The pregnant female is viewed upon in a specific light: maternal, sensitive, and affectionate. She is expected to act a certain way in society unless she is of a different race. Killing the Black Body by Dorothy Roberts, is a tell-all about American society, past and present, concerning females and their reproductive systems. Dorothy Roberts is a Yale Graduate, she also attended Harvard Law School. She is a well-known author who has written for the Harvard Law Review and the New York Times. Her book is an exposé about race and reproduction and how they coincide. When Kimberle Crenshaw came to Penn State to speak, she said ‘you cannot talk about reproduction without talking about race,’ and that is what Dorothy Roberts addresses in her book. …show more content…
These are two mothers who were investigated for child abuse because their babies tested positively for cocaine in their system. Whitner's lawyer convinced her to plead guilty, assuming she’d be placed in a treatment facility for drug addiction. However, the judge didn’t get her the help she longed for, she was instead sentenced to eight years in jail. Johnson, however, already had four children and had previous counts of child abuse against her but instead of jail, she was given a choice. Johnson could either spend seven years in prison or she could spend one year in prison, three years on probation, and she must be implanted with Norplant. After she agreed to the lesser sentence and the birth control, Johnson found out that with her health issues, the Norplant would not be a good idea. Whitner and Johnson had a few things in common: they’re both mothers of newborns, both women used drugs during their pregnancy, and they were both black. During the epidemic of ‘crack babies’ the media and the law targeting black women. There were fifty-two cases of women giving their children a controlled substance and seventy percent of those cases included a black defendant. Roberts explained, “Poor women, who are disproportionately Black, are in closer contact with government agencies, and their drug use is, therefore, more likely to be detected,” and …show more content…
One of the most disturbing aspects, to me, was the Norplant birth control. I was completely unaware of how the government aimed to regulate black women’s reproductive systems. This form of birth control claims to be effective for about five years. However, there were instances when the implant was lost in the patient's arm or capsule fragments remained within the patient's arm after removal. Darlene Johnson was forced to go through with the Norplant birth control, even after it was proven that her medical conditions would cause complications. This punishment is inhumane and wicked. These women didn’t have control over their own bodies or what was done to them. Whether or not a woman has a child is up to her, it is her body. As Kimberle Crenshaw stated, racism has to be included in this discussion. These women were targeted because they were black. The judges were telling them they don’t deserve to be mothers rather than helping them through the addiction. Since these women were black, they were viewed upon in a different light then, for example, alcoholic white
The cradle to prison pipeline is a process in which specific newborns (as they age) will be arrested and will be sent to prison. Cradle to prison pipeline demonstrates the likelihood of the incarceration of Latinos and African Americans. The process has a minimal effect towards whites, but a significant effect towards Latinos and African Americans. Since many minorities live in poor neighborhoods, the cradle to pipeline method will more likely occur than whites living in wealthy neighborhoods. The cradle to prison pipeline is an example of regulating the poor and lower classes.
After reading all the passages contained in “The Black Church” by Marilyn Mellows I quickly decided to write about “Origins and Abolition”. Perhaps, it was the fact that each of the aforementioned passages included historical references to Philadelphia. I am always interested in the role that Philadelphia played in shaping the course of African American history. These passages illuminate the individuals that charted new paths as slaves persevered and fought defiantly as they marched towards freedom. Origins, is a brief but succinct description that outlines the plight of Africans that departed their kingdoms on the coastline of Congo and arrived in Jamestown, Virginia as slaves.
The Problems African Americans Faced The racial segergation and persecution that African American’s faced were truly unforgetable. With the complete abolishment of slavery colored people still face racial persucation all through out the 1900’s. The family that was hugly impacted were the Lacks. “In The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks”, the main role in the book was Henrietta the mother of five kids who was diagnosed with cervical cancer at the time. The docters did many test’s on Henrietta which are now illigal to proceed on someone.
Reproductive Justice and Activist Ambitions Deborah Walsh’s traumatic experiences have saved countless lives. The emotional and physical abuse she endured for over sixty years was transformed into the motivation to protect women’s rights to bodily autonomy. Living in the South for a majority of her life, Walsh describes in this interview her experiences with segregation, marriage, conservative protests, and, most importantly, the evolution of her career as an abortion provider. What began as a nursing aide position in a burn unit eventially led to ownership of a medical clinic, providing a wide range of resources for thousands of women.
Literary comparison of “Whites” and “Autopsy Room 4” The difference in narrative strategies of the selected texts changes how a reader would view the characters and how they would view the world in the story. In the story “Autopsy Room 4” by Stephen King the narration is in the first person singular and all of the protagonist’s inner thoughts are known and conveyed to the reader. This is in contrast to “Whites” by Julie Otsuka where in that story the author makes use of the plural first person. A reader would experience the text differently.
Statistically, African American women in the United States suffer from complications or death 243 percent more than white women during maternity. This is a common occurrence that many women and children face, but shouldn’t have too. Rebecca Skloots book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, is an example of the inequality shown to African-American women in the medical world. Specifically, the unequal medical care Henrietta Lacks received, which many other black women experienced. In her book, Skloot suggests that African-American women suffer from psychological effects after receiving unequal medical care, do not receive equal medical treatment during maternity, and are more likely to die from maternal complications.
The African Americans were targeted and vulnerable due to the color of their skin. This is unfairness. In the movie, not only were the men treated unequally but also Nurse Evers was. She was used by the government to help conduct the experiment due to the color of her skin. They knew that she would be able to easily mislead these men into believing they were going to receive good health although the complete opposite occurred.
In my opinion she might have been a bit biased to an extent. She knew the treatment she was getting, but also recognized how the blacks were being treated as well, but to say that she was treated worse than a black person might have been exaggerating. No one will ever know the truth. To me if any person black or white who has not been feed properly, nor had decent clothes, and have been beaten, it’s all the same abuse.
To me this looks like another way to prevent women of color from forming uprisings. Due to the ideals portrayed by the white supremacist, as Jones stated, known as “white chauvism” it painted a horrible depiction of African American women as “‘backward ', 'inferior ', and the 'natural slaves ' of others" (112). Which played a role in the lives of the women because it prevented them from gaining job opportunities, and having economic stability. Even though men of color have suffered from the era of white supremacy, after reading this you can tell that women of color went through a lot more than their male counterparts. Women were limited in what they could achieve and some restriction even pressed to oppress them from achieving beyond what others classify
As black women always conform under patriarchal principles, women are generally silenced and deprived of rights because men are entitled to control everything. Women are silenced in a way that they lose their confidence and hesitate to speak up due to the norms present in the society they live in. Hence, even if women have the confidence to try to speak, men wouldn’t bother to listen since men ought to believe that they are superior to women. In addition to that, women often live in a life cycle of repetitions due to patriarchal principles since women are established to fulfill the roles the society had given them. It is evidenced by Celie as she struggles to survive and to define oneself apart from the controlling, manipulative, and abusive men in her life.
The book of negroes written by Lawrence Hill is a fantastic book that tells the story of slavery through the eyes of a girl who later becomes a women name Aminata. Throughout the book, Aminata tells readers about the many downfalls and experiences she has been through when in slave by the white men. Some of the themes that relate to this book are Freedom, Determination, wisdom, love and family teaching, Hardship/brutality, and death. During the crucial years of slavery, colored people were forced to serve white people against their will. There are so many black people wanted to be free.
To be specific, she situates the imminent feminist struggle by highlighting the legacy of slavery among black people, and black women in particular. “Black women bore the terrible burden of equality in oppression” (Davis). Due to her race, her writing focuses on what she understood and ideas that are relevant to black females. Conversely, since white men used black women in domestic labor and forcefully rape these individuals. These men used this powerful weapon to remind black women of their female and vulnerability.
African American families during that time are often being torned apart with the women of the household widowed because the husbands were murdered. An example of such cases is Joe Johnson’s wife, where “white men saw him and shot him and he died and leaves [the wife], a poor widow with a housefull of children, and no one
Her tragedy reflects not only the sexism in the African American families in early 20th century, but also the uselessness
Black women are treated less than because of their ascribed traits, their gender and race, and are often dehumanized and belittled throughout the movie. They are treated like slaves and are seen as easily disposable. There are several moments throughout the film that show the racial, gender, and class inequalities. These moments also show exploitation and opportunity hoarding. The Help also explains historical context of the inequality that occurred during that time period.