Date of Graduation
8-2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Sociology (MA)
Degree Level
Graduate
Department
Sociology and Criminology
Advisor/Mentor
Jackson, Brandon A.
Committee Member
Zajicek, Anna M.
Second Committee Member
Hearne, Brittany N.
Keywords
black women; college; colorism; hip-hop; inclusivity; intersectionality; qualitative; sorority
Abstract
In this thesis, I examine black college sorority women’s views about skin tone bias in hip-hop culture. I conduct interviews with 12 black undergraduate women in Black Greek Letter Sororities at a predominantly white institution. Prior research finds that rap music sends skin color messages to adolescent women through lyrical content and music videos. I build on this work by exploring how the experiences of being in college shape black college sorority women’s views on skin tone bias and hip-hop. I find that time in college has been an important life stage in which black sorority women gained an increased sense of awareness and confidence about their own and others’ identities, showed concern about how others interpreted messages in hip-hop, and wanted to see more inclusive women representation in hip-hop.
Citation
Frierson, W. (2019). "I Like . . . Red Bone:" Colorism, Rappers, and Black College Sorority Women at a Predominantly White Institution. Graduate Theses and Dissertations Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/3317
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