In Transnational Black Feminism and Qualitative Research: Black Women, Racialization and Migration, Tanja J. Burkhard explores Transnational Black Feminism as a qualitative research framework that centres the narratives of Black women. This book is a valuable resource for those committed to conducting more equitable research that disrupts extractive modes of knowledge production, writes Lydia Ayame Hiraide, and will particularly enhance the understanding of Black women researchers seeking to conduct rigorous but sensitive qualitative research amongst and within our own communities. Transnational Black Feminism and Qualitative Research: Black Women, Racialization and Migration. Tanja J. Burkhard. Routledge. 2022

Hiraide, Lydia Ayame

English

LSE Research Online

Book	Review:	Transnational	Black	Feminism	andQualitative	Research:	Black	Women,	Racialization	andMigration	by	Tanja	J.	BurkhardIn	Transnational	Black	Feminism	and	Qualitative	Research:	Black	Women,	Racialization	andMigration,	Tanja	J.	Burkhard	explores	Transnational	Black	Feminism	as	a	qualitative	research	framework	thatcentres	the	narratives	of	Black	women.	This	book	is	a	valuable	resource	for	those	committed	to	conducting	moreequitable	research	that	disrupts	extractive	modes	of	knowledge	production,	writes	Lydia	Ayame	Hiraide,	and	willparticularly	enhance	the	understanding	of	Black	women	researchers	seeking	to	conduct	rigorous	but	sensitivequalitative	research	amongst	and	within	our	own	communities.	Transnational	Black	Feminism	and	Qualitative	Research:	Black	Women,	Racialization	and	Migration.	TanjaJ.	Burkhard.	Routledge.	2022.Find	this	book	(affiliate	link):In	Transnational	Black	Feminism	and	Qualitative	Research,	Tanja	J.	Burkhard	centresthe	narratives	of	Black	women	as	told	by	themselves,	whilst	proposing	TransnationalBlack	Feminism	(TBF)	as	a	qualitative	framework	to	tell	and	analyse	these	stories.	Overthe	course	of	75	pages,	this	short	text	makes	a	theoretical,	empirical	and	methodologicalcontribution	to	the	study	of	race,	gender,	migration/borders	and	intersectionality	in	thesocial	sciences.	It	is	written	in	a	clear	and	engaging	style,	providing	an	excellentoverview	of	and	primer	to	Transnational	Black	Feminist	qualitative	inquiry.	Theframework	is	proposed	as	a	way	of	undertaking	research	with	people	that	we	know	andlove,	without	compromising	the	quality	of	the	research	or	the	important	relationships	thatsustain	us.The	first	two	chapters	of	the	book	concentrate	on	the	key	methodological	and	theoreticalchallenges	and	opportunities	that	arise	from	conducting	research	using	a	TBFframework.	At	the	heart	of	this	is	Burkhard’s	proposal	of	TBF	as	a	research	frameworkwhich	supports	researchers	to	undertake	research	within	their	own	communities	whilstattending	to	the	local,	national	and	global	contexts	which	frame	and	shape	the	lives	of	Black	women	across	timeand	space.Fundamentally,	TBF	is	a	method	of	analysis	and	storytelling	which	contextualises	‘Black	women’s	ways	of	knowingby	placing	them	front	and	center	in	the	qualitative	research	process’	(3),	whilst	examining	the	structural,	historical,spatial	and	affective	forces	that	shape	Black	women’s	complex,	changing	lives.	In	her	use	of	the	framework,Burkhard	encourages	us	to	think	both	through	and	beyond	borders	of	nation	states,	sewing	threads	amongst	thecontinents	of	Africa,	the	Americas	and	Europe	in	order	to	contextualise	and	analyse	the	lives	of	transnational	Blackwomen	living	in	the	US.LSE Review of Books: Book Review: Transnational Black Feminism and Qualitative Research: Black Women, Racialization and Migration by Tanja J.BurkhardPage 1 of 3		Date originally posted: 2022-05-27Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2022/05/27/book-review-transnational-black-feminism-and-qualitative-research-black-women-racialization-and-migration-by-tanja-j-burkhard/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/Image	Credit:	Photo	by	Christina	@	wocintechchat.comCrucially,	the	framework	emphasises	how	multiple	spaces	simultaneously	configure	what	we	make	of	ourselvesand	of	others.	Using	her	empirical	data,	for	example,	Burkhard	shows	how	ideas	about	what	Blackness	is	areculturally,	spatially	and	temporally	contingent.	TBF	thus	pushes	back	on	the	idea	that	the	US	(or	any	one	state)should	constitute	the	primary	or	only	location	of	relevance	for	Black	feminism	–	or	that	Black	feminism	andBlack/African	women	located	in	the	US	are	not	always	shaping	and	being	shaped	by	other	parts	of	the	world.	Theframework	therefore	disrupts	methodological	preoccupations	with	the	nation	state	as	the	primary	unit	of	analysis.Instead,	TBF	proposes	a	transnational	analytic	which	works	to	consider	the	relationships	between	different	spacesand	places	in	shaping	the	diverse	experiences	of	Black	women.After	setting	out	TBF	as	a	qualitative	framework,	the	latter	two	chapters	of	the	book	present	and	analyse	theempirical	data	collected	for	this	research.	This	consists	of	a	series	of	interviews	conducted	with	seven	Black	womenwith	whom	the	author	holds	personal	relationships	of	varying	degrees	of	intimacy,	as	well	as	reflexive	insights	fromthe	author	herself.At	the	core	of	the	book’s	empirical	discussion	is	a	sensitive	and	respectful	commitment	to	telling	the	stories	of	thesewomen.	Burkhard	weaves	the	words	of	her	research	participants	into	the	fabric	of	her	astute	political	analysis,	whilstbringing	attention	to	the	affective	complexities	of	conducting	qualitative	research.	After	all,	as	she	emphasises,	the‘data’	she	collects	are	the	personal	stories	of	real	individual	people.	And	indeed,	there	are	parts	of	their	storieswhich	can	often	be	difficult,	traumatic	and	emotional	to	tell	and	to	listen	to.	From	this	view,	qualitative	inquiry	isrevealed	to	be	a	complex	affective	affair	which	requires	sensitivity	to	how	ethics,	power	and	reciprocity	frame	howthe	research	is	conducted.The	final	chapter,	which	specifically	addresses	questions	around	reflexivity	and	reciprocity,	is	perhaps	one	of	themost	valuable	parts	of	the	book	for	those	currently	conducting	or	looking	to	embark	upon	directing	their	ownqualitative	research,	especially	with	racialised	communities.	Burkhard	insists	on	the	‘need	to	think	critically	aboutengaging	in	solidarity,	coalition-building,	and	[…]	to	think	about	what	exploitation	and	reciprocity	may	mean	in	theirparticular	contexts’	(60).	This	means	moving	away	from	extractive	modes	of	research	where	the	research	encounterbegins	and	ends	with	the	interview.LSE Review of Books: Book Review: Transnational Black Feminism and Qualitative Research: Black Women, Racialization and Migration by Tanja J.BurkhardPage 2 of 3		Date originally posted: 2022-05-27Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2022/05/27/book-review-transnational-black-feminism-and-qualitative-research-black-women-racialization-and-migration-by-tanja-j-burkhard/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/Burkhard	describes	how	her	own	reciprocal	ethic	in	the	research	conducted	for	this	book	manifested	in	activitiessuch	as	English	tutoring,	providing	emotional	support	and	supporting	with	claims	for	asylum.	But	she	notes	thedanger	of	researchers	risking	their	own	health	and	wellbeing	in	undertaking	this	labour	under	the	spirit	ofreciprocity.	Certainly,	this	speaks	to	wider	concerns	about	much	of	the	extra	unpaid	labour	that	womendisproportionately	undertake	both	within	academia	and	elsewhere	already.	This	does	not	detract	from	the	value	ofthis	book,	however.	So,	as	a	reader	and	qualitative	researcher,	I	was	left	curious	about	some	of	the	strategies	thatBurkhard	put	in	place	to	navigate	this	aspect	of	her	research.	How	exactly	does	a	researcher	set	up	theseboundaries?	Who	decides	what	they	are	and	based	on	what	criteria?	Which	resources	proved	important	insupporting	a	healthy	dynamic	of	reciprocity?	These	are	ongoing	questions	for	many	researchers	working	onprojects	founded	on	an	ethics	of	reciprocity.Not	only	is	it	important	to	consider	how	qualitative	research	is	conducted,	but	also	how	we	tell	the	stories	entrustedto	us	as	researchers.	Burkhard’s	sensitivity	to	Black	feminist	storytelling	can	be	seen	in	her	attention	to	what	sherefers	to	as	the	poetics	of	Black	women’s	lives.	She	literally	creates	poetry	out	of	the	words	from	the	interviewswhich	she	conducted.	Drawing	on	the	interview	content,	she	stitches	together	the	words	of	her	multiple	participantsin	beautiful	poems	which	exercise	an	emotional	aspect	whilst	shedding	light	on	the	harsh	politics	which	frametransnational	Black	women’s	lives	in	the	US.Integrating	poems	into	the	text	of	the	book	works	very	well	as	the	poems	add	texture	and	colour	to	the	stories	thatsit	at	the	heart	of	Burkhard’s	political	analysis.	The	poems	speak	vividly	to	the	fundamental	things	that	move	us	andmake	us.	But	they	do	this	without	encroaching	on	or	detracting	from	the	incisive	analysis	of	how	researchparticipants	responded	to	the	politics	of	race,	gender,	class,	nationality	and	so	on.	Constructing	poetry	frominterview	content	is	a	curious	and	invigorating	way	to	engage	with	qualitative	data.	It	would	have	been	interesting	toknow	more	about	how	the	creative	process	of	constructing	these	poems	worked,	setting	it	up	further	as	a	potentialtool	for	other	researchers	to	draw	on.In	this	book,	Burkhard	makes	a	compelling	argument	for	adopting	TBF	as	a	method	of	qualitative	inquiry,	showinghow	TBF	accounts	for	the	importance	of	context,	intersectionality,	self-reflexivity	and	researcher-participant	powerdynamics.	Crucially,	Burkhard	does	not	shy	away	from	bringing	her	full	researcher	self	to	the	text	and	research.Reflecting	on	her	own	personal	narrative	and	experiences	as	a	Black	German	woman	and	former	internationalstudent,	she	shows	how	the	differences	and	similarities	which	she	shared	with	her	research	participants	–	who	werealso	Black	women	but	of	different	backgrounds	–	coloured	the	types	of	conversations	they	had	in	their	interviews.Bringing	these	aspects	of	personal	narrative	into	the	discussion	illustrates	the	value	of	engaging	in	a	strong	practiceof	reflexivity	from	both	theoretical	and	methodological	perspectives.The	book’s	keen	attention	to	the	particular	ways	in	which	researchers’	own	positionalities	shape	and	framequalitative	inquiry	adds	to	feminist	insistences	that	knowledges	are	‘situated’	–	that	is,	the	knowledge	that	weproduce	is	always	situated	within	and	therefore	shaped	by	the	specific	geospatial,	temporal	and	cultural	context	ofthe	researcher	as	much	as	the	research	participants.	Given	TBF’s	attention	to	the	relationships	between	space,power	and	the	production	of	knowledge,	this	concise	book	is	an	especially	valuable	resource	for	researcherscommitted	to	conducting	more	equitable	research	that	disrupts	academic	traditions	of	exploitative	and	extractiveknowledge	production.	For	Black	women	researchers	in	particular,	this	text	enhances	our	understandings	of	how	toconduct	rigorous	but	sensitive	qualitative	research	amongst	and	within	our	own	communities.Note:	This	review	gives	the	views	of	the	author,	and	not	the	position	of	the	LSE	Review	of	Books	blog,	or	of	theLondon	School	of	Economics	and	Political	Science.	The	LSE	RB	blog	may	receive	a	small	commission	if	youchoose	to	make	a	purchase	through	the	above	Amazon	affiliate	link.	This	is	entirely	independent	of	the	coverage	ofthe	book	on	LSE	Review	of	Books.Banner	Image	Credit:	Photo	by	Christina	@	wocintechchat.com	LSE Review of Books: Book Review: Transnational Black Feminism and Qualitative Research: Black Women, Racialization and Migration by Tanja J.BurkhardPage 3 of 3		Date originally posted: 2022-05-27Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2022/05/27/book-review-transnational-black-feminism-and-qualitative-research-black-women-racialization-and-migration-by-tanja-j-burkhard/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/

Book review: Transnational Black feminism and qualitative research: Black women, racialization and migration by Tanja J. Burkhard

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Book review: Transnational Black feminism and qualitative research: Black women, racialization and migration by Tanja J. Burkhard

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