EVERYDAY COLORISM IN THE LIVES OF YOUNG BLACK WOMEN

205 Pages·2008·0.67 MB·English

EVERYDAY COLORISM IN THE LIVES OF YOUNG BLACK WOMEN:
REVISITING THE CONTINUING SIGNIFICANCE OF
AN OLD PHENOMENON IN A NEW GENERATION

By

JEFFRIANNE WILDER

A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

2008
1
© 2008 JeffriAnne Wilder

2
To my mother, Gloria Wilder; my grandmother, Mary Lou Wilson; and the strong line of black
women in my family who give life to this work

3
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
In the words of English novelist Jane Howard, “Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a
tribe, call it a family: Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.” Had it not been for
my clans, networks, and my families, completing this dissertation would have never been
possible.
I would first like to start with my Sociology family. I thank my Committee Chair, Dr.
Milagros Peña for always challenging me and providing me with guidance, encouragement, and
undying support. She was the first professor in the department to give me a chance, and has
always provided me with countless opportunities for my professional development. I am forever
grateful to Dr. Constance Shehan for her friendship and advice. I truly appreciate the long talks
whenever I needed them. I am also indebted to Dr. Terry Mills. Although I never took a course
from him, I consider Dr. Mills to be a central part of my development as a scholar; I thank him
for being a wonderful mentor from far afar. Also, I wish to acknowledge and thank Dr. Charles
Gattone for providing not only sound words of encouragement, but invaluable feedback on my
work. Lastly, I wish to thank Dr. Stephanie Y. Evans for always asking the tough questions,
always being there and for giving me a strong black woman scholar to look up to. Being her first
doctoral student is an honor, and I look forward to our future friendship and work together as
colleagues. I truly appreciate everyone on my doctoral committee for giving me confidence and
the encouragement to work on a project that I am so very passionate about.
I would also like to thank the other half of my Sociology family. I send special thanks you
to Billy Jeffries, who was my first friend here at the University of Florida, and who has been a
brother ever since. I thank him for the great laughs, great talks, and great food! I also want to
thank Georgia Bianchi, Maura Ryan, Amanda Moras, and Dana Berkowitz. These wonderful
women have served as my anchors, soundboards, and cheerleaders alike. I am also very
4
appreciative for the great laughs, great talks, and great food! I would like to give a special
thanks to Namita Manohar, a dear friend who is always available to laugh, talk, or to say a
prayer. Lastly, I would like to thank my research partner and best friend in the department,
Colleen Cain. She has been such an amazing friend, singing partner, and shoulder to cry on.
Your support and friendship means more to me than you will ever know.
It is also important for me to express special gratitude to Kanitra Perry, Donna Balkcom,
Melisa Smith, and Nadine Gillis for all of their support and encouragement throughout my time
as a graduate student here at the University of Florida.
I would also like to thank my network of support in the Office of Graduate Minority
Graduate Programs: Dr. Laurence Alexander, Earl Wade, Sarah Traylor, Janet Broiles, and
Verlisa Brascom. Thank you so much for providing me an outlet for professional development,
personal growth, and for giving me countless laughs (and free food) on many, many days.
It is also important for me to acknowledge and thank Dr. Mirka Koro-Ljungberg and Dr.
Regina Bussing for all of their help and support in my professional development. My time spent
as a research assistant was quite valuable, and I thank them for the amazing experience and
opportunity.
I also need to thank my network of sisterfriends. I thank Alicia Emanuel Wade you for
hanging in there and being supportive of me since (before) Day One. The spiritual connection we
share is unlike any other. I would also like to thank my very dear friend Selena Brown; although
we have been out of touch, our sisterhood still inspires me. I want to also express my deepest
gratitude to Gail Dale, Stephanie Galloway, Sheila Lamarre, Melanie Ling, Telisha Martin,
Rachel Robinson, Kutura Watson, and Desiree Wright. These lovely black women have been
my source of strength and support and I treasure your sisterhood and love.
5
I am deeply indebted to my family. Had it not been for their love, encouragement, and
support, this dissertation would have never been completed. First and foremost, to my wonderful
mother, Gloria Woullard Wilder, I say thank you for being my rock and very best friend. I am
honored to have received my strength and wisdom from you. To both of my dads, Jeff Wilder
and Joe Wilder, thank you for all your quiet support and love. I also wish to thank all of my
siblings, but especially my sister, Michelle, and younger brother Joseph for being very
supportive and encouraging. I additionally wish to thank my aunt, Dr. Linda Wilson-Jones and
my cousin, Dr. Joyce Ladner for providing me the examples of exemplary women in academia.
Lastly, I wish to thank my grandmother, Mary Lou Wilson, the ultimate example of a black
woman and a scholar.
This research project would be impossible without the young women who participated in
the focus groups. I thank each and every one of you for you strength and courage for speaking
out about an issue that touches us all. Keep fighting, and continue to challenge society!
I send a special thanks to my research assistant, Joanna Braganza. Your hard work has
truly been a blessing! I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.
I give my final thanks to my almighty God, who has given me peace, grace, deliverance,
and many blessings beyond my understanding.
6
TABLE OF CONTENTS
page
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...............................................................................................................4 
LIST OF TABLES.........................................................................................................................10 
LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................................11 
ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................................12
CHAPTER
1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................14 
A Magnified Moment .............................................................................................................15 
The History of Colorism in Black America............................................................................19 
A Review of the Literature .....................................................................................................21 
Colorism Pre-Civil Rights Era.........................................................................................22 
Revisiting Colorism during Black Power and the Civil Rights-Era................................24 
Contemporary Studies of Colorism.................................................................................25 
st
Re-examining Colorism in the 21 Century ...........................................................................29 
Overview of Dissertation........................................................................................................32 
2 METHODOLOGY .................................................................................................................35 
Feminist Methodology............................................................................................................35 
Black Feminist Epistemology.................................................................................................39 
Focus Groups ..........................................................................................................................41 
The Research Project ..............................................................................................................46 
Sample ....................................................................................................................................48 
Recruitment.............................................................................................................................51 
Data Analysis: Grounded Theory and Discourse Analysis ....................................................52 
Ethics and Reflexivity.............................................................................................................54 
3 UNDERSTANDING EVERYDAY COLORISM: THEORETICAL
CONSIDERATIONS..............................................................................................................65 
Black Feminist Theory ...........................................................................................................65 
Intersectionality ...............................................................................................................66 
Standpoint and Visibility.................................................................................................68 
Voice and Empowerment ................................................................................................69 
Bridging Micro and Macro-Level Process in Social Reality..................................................70 
Pierre Bourdieu................................................................................................................71 
Patricia Hill Collins .........................................................................................................73 
Philomena Essed..............................................................................................................74 
Understanding “Everyday Colorism” .....................................................................................76 
7
4 REVISITING COLOR NAMES AND COLOR NOTIONS..................................................83 
Language: “Color Names”......................................................................................................84 
Internal Scripts: “Color Notions” ...........................................................................................89 
“Red Girls Get More Attention”......................................................................................90 
“Black Girls Are Ghetto” ................................................................................................94 
“I am Not Black, I Am Brown”: Medium Skin-Tone As a Safe and Protected
Class? ...........................................................................................................................99 
Practices of Everyday Colorism ...........................................................................................105 
Ritualistic Practices .......................................................................................................106 
Compensatory Practices ................................................................................................109 
Discriminatory Practices ...............................................................................................110 
Summary...............................................................................................................................115 
5 POINTS OF ORIGIN, STABILIZING AGENTS, & TRANSFORMATIVE AGENTS ....118 
Defining Points of Origin, Stabilizing Agents, and Transformative Agents........................118 
The Black Family: The Ultimate Point of Origin.................................................................120 
Bloodmothers and Othermothers...................................................................................121 
Family as the Point of Origin for Oppositional Colorism .............................................132 
School ...................................................................................................................................135 
Relationships.........................................................................................................................142 
A Note on the Media.............................................................................................................150 
Summary...............................................................................................................................153 
6 THE COUNTER-NARRATIVES OF EVERYDAY COLORISM .....................................155 
“Up North, It’s Different”.....................................................................................................156 
Caribbean Influences ............................................................................................................159 
Colorism in Haiti ...........................................................................................................160 
Colorism in Jamaica ......................................................................................................162 
“Not This Generation”..........................................................................................................165 
Summary...............................................................................................................................170 
7 DISCUSSION: IF THE PRESENT LOOKS LIKE THE PAST, WHAT DOES THE
FUTURE LOOK LIKE?.......................................................................................................171 
Does the Present Look Like the Past? ..................................................................................171 
What Does the Future Look Like?........................................................................................178 
Recommendations for Change: Towards A Collective Oppositional Knowledge ...............181 
Limitations and Directions for Future Research...................................................................186

APPENDIX
A RECRUITMENT FLYER ....................................................................................................190 
B DEMOGRAPHIC FACESHEET .........................................................................................191 
8
C FOCUS GROUP INTERVIEW GUIDE ..............................................................................192 
LIST OF REFERENCES.............................................................................................................194 
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................................205 

9
LIST OF TABLES
Table page

2-1 Sample characteristics........................................................................................................62 
4-1 Terms associated with light, dark, and medium skin tones .............................................117 

10