Medium Post #3

Prior to engaging with the materials, I would say that I know a fair amount about the unjust incarceration of black individuals outlined in The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander. The extent of my knowledge comes from reading the best selling book Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson which examines the racial injustices and false accusations that repeatedly occur in the prison system. Additionally, I watched the chilling Netflix mini series When They See Us which focuses on the story of how five black teenagers supposedly raped a female running in New York City . These boys were shortly labeled as murderers, robbers, and rapists and were sent to prison for upwards of thirteen years for a crime they never committed. Both of these works made me conscious of how black individuals are falsely accused and incarcerated at rates significantly higher than whites. With all that said, prior to engaging with the piece by Alexander, I already had the mentality that the prison system is one designed to marginalize and further perpetuate racist ideals that exist in America.

After engaging with the documentary titled Pushout: Criminalization of Black Girls, I found their to be a multitude of points made that left me feeling extreme empathy for these girls. The main point that I found incredibly striking was the way in which black girls are adultified and hypersexualized to the point where they are left to fend for themselves with no support network. Consequently, whether it's due to the stereotype of their physical appearance or hard-headed nature, black girls are viewed by contemporaries and authority figures as unable to be harmed. In turn, these black girls have no one advocating on their behalf because they believe the girls are old enough to “fend for themselves.” I found this to be particularly striking because in my eyes adultifying black girls seems like an indirect form of racism, and a direct form of stereotyping. These girls are being marginalized due to their actions, and are not being treated in a manner that promotes progress and teaching. For example instead of praising black girls for showing overt forms of joy like laughing in school, authority figures condemn their actions expecting them to “know better.” These materials only confirmed my preconceived notions that we have ways to go to provide further equity in systemic areas like in this case the education departments.

A connection that I found myself making was the way in which black girls and women are both made out to fit a certain image created by groups of higher authority. In last week’s lecture we learned about the mammy archetype and how older black females were made out to be nurturing figures who spoke broken english, and often cared for the white youth. Similarly, black teenage girls are now being portrayed as hypersexual emotionally fragile people who are unable to be harmed. This idea is something that can pose great issues to the wellbeing of our nation. As the future we must work to abolish any stereotypes perpetuated by white individuals, and we must stop generalizing these individuals to fit a certain brand or image. #relg102