Black Women Research Articles

Comparing Socio-Demographics and HIV Testing and Prevention Outcomes Between Low-Income HIV-Negative Heterosexually Active Black Women and Men with Health Insurance.

This study is to compare socio-demographic, HIV testing, and prevention factors experienced by insured low-income heterosexual Black women and men. We examined cross-sectionaldata from Black women and men (n = 5837) recruited in 23 U.S. cities for National HIV Behavioral Surveillance June-December 2019. We compared socio-demographic and behavioral factors between groups using log-linked Poisson regression models, producing adjusted prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals. Black women were less likely than Black men to have private insurance (aPR 0.61, 95% CI 0.50-0.74, p < 0.0001). Black women were more likely than Black men to have incomes at or below the poverty line (aPR 1.04, 95% CI 1.01-1.07, p = 0.02), be aware of PrEP (aPR 1.20, 95% CI 1.12-1.28, p < 0.0001), and have been recently tested for HIV (aPR 1.12, 95% CI 1.04, 1.20, p < 0.01). Despite insured status, many Black women and men experienced suboptimal access to and utilization of HIV testing and prevention services. Understanding how social conditions produce differential access to care may help inform HIV prevention interventions.

Becoming spectacle and performing back: a Black disabled woman’s performance practices on TikTok

ABSTRACT This paper discusses a young Black disabled woman’s performance practices on TikTok through the lens of critical digital labor studies, disability studies, and Black feminist writings. Starting from the observation that this woman, whom I call Kyla in the paper, deliberately stages her disability – an amputated leg – on TikTok, not least to prove that this can make her an ‘influencer,’ I analyze how Kyla engages her amputated/prosthetic leg in TikTok dance content, how she navigates the attention she receives in reaction to this, including some people’s ableist call for ‘story time,’ in which she is supposed to tell the story of ‘what happened to her leg,’ and, finally, how she ‘performs back’ at her audience, society at large, and TikTok itself through producing performative content that reveals and problematizes what it means for her, as a young Black disabled woman, to produce content on TikTok and live with a disability in the US today. Building upon this analysis, I argue that Kyla’s content production practices critically and creatively engage the fine line between the possibility of disability entrepreneurialism and disability resistance on TikTok and thus effectively 'crip' the platform.

Differences in weight-loss outcomes among race-gender subgroups by behavioural intervention delivery mode: An analysis of the POWER trial.

Prior in-person behavioural intervention studies have documented differential weight loss between men and women and by race, with Black women receiving the least benefit. Remotely delivered interventions are now commonplace, but few studies have compared outcomes by race-gender groups and delivery modality. We conducted a secondary analysis of POWER, a randomized trial (NCT00783315) designed to determine the effectiveness of 2 active, lifestyle-based, weight loss interventions (remote vs. in-person) compared to a control group. Participants with obesity and at least one cardiovascular disease risk factor (N = 415) were recruited in the Baltimore, MD area. Data from 233 white and 170 Black individuals were used for this analysis. Following an intention-to-treat approach, we compared the mean percent weight loss at 24 months by race-gender subgroups using repeated-measures, mixed-effects models. Everyone lost weight in the active interventions however, weight loss differed by race and gender. white and Black men had similar results for both interventions (white: in-person (-7.6%) remote (-7.4%); Black: in-person (-4.7%) remote (-4.4%)). In contrast, white women lost more weight with the in-person intervention (in-person (-7.2%) compared to the remote (-4.4%)), whereas Black women lost less weight in the in-person group compared to the remote intervention at 24 months (-2.0% vs. -3.0%, respectively; p for interaction <.001). We found differences between the effectiveness of the 2 weight loss interventions-in-person or remote-in white and Black women at 24 months. Future studies should consider intervention modality when designing weight loss interventions for women.

Sociodemographic predictors of perceived weight discrimination.

Perceived weight discrimination is associated with increased risk for chronic diseases and reduced life expectancy. Nevertheless, little is known about perceived weight discrimination in racial, ethnic, and sexual minority groups or in individuals at the intersections of those groups. The goal of this study was to identify sociodemographic predictors of perceived weight discrimination. A diverse sample of adults (37% Black/African American, 36% Latino, 29% sexual minority) with a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 18.5 kg/m2 were recruited from a national US panel to complete an online survey (N = 2454). Perceived weight discrimination was assessed with the Stigmatizing Situations Survey-Brief (SSI-B). Using hierarchical linear regression analysis, SSI-B scores were predicted from the four sociodemographic characteristics of interest (gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation) while controlling for BMI, age, education, and income (Step 1). At Step 2, all two-way interactions between the four sociodemographic characteristics were added to the model. At Step 1, higher SSI-B scores were observed for Latino (vs. non-Latino) adults, sexual minority (vs. heterosexual) adults, younger (vs. older) adults, adults with higher (vs. lower) levels of education, and adults with higher (vs. lower) BMI. At Step 2, race interacted with gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation to predict SSI-B scores such that relatively higher scores were observed for non-Black women, Black men, adults who identified as Black and Latino, and non-Black sexual minority adults. Perceived weight discrimination varied across sociodemographic groups, with some subgroups reporting relatively high frequency. Black race appeared to be protective for some subgroups (e.g., Black women), but risk-enhancing for others (e.g., Black men, individuals who identified as Black and Latino). Additional research is needed to identify specific factors that cause certain sociodemographic groups -and indeed, certain individuals-to perceive higher levels of weight discrimination than others.

Raising Malcolm’s Ghost: Black Radicalism, Third World Internationalism, and Counterintelligence in Lauren Wilkinson’s American Spy

ABSTRACT This article considers the “warring ideals” (Du Bois, Souls of Black Folks) of Black American solidarity with Third World Internationalism and complicity in U.S. imperialism through a reading of Lauren Wilkinson’s American Spy (2019). The novel, a spy thriller, centers on the life and experience of Marie Mitchell, a Black woman FBI agent recruited by the CIA to further an assassination plot against Thomas Sankara, the charismatic socialist leader of Burkina Faso. The story puts individual career advancement in the service of American imperialism in direct tension with the larger collectivist goals of Black and Third World liberation. Thus, the novel invites an exploration of the geopolitical implications of Du Bois’s famous formulation about Black American double consciousness, a formulation most often considered solely as a matter of individual psychology.

"We are mothers, sisters, and lovers too": Examining young Black women's experiences navigating sex and sexual health.

In Canada, there is a lack of research that addresses the sexual health and well-being of African, Caribbean, and Blackyoung women. This paper aims to gather perspectives of young Black women to address the social contexts of how young Black women navigate issues related to sex and sexual health. Young Black women experience unique dynamics in navigating their sexualities and sexual healthcare. The nuanced experiences stem from social contexts with historical underpinnings, such as the perception of Black women's bodies, Black identity, gender roles, and sexual double standards. This Community-Based Participatory Researchstudy (N = 24) utilized focus groups to examine young Black women's experiences navigating sexual health. Employing a thematic analysis, participants identified four themes representing their narratives of navigating sexual health. The themes included the perceptions and hypersexuality of Black women's bodies, navigating sexual double standards and gender roles as Black women, diverse Blackness, and migration experiences concerning sexual health and surveillance of Black women's bodies. This paper is intended to add to scholarly discourse and will include practical strategies for use by researchers and community practitioners in sexual health within the Black community.

Obesity, beverage consumption and sleep patterns in rural African women in relation to advertising of these beverages.

The burden of obesity-related, non-communicable diseases in South Africa is persistent, with poor and black South African women particularly vulnerable. The purpose of the present study was to determine relationships between obesity, physical activity, sleep patterns and beverage consumption among black South African women in a rural village in the Limpopo province. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 200 rural-dwelling African women. Data were collected on beverage consumption, sociodemographic information, sleep patterns and anthropometry using self-reported questionnaires. The mean body mass index (BMI) was 28.5±7.3kg/m2, with 40% being classified as obese (BMI ≥30kg/m2) and the mean sleep score was 4.68±2.51. Participants with very bad habitual sleeping patterns consumed significantly more sugar-sweetened beverages and alcohol than those with very good sleeping patterns. We also observed that when total coffee with sugar, fruit juice, total sugar-sweetened beverages and weight decreased the number of hours participants slept increased. The study identified significant associations between body weight, sleep duration and sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among rural black South African women. This underscores a need to address unhealthy lifestyle behaviours to lower incidences of non-communicable diseases in rural-dwelling women.

“Waging a Battle for First Class Citizenship”: Black Women, Beauty Advertisements, and the Horror of Inequity

“Waging a Battle for First Class Citizenship”: Black Women, Beauty Advertisements, and the Horror of Inequity

How Whiteness Fuels Anti-Blackness: Black Leaders’ Experiences in an Urban High School

This article explores whiteness and how it manifests itself in an urban, Midwestern high school. This examination is done through counter-storytelling to unpack how Black women leaders navigate whiteness while simultaneously experiencing anti-Blackness within and outside a research-practice partnership. These counter-stories came from a larger research project on how school practitioners work towards anti-racism using an anti-racist policy decision-making protocol. Much research centers on the experiences of Black students in PK-12 education settings; however, there is an underwhelming amount of research that analyzes how anti-Black racism or anti-Blackness exists in educational leadership. Our findings reveal that Black women leaders negotiate whiteness through various strategies, encounter moments of anti-Blackness and witness it occurring among Black students within the school. Implications of this study illuminate the importance of counter-narratives in uncovering details otherwise unseen, as well as describe the ways counter-narratives moved the work within the research-practice partnerships forward.

Beyond work: elite Black women’s tensions with middle-class status

ABSTRACT This article examines how elite Black women determine their class status in the era of wealth inequality. While previous literature focuses on labor to theorize Black middle-class power, homeownership, debt, and consumerism are meaningful amid the race and gender wealth gaps. This paper uses data from 24 interviews with Black, college-educated, married, homeowning women in a Southern state to explore the class attitudes and economic indicators participants use to claim middle-class status. These findings contribute to our understanding of how the Black middle-class navigates their economic privilege and precarity beyond employment and reveals tensions between the Black middle-class and Black elite.

Social Safety for Black Women in Perinatal Health Care: A Concept Analysis

IntroductionNon‐Hispanic Black women and their infants experience the worst pregnancy‐related outcomes in the United States. Social safety is a health‐relevant resource found in environments communicating safety, connectedness, inclusion, and protection. Approaches promoting social safety may be particularly relevant to preventing adverse perinatal health outcomes among Black women. However, there remains a lack of conceptual clarity. The purpose of this concept analysis was to provide a theoretical clarification of the concept social safety for Black women within perinatal health care.MethodsPubMed, PsycINFO, and CINAHL were searched using Boolean search strategy. Retrieved articles were managed in Zotero. Duplicates were removed, and each article was assessed and categorized by both investigators. Articles reporting Black women's perinatal health care experiences were included. Thematic analysis guided by Rodgers’ evolutionary method identified defining attributes, antecedents, and consequences of social safety in perinatal care for Black women.ResultsSocial safety for Black women is defined as the process of feeling understood, respected, cared for, and in control in perinatal health care settings that make space, care for, and recognize strengths, thereby cultivating safety and empowerment.DiscussionSocial safety offers actionable insights for practice and research that have the potential to drive positive change in perinatal care delivery for Black women. Developing interventions and measurements that are valid, reliable, and reflect social safety are essential to promote positive experiences and equity in health care practices and policies.

Changes in Lipid Profiles with the Progression of Pregnancy in Black Women

Background/Objectives: Lipid metabolism plays an important role in maternal health and fetal development. There is a gap in the knowledge of how lipid metabolism changes during pregnancy for Black women who are at a higher risk of adverse outcomes. We hypothesized that the comprehensive lipidome profiles would show variation across pregnancy indicative of requirements during gestation and fetal development. Methods: Black women were recruited at prenatal clinics. Plasma samples were collected at 8–18 weeks (T1), 22–29 weeks (T2), and 30–36 weeks (T3) of pregnancy. Samples from 64 women who had term births (≥37 weeks gestation) were subjected to “shotgun” Orbitrap mass spectrometry. Mixed-effects models were used to quantify systematic changes and dimensionality reduction models were used to visualize patterns and identify reliable lipid signatures. Results: Total lipids and major lipid classes showed significant increases with the progression of pregnancy. Phospholipids and glycerolipids exhibited a gradual increase from T1 to T2 to T3, while sphingolipids and total sterol lipids displayed a more pronounced increase from T2 to T3. Acylcarnitines, hydroxy acylcarnitines, and Lyso phospholipid levels significantly decreased from T1 to T3. A deviation was that non-esterified fatty acids decreased from T1 to T2 and increased again from T2 to T3, suggestive of a potential role for these lipids during the later stages of pregnancy. The fatty acids showing this trend included key fatty acids—non-esterified Linoleic acid, Arachidonic acid, Alpha-linolenic acid, Eicosapentaenoic acid, Docosapentaenoic acid, and Docosahexaenoic acid. Conclusions: Mapping lipid patterns and identifying lipid signatures would help develop intervention strategies to reduce perinatal health disparities among pregnant Black women.

Anti-Blackness in Schools of Social Work: A Black Feminist Polyethnography

ABSTRACT Considering the significant contributions of Black women social workers to our profession, and the unyielding stressors and expectations disproportionately affecting Black women in the context of Black Lives Matter and COVID-19, addressing anti-Blackness and understanding the lived experiences of Black women within higher education are essential first steps toward eliminating racism, the 13th and most recently adopted Grand Challenge. Guided by Black feminist polyethnography, this study examined how anti-Blackness is collectively felt and experienced by six Black and mixed Black women faculty and graduate students in schools of social work over their academic careers. Initial steps schools of social work can take to acknowledge and address manifestations of anti-Blackness within existing policies, procedures, curriculum, and dominant school culture are discussed.

Better Than Blue Apron? The Dominant Nutrition Framework Packed in a Community-Based Meal Kit

ABSTRACT In 2018, a “Blue Apron type” meal kit for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was announced. Like many food initiatives, there was no input from the intended audience. In contrast, we used community-based research (CBR, n = 65) to design a meal kit for families with low income. However, we were unable to separate our approach from the dominant framework, hegemonic nutrition, predominantly led by white experts. We center the voices of Black women whose role in the initiative were otherwise limited. Food reformers using CBR ought to interrogate hegemonic nutrition as “community” is not inherently transformative.

Predictors of substance use disorder treatment and mutual support group participation among Black women across the criminal legal spectrum: A latent class approach

BackgroundThe purpose of this study includes: 1) identifying classes of substance-related needs among Black women, and 2) examining the effect of substance-related need classes and culturally-relevant factors on Black women’s use of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment and mutual support groups. MethodsAs part of a longitudinal cohort study, Black women were recruited in prison nearing release, on probation, and in the community without involvement in the criminal legal system (CLS, n=565) and followed-up at 18-months. We conducted a baseline latent class analysis of substance-related needs among Black women. Logistic regression models adjusted for culturally-relevant factors to predict the use of treatment and frequency of mutual support group participation over 18-months among Black women who use drugs. ResultsFour classes by level of needs were found: low, daily marijuana use, high mental health, and high comorbidity. During the 18-month follow-up, women characterized by the high comorbidity need class and with higher scores of religious well-being were more likely to frequently participate in mutual support groups. Non-CLS-involved women were less likely to engage with both treatment and mutual support groups than women from the prison sample at 18-months. ConclusionsThis study highlights four distinct classes of substance-related needs among Black women, highlighting the complex patterns of behavior and within-racial group differences among Black women. Black women with high comorbidity needs were more likely to participate in mutual support groups, but the latent classes did not predict SUD treatment indicating other non-medical and social contextual need factors may be at play.

“Real queens fix each other’s crowns”: The interiorities of Black (British) girlhood in Rocks (2019)

ABSTRACT This article explores and analyses the production and representation of Black (British) girlhoods in Sarah Gavron’s film Rocks (2019), and the effects this has had on Black women and girl actors, film-makers, and audiences. Adopting a critical Black (British) girlhood framework that is rooted in Black feminist theory, it explores how Black girls’ interior worldbuilding in British screen media and beyond can be a source of empowerment and affective memory work for these groups. Centring the voices of Black girls and women, this article locates the interiorities of Black (British) girlhood within practices of resistance and self-definition, the formation and maintenance of girls’ intimate friendships, and their intergenerational solidarities. Methodologically, it analyses the film’s narrative alongside interviews from the actors and creatives, Black women’s written memories of their girlhoods, and essays from young Black girls living in Britain to reveal how Black (British) girlhood is relational, embodied, and emotionally affective.

CD163+ macrophages in the triple-negative breast tumor microenvironment are associated with improved survival in the Women’s Circle of Health Study and the Women’s Circle of Health Follow-Up Study

BackgroundTumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are a prominent immune subpopulation in the tumor microenvironment that could potentially serve as therapeutic targets for breast cancer. Thus, it is important to characterize this cell population across different tumor subtypes including patterns of association with demographic and prognostic factors, and breast cancer outcomes.MethodsWe investigated CD163+ macrophages in relation to clinicopathologic variables and breast cancer outcomes in the Women’s Circle of Health Study and Women’s Circle of Health Follow-up Study populations of predominantly Black women with breast cancer. We evaluated 611 invasive breast tumor samples (507 from Black women, 104 from White women) with immunohistochemical staining of tissue microarray slides followed by digital image analysis. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios for overall survival (OS) and breast cancer-specific survival (BCSS) for 546 cases with available survival data (median follow-up time 9.68 years (IQR: 7.43–12.33).ResultsWomen with triple-negative breast cancer showed significantly improved OS in relation to increased levels of tumor-infiltrating CD163+ macrophages in age-adjusted (Q3 vs. Q1: HR = 0.36; 95% CI 0.16–0.83) and fully adjusted models (Q3 vs. Q1: HR = 0.30; 95% CI 0.12–0.73). A similar, but non-statistically significant, association was observed for BCSS. Macrophage infiltration in luminal and HER2+ tumors was not associated with OS or BCSS. In a multivariate regression model that adjusted for age, subtype, grade, and tumor size, there was no significant difference in CD163+ macrophage density between Black and White women (RR = 0.88; 95% CI 0.71–1.10).ConclusionsIn contrast to previous studies, we observed that higher densities of CD163+ macrophages are independently associated with improved OS and BCSS in women with invasive triple-negative breast cancer.Trial registrationNot applicable.

Solidarity and gender in protest novels: Bessie Head’s &lt;i&gt;The Cardinals&lt;/i&gt; and Miriam Tlali’s &lt;i&gt;Muriel at Metropolitan&lt;/i&gt;

This article analyses the critical role of gender within racial solidarity in anti-apartheid protest writing by comparing Bessie Head’s The Cardinals and Miriam Tlali’s Muriel at Metropolitan. Both novels depict the protagonist’s experience of being the only Black woman at a white-collar workplace during apartheid. The workplace relationships explored within the novels illustrate the complex role of gender in forming alliances and nurturing solidarity. Although Tlali’s novel prioritises solidarity between Black people in the face of apartheid, areas of significant gender inequalities are present. Head’s The Cardinals, on the other hand, explicitly explores the fissures in Black anti-apartheid alliances created by gender inequalities. The juxtaposition of these two novels challenges a uniform understanding of Black anti-apartheid solidarity, while also elucidating depictions of the competing relationships of solidarity for Black working women in female-authored protest writing. By forcing the reader to consider the place of gender in relation to both collectives of solidarity and to anti-apartheid protest, the novels trigger a rethinking of what traditionally male-dominated protest writing was and could be.

‘I Am a Broken Policy’: A Critical Reflection on Whiteness and Gender Anti-Black Racism in Institutions of Higher Education and Social Services

This personal narrative is a critical reflection and affirmation letter to Black women. Throughout this commentary, at the end of each section, I have included what I call “gems”. I hope they serve as a manifesto for our collective healing from working in institutions that center on the ideologies and practices of dominance. This piece particularly focuses on the dominant ideology and practice of “whiteness” within institutions as a surveillance tool through policy that directly impacts Black women’s wellbeing through gender anti-black racism. Through storytelling and drawing on Black feminist scholarship, this narrative exposes the challenges I faced with institutional policies and practices as I pursued my career in both academia and social service work. Throughout this narrative, I highlight how the undercurrent of whiteness is embedded in the foundation of institutional policy and practices. This narrative serves as a demand for institutional accountability and reckoning with the coloniality of epistemology and ontology. There is a great emotional toll for Black women who are confronting and resisting gendered anti-black racism with deep internal struggles and triumphs. The violent institutional practices seek to eclipse Black women’s ability to dream, imagine and create. Whiteness is centered in institutional infrastructure, serves as a distraction, and impedes our ability to conceptualize the world we desire. We deserve to have imagination in our work. This narrative is a reflection of the harm of whiteness, a guide for Black women academics, a manifesto for change, and a testament to our humanity.

‘A sin against our civilisation’: South Africa’s 1927 Immorality Act and the Criminalisation of Interracial Love, 1920–1948

ABSTRACT In 1927 South Africa passed the Immorality Act prohibiting miscegenation. The act was distinctly gendered in its composition and implementation, codifying a double standard against women. The Immorality Act not only policed miscegenation but consensual interracial sex and sex work, tacitly acknowledging that love could exist across racial lines. Almost immediately a pattern emerged where different convictions occurred for the same crime. Men and women were charged separately, resulting in disproportionate prosecution of black women. Courts were hesitant to accept black women’s evidence in white men’s trials, leading to biased outcomes. This article explores the gendered implementation of the act from 1920 to 1948 using archival documents and newspaper articles. The voices of women are not accurately represented in the colonial archive, and instances of love and intimacy even less so. The article assesses the impact of the act on the creation of South African legal culture.