Intersecting Selves

Being an athlete, being a women, and being African American each come with their own set of labels.  Intersectionality looks at how these labels come together to affect our everyday experiences.  An African American women, not only has to be wary of the stereotypes attached to being a women, but also those attached to being black.  It’s like she has two strikes against her.  Being an African American woman would also significantly affect her individual experience as an athlete due to the stereotypes surrounding gender and race within sports.

Today “race and gender can be used in a way that both consciously and unconsciously trivializes the athletic efforts of African American female athletes and the mainstream media further constructs racialized and stereotypical images of these athletes” (Withycombe, pg. 479).  Like their male counterparts, the athletic ability of African American women in sports is often attributed to their supposed “racial physical advantage,” rather than to the work and training that they put in.  This notion can be extremely damaging for these athletes, as their work is not being acknowledged nor encouraged.

In 2011, research conducted by Jenny Lind Withycombe, sought to shed light on the experience of African American female athletes.  The research collected statements of African American women, who participate in division I sports, on their experiences with gender and race based stereotyping in the sporting space.  In one interview, a participant noted how “hyper-vigilance over one’s image—Is an essential part of being an African American woman and athlete—[and]—she specifically notes that they cannot “give” the media or society confirmation of the stereotypes that haunt their past and present lived experiences” (Withycombe, Pg. 485).  The fact that women in this position feel that it is necessary for them to constantly monitor themselves, speaks to the little progress that has been made in “debunking the myths of the African American Woman.”

It is important to recognize how the intersection of labels in our society today can affect peoples’ everyday lives.  To read more on how the intersection of race, gender, and athletic stereotypes effect the lives of African American women in sports, follow the link below to the aforementioned research.

Withycombe, J. (2011). Intersecting Selves: African American Female Athletes’ Experiences of Sport. Sociology of Sport Journal, 28, 478-493. Retrieved from http://fitnessforlife.org/AcuCustom/Sitename/Documents/DocumentItem/06_SSJ_28-4_2011_0021_p478-493.pdf