“All mothers experience stress. But Black mothers in the United States especially experience additional stress related to parenting and racism,” said the study’s authors and researchers at North Carolina State University says Mia Brantley, assistant professor of sociology. “It impacts the health and well-being of Black mothers. If we want to develop ways to support Black mothers and Black families, we need to understand the challenges that Black mothers face and how Black mothers can address those challenges. We need a deeper understanding of how to respond to
For this qualitative study, Brantley conducted in-depth interviews with 35 Black mothers across the United States. All study participants had at least one child between the ages of 10 and 24. The interviews explore how Black women think about motherhood and motherhood, and how Black mothers feel that race and racism impact both parenting and parenting. Designed to collect information about. The lives of their children.
“It’s widely understood that while motherhood is rewarding, it’s also a demanding responsibility,” Brantley says. “This study found that although Black mothers face many of the same challenges as other mothers, Black motherhood is unique. Because in addition to wishing, we are taking steps to protect our children from racism and help them learn to survive in a society where they may experience anti-Black racism.”
Brantley examines how racism affects black motherhood in three areas: protective motherhood, resistant motherhood, and burdened motherhood. It is classified.
Protective mothering refers to practices designed to help Black children avoid racism. Specifically, Black mothers often restrict their children’s activities and behaviors to reduce the likelihood that their children, especially sons, will face racist remarks and actions. Black mothers are also taking steps to encourage agency, especially in their daughters, so that their children feel like they can stand up for themselves.
- resistance mothering This refers to efforts to promote a positive self-image, to combat racist stereotypes that children encounter outside the home. These activities may include educating children about Black artists, leaders, and achievements.
- “resistance mothering “It’s really about empowering Black kids and parents and making them feel proud of themselves and their culture,” Brantley said.
- troublesome child rearing This refers to the fact that black mothers feel they need to remain aware of the risks that racism poses to their children.
“Black mothers are unable to fully enjoy and celebrate their children’s accomplishments because they are unable to ‘turn off’ their fears about how racist behavior affects their children.” ,” Brantley said. “Black mothers constantly have to deal with preconceived notions about Black mothers and children, and they feel that society inherently doesn’t allow Black women to make mistakes.
“We talk about motherhood being universal, but not all mothers experience motherhood in the same way,” Brantley says. “Black women face stress unique to the experience of motherhood, stress that continues into their children’s adulthood. Black mothers take steps to protect their children, but the stress may come at a cost to Black women’s health and well-being.
“This research gives us a framework to understand, study, and talk about Black motherhood. hopefully, it will help us understand the toll that motherhood takes on Black women and how we as a society hope this will serve as a starting point for a deeper analysis of what more can be done to support black women as women.”
Research published in a magazine social issues. This research was supported by the National Institute on Aging, the Ohio State University Population Research Institute, and a University of South Carolina SPARC grant.
Source: orth carolina
