Black Women As Sexual Objects - 1662 Words

â€Å"Gabrielle Union Shows Off Taut Tummy and Glowing Skin with Husband Dwayne Wade.† (US Weekly) â€Å"President Barack Obama Loves Michelle s Curves.† (TooFab) â€Å"Happy Birthday, Serena Williams! See Pictures of the Tennis Pro s Best Booty Moments.† (Amos) All articles depict mainstream media celebrating the success of these woman but somehow their bodies come into the picture. Most often the Black woman is wrongfully represented and sexualized in the media. This view of black women as sexual objects we see in the media today has its roots in the common practice of rape during slavery by white male owners of their black female slaves. Many Black novelists attempt to complicate this idea of Black women as sexual objects through literature. The†¦show more content†¦Moreover, sexual abuse was not the only suffering Black woman endured. In the case of Sarah Baartman, an illiterate slave who was tricked by an English ship’s doctor, William Dunlop , to travel to England to earn a fortune for her family. Within her time in London, she was put on exhibition and considered an anthropological freak and displayed as a sexual curiosity. Passerby’s were allowed to touch and observe for as long as they want and some were even permitted to attempt to arouse and feel on Baartman. The perception of the Black woman as a sexual object was rooted and evident within slavery. Baartmans tale only serves as a beginning of the exploitation of the Black woman’s body. (SaartjieBaartmanCenter) Furthermore, stereotypes and depictions continued to construct a societal perception of the Black women to be seen for only her assets. The Jezebel stereotype was used within slavery and post slavery as a rationalization for sexual relations between white males and black women. The Jezebel image permitted for white men to relate to black women in a more primitive manner than they would to their wives. The Jezebel was depicted as a black woman w ith an insatiable appetite for sex, in which Black men couldn’t relieve. If the Black women enjoyed being taken advantage of, then indeed they differed from the white women whose bodies were not used for pleasure. The Jezebel image was constructed as a cover up and a silencing for theShow MoreRelatedThe Objectification Of Black Women1378 Words   |  6 PagesThe Objectification of Black Women â€Å"No other group in America has so had their identity socialized out of existence as have Black women†¦ when Black people are talked about the focus tends to be on Black men; and when women are talked about the focus tends to be on white women.† - Bell Hooks Imagine not being in total control of your own life, having someone else tell you what you can and cannot do. 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