Many of us understand the meaning of misogyny as the extreme hatred of trans and cisgender women. However, what the word ‘misogyny’ fails to do is encapsulate the specific experiences of women of color who oftentimes are subjected to both racism and sexism at the same time. This is where the term misogynoir comes in.
Misogynoir was coined by queer Black feminist, Moya Bailey in 2010. The word combines misogyny (prejudice against women) and noir (the French word for black) and was created as a way to better represent the damaging effects of racism and sexism on Black women in one word. The term ‘misogynoir’ is not only a better way to encapsulate anti-Black racist misogyny, but as Bailey explained in her essay, Misogynoir in Medical Media: On Caster Semenya and R. Kelly:
“It is the particular amalgamation of anti-Black racism and misogyny in popular media and culture that targets Black trans and cis women. Representational images contribute to negative societal perceptions about Black women, which can precipitate racist gendered violence that harms health and can even result in death.”
Recognizing how anti-Black racism and misogyny are woven into our popular media and culture is important in order to understand how harmful messages about Black women are transmitted throughout our society. The media often funnel Black women into one of four categories: the sassy Black woman, the angry Black woman, the strong Black woman, or the overly sexual Black woman. These stereotypes are highly problematic because they dramatically change the way people think about and treat Black women. The repercussions of these stereotypes manifest in numerous ways:
Black women and girls are usually viewed and treated as though they are much older, more mature, and sexually advanced than White girls.
It is more likely that people will dismiss sexual abuse or harassment allegations made by Black girls and teens than White women.
Doctors are more likely to perceive Black women as having a higher pain threshold which leads them to treat their Black patients differently.
Black women are often viewed as overly sexual just for wearing clothes that fit their bodies
They also report feeling they are not allowed to display any emotion, pain, or distress because it deviates from the “strong Black woman” stereotype.
Though the word is relatively new, the idea of misogynoir is obviously not. In fact, it is one that can be traced back through women like Sojourner Truth in her speech, Ain’t I A Woman, at the Women’s Rights Convention in 1851 that touched on similar ideas. In one section she wrote:
“That man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman?”
The hypersexualization of Black women and girls stems from a long history of racism, starting with the way European travelers in Africa initially judged traditional African women’s dress and practices as promiscuous and sexually lewd. This prejudice eventually informed slave owners’ views of enslaved women in the United States and was often used to justify the horrific crimes committed against Black women, like rape. High instances of rape caused Black women to seem as though they were always pregnant which White people took to prove the stereotype that Black women had an “insatiable sexual appetites.” Black women were also sold on auction blocks in naked or nearly naked states, which reinforced the idea that White women were modest and pure while Black women were sexually lewd. These events and the way Black women have been treated historically, continue to inform our view and treatment of Black women today.
For those wanting to learn more about misogynoir and how to spot it, here are some recommendations provided by the Blackburn Center (an advocacy organization for victims of domestic violence) of works by Black women who have openly resisted misogynoir:
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs
Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston
Kindred, Octavia Butler
The Color Purple, Alice Walker
The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison
Eloquent Rage, Brittany Cooper
Remaking Black Power: How Black Women Transformed an Era, Dr. Ashley D. Farmer
Of course, these are absolutely not the only resources you should turn to. Continue your lifelong learning process by looking into other valuable sources on this topic as well!
Sources:
Bailey, Moya. "Misogynoir in Medical Media: On Caster Semenya and R. Kelly." Catalyst: Feminism, Theory, Technoscience, vol. 2, no. 2, 2016. Accessed 28 July 2020.
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