Raising Teenagers in Hostile Environments

Abstract

In contemporary discourse, children are imagined with “surplus risk,” and parents often feel pressure to protect their children from danger. Drawing on interviews with 40 Latina, White, and Black mothers of teenagers, the authors examine the factors that shape these mothers’ concerns for their teens’ safety, how they articulate these concerns, and the strategies they employ to try to keep teens safe: individual responsibility, monitoring, and organized activities. Drawing on insights from Black feminism and critical race theory, the authors demonstrate how the intersections of race, class, and gender shape mothers’ perceptions of the dangers their children face and their efforts to help their children navigate these “hostile environments.” Findings reveal intersecting axes of inequality in mothers’ protective carework as well as how inequalities are resisted, but may also be reproduced, through mothers’ understandings and strategies. The benefits and challenges of an intersectional analysis are discussed in the conclusion.