The Cultural Politics of Slam Poetry: Race, Identity, and the Performance of Popular Verse in America (Book Review)

Review of the book, The Cultural Politics of Slam Poetry: Race, Identity, and the Performance of Popular Verse in America, by Susan Somers-Willett, University of Michigan Press, 200

Status Maximization, Hypodescent Theory, or Social Identity Theory? A Theoretical Approach to Understanding the Racial Identification of Multiracial Adolescents

This chapter examines whether the racial identification of mixed-race adolescents can be understood through several theories: Status Maximization Theory, the rule of hypodescent, or social identity theory. Status Maximization theory posits that mixed-race adolescents will attempt to identify as the highest racial status group they possibly can. The rule of hypodescent or hypodescent theory, also known as the one-drop rule, is a legacy of the Plantation-era South and prescribes that mixed-race individuals identify as their lowest status racial identity. Social identity theory posits that the higher frequency or quality of contacts with parents or individuals in mixed-race adolescents’ peer networks affect the racial identification of mixed-race adolescents. Also, social identity contends that a mixed-race adolescent\u27s intergroup dynamic (measured here as a child\u27s level of self-esteem, whether there is prejudice at school, and a child\u27s self-concept) dictates how he or she will racially identify. Through analyses of mixed-race adolescents in the National Longitudinal Adolescent Health (Add Health), I find that Asian-white and American-Indian-white adolescents do not status maximize nor abide by hypodescent, while black-white adolescents do not status maximize but do adhere to hypodescent when forced to choose one race. There is no tendency for the frequency or quality of contact with parents, romantic partners, or school composition to affect racial identity, as predicted by social identity theory. Yet, several of the aforementioned social-psychological variables are found to influence the racial identification of mixed-race adolescents. Specifically, whether they felt positively about school, if they experienced prejudice, whether they had higher levels of self-esteem, and if they felt socially accepted by their peers. Another key finding from this research suggests that racial identification for Asian-white and American-Indian-white adolescents are both fluid and optional; this is not the case for black-white adolescents. I conclude by offering the implications of these findings for black-white multiracial individuals

Multiracial Identity

This entry examines multiracial identity from each of the aforementioned perspectives, positing that classification entails more than individual claims and assertions; rather, the interactions between the state, multiracial groups, and personal decisions lead to a more nuanced understanding of the process of multiracial identification. The government plays a critical role in creating the mark all that apply (MATA) option on the census. The emergence and influence of multiracial activist organizations advocating for recognition of this population is significant now. Finally, there is considerable social psychological literature addressing mixed-race identity, focusing on the four largest pairings. Early research characterized this population as dysfunctional and pathological; however, current research posits that multiracial identity is fluid, contextual, and normal

Dear Colleague

Research demonstrates that faculty of color in historically white institutions experience higher levels of discrimination, cultural taxation, and emotional labor than their white colleagues. Despite efforts to recruit minority faculty, all of these factors undermine their scholarship, pedagogy, social experiences, promotion and retention

Break Beats in the Bronx: Rediscovering Hip-Hop’s Early Years (Book Review)

Review of the book, Break Beats in the Bronx: Rediscovering Hip-Hop’s Early Years, by Joseph C. Ewoodzie, University of North Carolina Press, 2017, https://www.uncpress.org/book/9781469632759/break-beats-in-the-bronx/

[Introduction to] I Got Something to Say: Gender, Race, and Social Consciousness in Rap Music

What do millennial rappers in the United States say in their music? This timely and compelling book answers this question by decoding the lyrics of over 700 songs from contemporary rap artists. Using innovative research techniques, Matthew Oware reveals how emcees perpetuate and challenge gendered and racialized constructions of masculinity, femininity, and sexuality. Male and female artists litter their rhymes with misogynistic and violent imagery. However, men also express a full range of emotions, from arrogance to vulnerability, conveying a more complex manhood than previously acknowledged. Women emphatically state their desires while embracing a more feminist approach. Even LGBTQ artists stake their claim and express their sexuality without fear. Finally, in the age of Black Lives Matter and the presidency of Donald J. Trump, emcees forcefully politicize their music. Although complicated and contradictory in many ways, rap remains a powerful medium for social commentary. Includes a lyrical (content) analysis of recent rap music of men and women from 2005 to 2015. Analyzes commercial and underground/independent rap music in the United States. Discusses the emergence of queer emcees, the role of Black Lives Matter, and current politics.https://scholarship.richmond.edu/bookshelf/1378/thumbnail.jp

Bringing Mothers and Fathers Together: Undergraduate Studies in Anthropology and Sociology

As social scientists in a combined Sociology and Anthropology department at a small liberal arts institution, we approach research questions on mothering and fathering from our respective disciplines. In the summer of 2014 we made plans to experiment with a first year seminar that would bring our distinct courses together: Oware’s Man Up: Unpacking Manhood and Masculinity, and Castañeda’s Global Perspectives on Reproduction and Childbirth. In the fall of 2014, we combined our courses over two-weeks to discuss the roles of fathering and mothering in our research agendas. As we suspected, our courses were unevenly represented on their own with Oware’s class enrolling mostly men and Castañeda’s mostly women. We utilized a multidisciplinary approach to ask students to unpack the use of the phrase “man up” when applied to fathering and to discuss what it means to “mother,” among many other topics. Ultimately the decision to bridge our courses opened the door to many more questions that have only enriched our research, department, and class content on mother and father studies. In the remainder of this essay we discuss our individual research to illustrate two of the ways we introduce mother and father studies to our students. We begin with an assessment of fatherhood in rap music and progress to discussing doulas and mothering. Specifically, Oware focuses on the constructions of fathering in rap music and Castañeda’s work examines how doulas force us to rethink how we understanding mothering through their work. This is followed by an analysis of a case study on how students in our departmental proseminar course responded to questions on mothering and fathering. Finally, we include a reflection on how bridging mother and father studies impacts our department, students, and our own personal lives