, compared to a situation in which her race is unspecified.” These studies show how the community, and society as a whole, consistently fail black women.

Regardless of the technological advancements and increase in knowledge, the Jezebel stereotype is still pervasive in the minds of most human beings. While significant progress has been made in both racism and sexism, there is still a huge gap between black women and the rest of the society.

Works Cited

Gerber, Marissa, Queally, James. “The ‘Grim Sleeper’ is sentenced to death for string of murders.” The Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2016, www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-grim-sleeper-sentencing-20160810-snap-story.html. Accessed 30 October 2019.

Anderson, Joel R. et al. “Revisiting the Jezebel Stereotype: The Impact of Target Race on Sexual Objectification.” Psychology of Women Quarterly, vol. 42, no. 4, 2018, pp. 461–476, Sage, doi: 10.1177/0361684318791543. Accessed 1 November 2019.