Stereotypes of black women that originated during slavery still persist today and perpetuate harmful narratives. The "Mammy" depicts black women as obedient servants, the "Sapphire" portrays them as angry and emasculating, and the "Jezebel" presents them as hypersexual. These stereotypes justified the oppression of black women and ignore diversity within the community. They shift blame for inequality away from flawed institutions and onto individuals. While some media aims to celebrate diversity, it also perpetuates stereotypes for profit. Overcoming deeply entrenched stereotypes requires recognizing how they damage black women and reinforce systems of racism and sexism.

1. Stereotypes
Case Study: Black Women

2. What is a stereotype?
Stereotypes are qualities assigned to groups of
people related to their race, ethnicity, gender,
nationality, sexual orientation, etc. They are
generally negative and serve to generalize
groups of people in manners that lead to
discrimination and ignore the diversity within
groups.

3. Why are stereotypes harmful?
Many reasons, but through the lens of critical
race theory:
They can create what’s called “laissez faire”
racism. This attributes inequality to the
incapacities of people of color/women/LGBT
rather than critically examining deeply flawed
institutions like our criminal justice, education,
housing and financial institutions.

4. Stereotypes…
Shift the blame away from
institutions and the lasting
historical legacy of
discrimination and onto the
individual.
How Congressman Paul Ryan, 2012 vice presidential candidate,
explains urban poverty: “A tailspin of culture, in our inner cities
in particular of men not working and generations of men not
even thinking about working or learning the value or culture of
work.”

5. Stereotypes also call the need for
“exceptions”
If the stereotype of black men = lazy, dangerous
criminals who have no culture of work and
abandon their families, what about this guy?
He’s the
exception:
special, unique,
articulate,
educated, lucky,
raised well, bi-
racial….blah blah
blah

6. If the stereotype
of black women
= poor, loud,
angry, have lots
of babies to get
government $$$,
what about this
her?

7. If these people can be the “exception,”
what’s wrong with the rest of you?
AKA: Our institutions are fine; you aren’t smart, hard-
working or good enough – try harder!

8. How does the media perpetuate stereotypes? Even
though media may celebrate diversity and tries to be race
neutral and NOT be overtly racist, media is:
• One of our flawed institutions that remains unequal—in
all industries (publishing, journalism, advertising etc.)
• Managed by people who bring their own baggage with
them
• Driven by money-making

9. Where do stereotypes come from?
The oldest stereotypes about black women come from
slavery. They helped justify slavery and excuse abuse.

10. The Mammy

11. The Mammy
strengths
weaknesses?
How does this
stereotype
reinforce our
systems of
inequality?
What’s the
price?

12. Mammy Makeover!

14. Hellerrrr! Don’t make me take off my
earrings!

15. The Help

16. Mammy image is hard to shake…

17. Mammy’s Revenge
In 1940, Hattie McDaniel became the first African American to win an Academy
Award (best supporting actress.) She famously said: “I’d rather play a maid than be
one.”

18. The Pickaninny
Topsy, from the 1927 film
“Uncle Tom’s Cabin,”
reinforced the stereotype that
slaves need to be cared for
and protected and were well-
suited to be servants. She was
played by a white actress in
blackface.

19. The opposite of mammy, helpless,
childlike servant – Prissy in GWT

20. BUTTERFLY MCQUEEN
Graduated from City College with a degree in political
science in 1975 – at age 64!

21. Tragic Mulatto
She is beautiful, light-skinned and tragic. Her life is ruined because she has at
least one drop of black blood. The “victim” of race mixing

22. Imitation of Life, 1934
Fredi Washington, as Peola, breaks her mother’s heart by passing for white.

23. Pinky, 1949
A mixed-race woman, passes for white and falls in love with a white man who
doesn’t know the truth. Both Dorothy Dandridge and Lena Horne wanted to
play Pinky, but the role was given to Jeanne Crain, a white actress.

24. Modern-day
tragic
mulattoes
aren’t that
tragic or
modern…

25. …but are still considered the gold-standard of beauty (by
some)
Shonda Rhimes ignored beauty standards to choose an "older, darker-skinned and less
classically beautiful" actress [Viola Davis] than Kerry Washington or Halle Berry for her new
show.” Alessandra Stanley, NY Times, September 2014

26. Sapphire
Precursor to the ABW: She’s aggressive, hostile, loud, bossy, hard, overbearing, neck
rolling, cursing….and more

27. She’s mammy without the nurturing
Dehumanized black women and justified working them like animals during
slavery, breaking up their families and taking away their children. The
opposite of the ideal of (white, Southern) womanhood.

28. Racism and sexism collide: Sapphire of
“Amos & Andy
Sapphire was Kingfish’s brash, nagging, hostile, emasculating wife on Amos & Andy.

29. The ABW is…
… the mean, harsh dominant matriarch, welfare queen, blamed for emasculating men
and driving them away, beating her children and raising weak sons.

30. Aunt Esther, Sanford & Son
Hostile, controlling, emasculating Aunt Esther from the 1970s: Her catch
phrase: “Watch it, sucka!”

31. She’s a staple of reality TV

32. Any black woman not smiling = angry

33. Sapphire/ABW
strengths, weaknesses? How does this
stereotype reinforce our systems of
inequality? What’s the price

34. The Jezebel
The hypersexual bad girl, always wants “it,” freak, hoochie, video vixen,
promiscuous, gold digger

35. The name comes from the Bible
Jezebel was supposedly a wanton, evil
seductress who tried to turn her
husband, Ahab, away from God in
order worship false gods.

36. Promiscuous Black Woman…
Justified rape during slavery.

37. Sally Hemmings: victim or vixen on
screen?

38. Monster’s Ball, 2001 “make me feel good”
Halle Berry won best actress Oscar

39. Foxy Brown vs Foxy Brown

40. Anita Hill
The buttoned up law professor got pulled into the stereotype of the
oversexualized black woman, when she accused Clarence Thomas of sexual
harassment during his 1991 nomination for Supreme Court justice.

41. Sexualized images of black women
strengths, weaknesses? How does this stereotype reinforce
our systems of inequality? What’s the price

42. Beyonce vs bell hooks
“…from my deconstructive point of view, [Beyonce] is colluding in the
construction of herself as a slave. She is a terrorist.” bell hooks, feminist
scholar, May 2014

43. The future