Historical Beginnings and Development of Black Men Stereotypes in American Society

Nicole Hipp

SPCM 4900- Stahl

Introduction

Throughout the history of the United States, the racial divide between Whites and Blacks has been on the forefront of the issues of American society. Stemming from the United States slave trade and extending to the present, typologies, generalizations, and stereotypes have formed around Black males. The reasons as to why these archetypes of Black men were formed, have been sustained, and are still present today is a consistent topic of debate and research. This essay seeks to investigate the historical roots of the stereotyping of Black Males and how those roots have evolved. There will be discussion on the stereotypes that have formed as a result of these historical events and situations.

A History of Racial Differences

The implications of the differences between Blacks and Whites began during European colonialism. “Whiteness became associated with positive meanings such life, superiority, safety, and cleanness, and Blackness became associated with negative meanings such as death, inferiority, danger, and dirtiness” (Brown, 2005, pg.67). There were early European allegations that Blacks were “interbred with apes – and were animal-like” (Cooper, 2006, pg.876). As the United States grew and developed as a new nation, so did a new population of Black males as a result of the massive influx of slaves. According to Bush, the image of the Black American man has been shaped through American slavery, in addition to a matriarchal system in Black communities, and oppressive economic conditions for Black men in the mid-twentieth century.

The Effects of American Slavery

The United States is and has historically been a patriarchal nation: the male is seen as the head of the family and leaders of society. While this held true for White males throughout American history, Black men were not given the opportunity to represent their families and establish their patriarchal status during the United States slavery period. Those who stood up to White authority were isolated, beaten, ridiculed, or killed. Because of this, Black men were not able to become an authoritative male, and were subject to conform to the roles that American society assigned them (Bush, 1999). As a result of the experience of their parents, male Black children were raised to conform to and participate in a White-accepted rhetoric. This has allowed the idea that Whites are superior to Blacks to perpetuate in American Society (Bush, 1999).

A Matriarchal System

There has been a stereotype of Black males as being absent fathers in their communities. In addition, Black American women are seen as the dominant members of the family, with their influence being the most prominent and conspicuous (Bush, 1999). As a result, women became the head of the household, young Black males ceased to have an adult male role model, and remained “eternal boys” (Bush, 1999, pg.51).  Without the direction and guidance of a Black male, there was ample opportunity for young Black males to act without consequence. The Black youth were able to drop out of school, become sexually active, and develop an animosity towards the lifestyle they lived in (Bush, 1999). These behaviors were established as the norms, and the roles that Black men are type casted into today were formed.

Economic Oppression

As previously mentioned, the United States bolsters the notion that males are the head of the family. Along with this notion comes the idea that the male should provide for his family. Because of the Jim Crowe segregation laws of the mid-twentieth century, Black males were thwarted from making substantial earnings, and therefore hindered from providing a stable financial environment for their families (Bush, 1999). With the rise of radical social movements and civil rights leaders, including the Black Power movement and  Malcolm X, coupled with the dissolution of Jim Crowe laws, Black men became “newly assertive, highly frustrated, economically disenfranchised, and angry Black male[s]” (Bush, 1999, pg.52).  While the aggressive actions and rhetoric of Black males during the Civil Rights era were seen as a means to achieve social justice, they are now seen as “pointless, dangerous, and maladaptive” and directly fuel the image of the angry Black male (Bush, 1999, pg.52).

Dissemination and Evolution of Stereotypes

The effects of these stereotypical associations spread to the masses through print and radio and became evident through the portrayal of Black males in print television and film. In television, African Americans tended to play comedic characters, which allowed society establish stereotypical behaviors and characteristics, and cease to challenge to them (Brown, 2005). Black males were further stereotyped through early American films, in which they were “primarily portrayed as Toms, coons, tragic mulattos, nannies, and bucks” (Brown, 2005, pg. 68). In the film The Birth of a Nation, the roles and images of Black men were altered and exaggerated in an effort to alter the landscape of post-Civil War America. Diawara describes how the film directs Black people to occupy “certain spaces, such as kitchens, and into certain supporting roles, such as criminals, on the screen. White people must occupy the center, leaving Black people with only one choice—to exist in relation to Whiteness” (as cited in Brown, 2005, pg.67). Because the film was so widely available and distributed, the stereotypes were marked as the true identities of Black males, and have persisted to the present day.

Over time, these stereotypes became known as the symbols, concepts, and images that represented the entire population of Black men. As mass media continued to grow larger, these generalizations became more commonplace and therefore more socially acceptable to the masses. Brown summarizes this idea by stating that “the images that are created for mass consumption are controlled by a dominant culture that has taken the historical stereotypes associated with black men and reintroduced them to today’s generations through various media” (Brown, 2005, pg.68). As a result, the roles of Black men featured in film and television have been taken to be the true portrayal of Black men in America.

Prominent Generalizations of Black Males in Society

Brown details the research of Hooks, which states that there are “three types of black masculinity that are representative of contemporary culture: the race man, the new black aesthetics, and the nigga” (Brown, 2005, pg.69). The race man promotes a positive image of a Black male through socially accepted images. He is the Black man that has been approved in the eyes of the public. The new black aesthetic “represents post-civil rights era individuals who seek individual power and access to the dominant culture” (Brown, 2005, pg.69). Their goal is not to promote and enhance the overall image of the Black male, but rather to further their own self interest. The nigga does not have any group or individual goals; they seek to enforce the role of Black males as disadvantaged, and reject the roles of the race man and the new black aesthetic. They promote class within the Black race, while the latter two are concerned with race among society.

Cooper (2006) suggests that the image of Black masculinity is bipolar: there is a “Bad Black Man who is crime-prone and hypersexual and a Good Black Man who distances himself from blackness and associations with white norms” (pg.853). The Bad Black Man is further stereotyped through the term “the bestial black man” as characterized by Duru (as cited in Cooper, 2006, pg.876). The bestial black man is detailed as animalistic, due to historical European implications, inherently criminal, and sexually unrestrained.  Black men have consistently been linked to an unrestrained sexual predator of white women (Cooper, 2006). During the slave era in America, being black was practically criminalized, and this connotation has continued to present times (Cooper, 2006). These generalizations have been reinforced through films such as The Birth of a Nation, and through propaganda produced and distributed by anti-Black social movement groups such as the Ku Klux Klan (Cooper, 2006). The Good Black Man surrounds himself with Whites, and tolerates situations in which he is discriminated against in order to distance himself from the Black race (Cooper, 2006).  In order to become a Good Black Man, he must downplay his own identity.  The way in which Black males define their own manhood is essential to the way they are characterized by American society because it shapes how they view themselves, and how they interact with wives, children, community, and each other.

Conclusions

The stereotypes of Black males that pervade America clearly have an impact on society. The tensions between Whites and Blacks did not end with the termination of Jim Crowe. In addition, there is also an agitation that exists within the Black community, whether it is between males and females, old and young, or between the males themselves. The development of mass medias helped to disseminate and promote the image of the Black male in America. In today’s society, media has more of a societal influence than ever before. It can be expected that the stereotypes of the Black male will be changed or reinforced to a larger audience than ever before.

References

Brown, Timothy J. (2005). Allan Iverson as America’s most wanted: black masculinity as a cultural site of struggle. Journal of Intercultural Communication Research, 34(1), 65-87.

Bush, Lawson. (1999). Am I a man?: a literature review engaging the sociohistorical dynamics of black manhoodin          the United States. The Western Journal of Black Studies, 23(1), 49-57.

Cooper, Frank R. (2006). Against bipolar black masculinity: intersectionality, assimilation,  identity performance, and hierarchy. UC Davis Law Review , 39(3), 853-904.