Black Sexual Politics: African Americans, Gender, and the New Racism [Paperback]

Patricia Hill Collins (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 16, 2005 | ISBN-10: 041595150X | ISBN-13: 978-0415951500 | Edition: New Ed

In Black Sexual Politics, one of America's most influential writers on race and gender explores how images of Black sexuality have been used to maintain the color line and how they threaten to spread a new brand of racism around the world today.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Drawing on vivid images of hypersexual blacks and the sociological theses of strong black women and weak black men, Collins explores an astonishing range of ideas and images through history, sociology, and popular culture. Rather than debate the dominance of race versus sex in the history of social injustice to black men and women, Collins offers a theory of "intersectionality," viewing race, gender, and sexuality together. She explores the social and personal implications of historical images (black men as rapists deserving of lynching and black women so immoral it was impossible to rape them) and more current concerns about the influence of prison culture on urban youth culture that glorifies connections between sex and violence. Demonstrating how the politics of race has traditionally neglected concerns about gender and sexual orientation, Collins explores a range of issues, advocating that black people "ready up some honesty" and redefine notions of masculinity and femininity. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Patricia Hill Collins' brilliant and ground-breaking analysis of the urgency of a more progressive Black sexual politics among African Americans is nothing short of a 'tour de force.' This book is sure to be a foundational text in Black gender studies and a corrective to the continued erasure of gender and sexuality as important issues in mainstream African American Studies scholarship. Her foray into popular culture is particularly insightful as is her sophisticated theoretical approach to Black gender discourse around a number of issues including class dimensions of masculinity, violence against women, and HIV/AIDS. She demonstrates with extraordinary skill the bankruptcy of gender-blind anti-racist politics in the 21st century. Her wake-up call to Black America and the nation is heart-felt and piercing. No more business-as-usual is the loud message! -- Beverly Guy-Sheftall, co-author of Gender Talk
A leading scholar in the field of black feminist studies, Patricia Hill Collins once again challenges readers to think differently, this time about sexuality in black communities. Collins argues for a new black sexual politics, focused on liberating black women and men and highlighting the role of culture in this struggle. This book is sure to spark needed and timely debate. -- Cathy J. Cohen, author of The Boundaries of Blackness
A pathbreaking exploration of complex intersections of racism, sexism, and heterosexism! Patricia Hill Collins shows how
unhealthy sexual politics in black communities imbeds white-generated images of stereotyped masculinity, femininity, and sexuality. A well-documented argument for countering and replacing the sexist-racist views of hyper-sexual, too-strong black women and sexually irresponsible, too-weak black men both within and outside black communities. -- Joe R. Feagin, author of Racist America
Patricia Hill Collins has done it again! In her brilliant new book, Collins deepens her analysis of the intersections and
hierarchies of race, gender, sexuality and class, and extends her theoretical gaze with fresh and provocative interpretations of black popular culture. Black Sexual Politics charts the subtle evolution of a new racism that often goes undetected--and unaccounted for--while grappling with the complexities and contradictions within black life. This book is at once a theoretical tour de force and a must-read for all who care about the lives of black folk in the twenty-first century. -- Michael Eric Dyson, author of Why I Love Black Women
Collins expands the horizons of feminist and anti-racist thinking about some of the most disturbing issues of the contemporary post-civil rights era. Her focus on historical specificity of African American conditions and struggles illuminates the contours of--and strategies for--social justice projects in global as well as local political contexts. This book makes a distinguished contribution to critical theory and to classroom resources. -- Sandra Harding, editor of The Feminist Standpoint Theory Reader
This well written text...[is] strongly recommend for public and academic libraries. -- Library Journal
Black Sexual Politics is one of the most steaming mad books on sexuality since the days of Andrea Dworkin...It constitutes a breakthrough. -- Village Voice
For the last 15 years Patricia Hill Collins has been one of the defining voices of contemporary feminist and race scholarship...As is true for many comparable works of such breadth, the primary contribution of 'Black Sexual Politics' is not so much the new data as it is the skillful synthesis and application of post civil rights scholarship on contemporary culture...The result is a race/class/gender/sexuality text-book on Black life that displays the ongoing relevance and utility of such scholarship when alchemically transformed through intersectionality. Indeed, I often thought while reading this book that it would be an excellent way to introduce students to race/class/gender/sexuality for it brings the principles and data up-to-date. -- Contemporary Sociology

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Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; New Ed edition (July 16, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 041595150X
• ISBN-13: 978-0415951500
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,303 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Black Folk, Gender Matters!, July 14, 2004

By 

Jeffery Mingo (Homewood, IL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Black Sexual Politics: African Americans, Gender, and the New Racism (Hardcover)

Professor Hill Collins asserts that Black Americans will not be able to advance at the rate they could unless they develop a progressive gender politics. Many activist black women have critiqued the overall community for not taking gender issues seriously. Still, this book gives it a fresh perspective that takes multiple identities into account, especiall in the post-civil rights era.

Hill Collins does a fantastic job in stressing that Black Americans are not a monolithic group. In her discussion about the media, she looks at black portrayals dividing depictions by gender and class-based groups. In discussing marriage, she analyzes "same race, opposite gender" mandates as they affect straight sistas, straight brothas, and Black gay men and lesbians separately. She understands that identities do not work in isolation by sit side by side continually interacting with each other.

Hill Collins does an excellent job in showing how all Black people are affected by any oppression. She shows that straight Blacks are harmed by heterosexism too since that same system that deems gays deviants deem Blacks globally as hypersexual. In a chapter on gender violence, she claims that Black men who dismiss the rape of Black women may feel differently given that so many Black men are being raped in jails.

Many talking heads say that older Americans are not as eager to employ new technologies. However, Hill Collins, a graying woman, does well in mentioning how the internet and other new technologies are affecting Black folk. Her analysis of J.Lo, the film "Booty Call", and the rap "Get Yo' Freak On" shows that she is very knowledgeable about youth culture.

I was disappointed how little sexual orientation matters got brought up in her "Fighting Words." However, in this book, she demonstrates thoroughly that she stands against homophobia. Not only is there a whole chapter dedicated to condemning heterosexism, gay issues are laced into every chapter. Like Guy-Sheftall's recent work, she is really trying to push Black thinkers that only want to talk about race, class, and gender (purposely in that order) to the exclusion of sexual orientation. She even praises media depictions of Black lesbian and gay characters.

It's funny that bell hooks is the most famous Black feminist when Hill Collins outshines her here by leaps and bounds. Hill Collins isn't as repetitive and demeaning. Her work isn't dependent upon personal anecdotes. She takes sexual orientation seriously and not just as a side issue. She dedicated to helping Black gays and lesbians and not just yelling that straight Blacks aren't homophobic. I can't wait for the day when Hill Collins gets all the credit she deserves.

Many might not like this book. She offers many critiques and close to no concrete solutions. The introductory chapter is full of caveats and can be easily skipped. Hill Collins cites Cathy Cohen, Dorothy Roberts, Professor Guy-Sheftall, and other progressive womanists so frequently, one may wonder what original ideas she is even proposing. Her discussion of blacks in the media is overly pessimistic.

Still, I loved this book. I think both academic and common readers will be able to digest it and find it useful. I predict great things ahead for this right-on sista.

22 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There's A LOT More To Say, May 25, 2005

By 

Journey (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Sexual Politics: African Americans, Gender, and the New Racism (Hardcover)

I am not afraid to look the reality of colorism in the eye and acknowledge that it does exist within the black community. It is my greatest hope and dream that someday the dark skinned black and the light skinned black will be seen as the one family in the future. I want so much to love the lightskinned sister and brother as my own reflection and not be divided from them or made to feel that one is treated better than the other, but sadly, that day is not here and this book bravely and powerfully illustrates that point to the fullest.

I am a medium brown colored woman, my mother was very dark skinned and I have witnessed the evils of skin color prejudice all my life. In most situations, it was Black Men who were prejudiced against myself and the women around me beccause of our coloring. These men felt no shame or limit in their racist intra-family prejudice and measured their entire lives by how many light skinned or white women they could attain and how light brite their children could come out. It's everywhere and anyone who denies it is both a fool and a liar.

That is why I highly recommend THE BLACKER THE BERRY by Wallace Thurman. There is no truer portrait of the self-hatred among our people than the one extolled in this book, and what makes it even sadder is that this book was written in the 1920's. So that only shows how deep this kind of evil runs.

Lately, I have become very interested in this subject and I have searched for other books that explore this subject with intelligence, honest, beauty and wisdom and I have found several that I consider to be classics on the subject of Colorism.

(1) MARITA GOLDEN'S book "Don't Play In the Sun" is definitely the most modern up to date book of the bunch. It expertly weaves the story of her life experiences in the 1960's Black Power movement with the current struggles of women like Serena Williams and India Arie to find their way in the world, even in the midst of being shunned and ignored by the black community itself. The book's analysis of the Hollywood casting system and the "Mulatto Follies" of BET and MTV is priceless.

(2) "The Bluest Eye" by TONI MORRISON is by far the most riveting and painful book that I have read on this subject of colorism. I believe that her book, more than any mother, gets to the psychological and historical root cause of the problem and exposes the mode in which we pass the problem on generation to generation. The destruction of an innocent black girl named Pecola Breedlove will leave you heartbroken and shocked as you see the bold naked truth unfold right before your eyes. You can't ignore this book, because the story being told is the one that you are all too familiar with no matter what color you are.

(3) "Flesh and the Devil" by African novelist KOLA BOOF is another deeply powerful book that examines colorism, but not out in the open. This book is unique in that it focuses on a very enchanting love story between a Black Prince and Princess and follows their reincarnations through history as they struggle to find their way back to each other. Through detailed moments in black history, both in Africa and the United States, the provocative author highlights the way that black people originally viewed their beauty and humanity and then juxtuposes it against the way they see themselves now in the modern world. The result is nothing less than devastating. I love this book so much, because the storytelling is so rich and the depth is so sweeping and grand. Anyone who loves good writing and is proud to be descended from the Black race will find themselves literally changed forever by the powerful images depicted in this very poetically moving story.

(4) "The Color Complex"--VARIOUS AUTHORS, is a very simple, straight forward analysis from a sociological point of view. Much research and statistical facts are used to illustrate that our communities are infested with these issues.

(5) "The Darkest Child" by Dolores Philips is another great novel that shows us the poor blacks who live under the poverty line ingesting these complex social hierarchies based on color and how they not only expose their children to them, but force the entire community to live by the "color code". Everybody is used to it from slavery and the system goes on and on unchallenged. In this book, Tangy Mae, the darkest of 10 children by the white-looking mother Rozelle, struggles to find her dignity and confidence in the midst of her evil light skinned mother inflicting one horrid abuse on top of the other. One thing I will say for the evil white-looking mother, Rozelle, is that she treated all of her children hiddeously and with contempt, from the whitest to the blackest. But she killed the child who was born looking like Tangy Mae and that spoke volumnes. This book is a very real metaphor for what goes on. Very real.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Eye Opening Read, March 30, 2010

By 

F. J. Cooper (California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Black Sexual Politics: African Americans, Gender, and the New Racism (Paperback)

Black Sexual Politics is a very insightful book. I suggest it for anyone that is interested in understanding the dynamics of race,sex and politics. You'll look at racism in film and television in a whole new light.