Black Men and Black Masculinity

Abstract

In recent decades, sociological studies of black males and of black masculinity in America unfolded with great rapidity. In the 1960s, sociological studies of black males gained currency. Much of their focus has been on the problematic state of black males in education, employment, family life, peer and social relations, and within criminal justice systems. That tradition moved from employing a social problems lens for researching black men to documenting how their efforts in these and other spheres of life reflect creativity and efficacy as much as malaise and despair. Emerging several decades later in sociology, black masculinity studies began with an emphasis on how black males contended with hegemonic masculinity. This tradition moved to explore how sexual, socioeconomic, and other variations in the black male experience elucidated vulnerability as a common feature of that experience, as well as to more extensive visions of black masculinity. New research questions stand before both traditions that constitute the twenty-first-century agenda.

Decolonising integrative practice with Black queer men who experienced trauma: A thematic analysis

“…Several Black male participants discussed how they presented themselves as not conforming to traditional masculine gender role norms or stereotypes around Blackness in their relationship with their clients. As traditional Black masculine gender role norms are a barrier to engaging in help-seeking (Pelzer, 2016;Young, 2021), this finding is a valuable contribution to the literature on how to effectively develop the working alliance when working with Black queer men who experienced trauma.…”

“…When Black men adhere to notions of Black masculinity, there is often a reluctance to seek help (particularly from White-centred institutions), maladaptive coping and not communicating emotions when confronted with adverse life events (Pelzer, 2016;Young, 2021).…”

“…Accounting for the moderating effect of ethnic identity and gender in the development of masculinity among Black men, Black masculinity is a multidimensional social concept influenced by race, gender, social class, sexuality and religion, with ideologies adhering to hypersexuality, physical strength and misogyny (Strayhorn & Tillman‐Kelly, 2013). When Black men adhere to notions of Black masculinity, there is often a reluctance to seek help (particularly from White‐centred institutions), maladaptive coping and not communicating emotions when confronted with adverse life events (Pelzer, 2016; Young, 2021).…”

Black Americans suppress emotions when prejudice is believed to stem from shared ignorance

“…Second, the expression suppression measure utilized in this study extends a previous study on emotion-regulation strategies that are employed among individuals reacting to racism (e.g., Wei et al, 2010 ). Finally, the demonstrated negative impact of expression suppression speaks to the insidious nature of strength-related stereotypes of Black Americans: perceived high pain tolerance associated with Black Americans ( Hoffman et al, 2016 ), the societal pressure to be hypermasculine among Black men ( Young, 2021 ), and the superwoman schema among Black women (i.e., Black women trying to fit a “superwoman” ideal of not displaying or burdening others with their emotions; Woods-Giscombé, 2010 ; Allen et al, 2019 ). Notably, as our measure of expression suppression closely resembles items utilized in prior work on the superwoman schema, current findings suggest that this schema may be related to increased emotional suppression in the face of racial discrimination.…”

Code of the Street 25 Years Later: Lasting Legacies, Empirical Status, and Future Directions

“…To earn the esteem of these important stakeholders, men must put their juvenile involvement in crime and violence behind them, cut ties to problematic male peer groups, and signal a commitment to law-abiding activities and conventional routines, putting others' needs before their own (Carlsson 2013, Fader 2023, Umamaheswar 2020. Black masculinities research has expanded even more widely since Code's publication, turning from a focus on the maladaptive failures of Black compensatory masculinity to increased attention to how they navigate hegemonic masculine norms and the agency, creativity, and resilience needed to do so (Williams et al 2019, Young 2021). Finally, Panfil's (2017) groundbreaking analysis of gay-identified, mostly Black gang members who, like those in Anderson's work, responded to acts of disrespect through violence, demonstrates that their construction of masculinities was complicated by fluid performances of gender identity across social settings and audiences that were bound by heteronormativity.…”