Jean Ait Belkhir, Race, Gender & Class Journal

Theorizing Race, Class and Gender: The New Scholarship of Black Feminist Intellectuals and
Black Women's Labor
Author(s): Rose M. Brewer
Source: Race, Gender & Class, Vol. 6, No. 2, Race, Gender, Class: African-American Perspectives (
1999), pp. 29-47
Published by: Jean Ait Belkhir, Race, Gender & Class Journal
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Race, Gender & Class: Volume 6, Number2, 1999 (29-47J

RGC website:http://www.asanet.org/Sections/rgc.htm

Theorizing Race , Class and Gender:

The New Scholarship of Black

Feminist Intellectuals and

Black Women's Labor

Rose M. Brewer,AfricanAmericanStudies & Sociology

ofMinnesotaat Minneapolis
University

Abstract:
Thepurpose inthisarticle
istoexplicatesomeoftherecent onrace,class
theorizing
andgenderbyBlackfeminist intheacademy.
thinkers Thistheorizing
isfurther
explored inan
of
analysisBlack women's laborandAfrican-Americanclass
formation.The labor
transforma-
ofBlackwomen
tion interms
isexplicated ofeconomic andcapital
restructuring mobility,racial
formationandgender Itis a process
inequality. BlackwomenintheNortheast
linking and
MidwesttotheSouth andSouthwest,
Asia,AfricaandtheCaribbean.Itisnotthetieofpoverty
butthetieofsubordinate
toprosperity, status
tosubordinate
status
crosscutbyinternalclass
Mostimportant,
in all theseregions.
differences onlyintheorizingthecomplexity ofthe
ofrace,classandgender
intersections canweadequately tostruggle
prepare forsocialchange
intheAfrican-American community.

blackfeminist
Keywords: blackwomen's
intellectuals, labor, class.
race,gender,

RoseM. BreweristheMorse-Alumni
Distinguished
Teaching Professor
ofAfro-Americanand
African
Studies
andChairpersonoftheAfro-American StudiesDepartmentatTheUniversity
ofMinnesota-Twin Sheistheeditor,
Cities. withLisaAlbrecht,ofBridges ofPower:Women's
Alliancesandhasa bookinprogress
Multicultural forSage,Engendering the'Race':A
Sociology
ofAfrican Sheisworking
Americans. ona second book,Race,Gender andPolitical
Economy:TheAfricanAmericanCaseSincetheNewDeal. SheisalsoanAssociate Editorial
Boardmember ofthejournalRace,Gender & Classsinceitscreation
infall1993.Address:
ofMinnesota,
University AfricanAmerican StudiesandSociology, 808 SocialSciences,
MN 55455,ph:(612)624-9847
Minneapolis, II fax(612)624-9383.

AcknowldegementThisarticle
wasoriginally inTheorizing
published BlackFeminism
: The
Visionary
PragmatismofBlackWomen, edited
byStanlie
M. James andA.Busia,NewYork,
Press,1993,andisreprinted
Routledge herebypermissionofthepublisher.

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30 RoseM. Brewer

thecenterofthetheorizingaboutrace,class andgenderin the

USA is a groupofBlackfeminist Theseareacadem-
intellectuals.
At ics, independent scholarsand activistswho are writingand
rethinking theAfrican-American experiencefroma feministperspective. In this
chapter,I ammostconcerned withtheideasofthosewomeninvolvedinknowledge
production whoaresituated intheacademy:collegesanduniversitiesthroughout the
USA. Theirinsights areessentialtotherethinking
whichmustoccurinconceptualiz-
ingtheAfrican- American experience.Althoughtheyarefewinnumber, theirrecent
placementin Women'sStudies,EthnicStudiesandtraditional disciplinessuchas
sociology, science,
political history,
English,anthropology,
comparativeliteratureand
so on,is strategic
tothecurrent upsurgeinBlackfeminist scholarship.

Whatis mostimportant conceptuallyand analytically

in thisworkis the
articulationofmultiple This of
oppressions. polyvocalitymultiple sociallocationsis
historically missingfrom of and
analyses oppression exploitation in traditional
feminism,Black Studies
and mainstreamacademic Black
disciplines. feminist thinking
is essentialtopossibleparadigm inthesefields;forexample,inBlack Studies
shifts
tobeginexplaining theAfrican-American experience throughthemultiple articula-
tionsofrace,classandgenderchanges thewholeterrain ofacademicdiscourseinthat
area.Blackfeminist socialscientists
deconstruct
existing frameworks in sociology,
historyand a rangeofotherdisciplines.

In the ensuingdiscussionI look morecarefully at how Black feminist

theorizing is centralto ourrethinkingtheAfrican-American experience. I examine
Black women'slaborandAfrican-American classformation to illustrate
howrace,
classandgender contribute
inintersection toourunderstanding ofAfrican-American
life.I organizethechapter aroundthefollowing threethemes:(1) an examination of
thecontextofrecentBlack feminist theorizingin thesocial sciences,(2) a closer
analysisof a majorproposition of Black feminist thought, "the simultaneity of
oppression," givenrace,class and genderas categoriesof analysesin thesocial
sciences;and(3) sketching outa reconstructedanalysisofBlackwomen'slaborand
African- American classformationthrough thelensesofraceandgender.

The Social Context of Recent Black Feminist Theorizing

Thetheoryandpractice
ofBlackfeminism thecurrent
predates period.Even
duringthefirstwave of feminism, accordingto Terborg-Penn
(1990), prominent
Black feminists
combined thefight againstsexismwiththefightagainstracismby
callingthepublic'sattention
continuously Black
totheseissues.Turn-of-the-century
AnnaJuliaCooperconceivedtheAfrican-American
activist woman'spositionthus:

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 RaceyClass and Gender
Theorizing 31

"Sheis confronted
bya womanquestion anda raceproblem,andis as yetan
unknownor unacknowledged factorin both.( VoicefromtheSouthbya
BlackWomen oftheSouth,1892). Although Black
early-twentieth-century
saw
suffragettes women's as
rights essentialto social
relieving ills,they
calledattention
repeatedly toissuesofrace.Nonetheless, withintheviseof
race,African-
American womenforged a feministconsciousness
intheUSA.
Suchwomenmight be calledtheoriginalBlackfeminists.Again,thelifeand
workofAnnaJuliaCooperis a case inpoint.Guy-Sheftall andBell-Scott
(1989: 206) pointoutthatCooper'swork,A VoicefromtheSouthbya
Black Womanof theSouth(1892), "has thedistinction ofbeingthefirst
scholarlypublication in thearea of Black Women'sstudies,thoughthe
concepthadcertainly notemerged duringtheperiod."

Yet thegatewayto thenewBlackfeminist ofthepasttwenty

scholarship
yearsis thecivilrights
movementandthemainstream feminist
movement ofthelate
1960s andearly1970s.E. FrancesWhite,an activist
inthecivilrights
movement,
capturestherecenthistoricalcontextin whichcontemporary
Black feministsare
located.She says:

I rememberrefusingto leave thediscussionat a regionalblackstudent

society
meetingtogohelpoutinthekitchen.Theprocessofalienation from
thosemilitant
andarticulate
menhadbegunforme(1984: 9).

Whitegoesontopointoutthat:

...manyoftoday'smostarticulatespokeswomen, in the
too,participated
blackstudents,
civilrights,
andblacknationalist
movements.
Liketheirwhite
thesewomenfeltfrustrated
counterparts, byrestraints
imposedonthemby
themenwithwhomtheysharedthepoliticalarena(1984: 9).

Race, Class and Gender

ForCynthia
Washington,an activistintheStudent Nonviolent Coordinating
Committee (SNCC),thisincipient
Blackfeminism is givena different
slant.Shepoints
outthatalthough
Blackwomen'sabilitiesandskillswererecognized inthemovement,
themencategorizedthewomenas something otherthanfemale(Echols,1989). Both
thesepositions
reflect
thehistorical
pathofBlackfeminist development inthesecond
waveofUS feminism. Blackfeminism is definedas a multiple
levelofengagement
(King,1988).

This is strikingly by the CombaheeRiverCollective.The

exemplified
was
organization formed a of
by group Black lesbianfeminists
inthemid-1970s. In

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32 RoseM. Brewer

thecontext ofmurder inBoston,BarbaraSmithanda groupofotherBlackwomen

founded thecollective.Smithwas insistent
thatthemurder
ofBlackwomenwas not
onlya facialissue.ThefactthatthirteenBlackwomenwerekilledcruelly
exhibited
howsexismandracismintersected women.Given
inthelivesofAfrican-American
this,thecollectiveargued:

Themostgeneral ofourpoliticsatthepresent
statement timewouldbe that
are
we actively committedto struggling againstracial,sexual,heterosexual,
andclassoppression,andsee as ourparticular taskthedevelopment ofan
integrated and
analysis practice based upon the factthatmajorsystems of
create
oppression the of
conditions our lives.As Black women we see Black
feminism as thelogicalpoliticalmovement to combatthemanifold and
simultaneousoppressionthatall women of colorface. (Smith,1983: 272)

Blackfeminist
Importantly, theorizingplacesAfrican-American womenat
thecenteroftheanalyses(Hulletal., 1982; Collins,1986, 1990;King,1988;Dill,
1979). By theorizingfromtheculturalexperiences of African-
Americanwomen,
socialscientists
suchas Collinsargueepistemologically thatexperienceis crucialto
Blackwomen'swaysofknowing andbeingintheworld.Thus,capturing thatcultural
experienceis essentialto a groundedanalysisofAfrican-American women'slives.
Thismeansanalysispredicated on theeverydaylivesofAfrican-American women.
hasbeenlinking
Moredifficult theeverydaytothestructural
constraints
ofinstitutions
andpoliticaleconomy (Brewer,1983,1989).Indeed,a challengetoBlackfeminist
theoryis explicating
theinterplay betweenagencyand social structure.However,
nearlyall the recentwritinghas been abouteveryday lived experiences.Less
successfulandvisibleis theexplication oftheinterrelationshipbetweenlivesand
socialstructure.

Finally,runningthrough Black feminist analysesis theprincipleof "the

simultaneityofoppression" (Hulletal ., 1982).Thisis theconceptual
underpinning
ofmuchofrecent Blackfeminist reconceptualizationofAfrican-American life.In the
following "thesimultaneity
discussion, ofoppression" is examinedmorecarefully and
is central
toourunderstanding ofBlackwomen'slaborandAfrican-American class
formation.Furthermore,rethinkingthesocialstructure ofinequality
inthecontext of
race,classandgender intersections
is crucialtothisdiscussion,
usingBlack women's
textileindustry
workinNorthCarolinaas a case inpoint.

Race, Class and Gender: "The Simultaneity of Oppression

Theconceptual
anchor ofrecent
Blackfeminist is theunderstand-
theorizing
ingofrace,classandgenderas simultaneous
forces.Themajorpropositionsofsuch
a stanceinclude:

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 Race,Class and Gender
Theorizing 33

1. dichotomous,
critiquing oppositionalthinking byemploying both/and
rather
thaneither/orcategorizations
2. allowingforthesimultaneity ofoppression andstruggle,
thus
3. eschewing additiveanalyses: race+ class + gender
4. whichleadsto an understanding oftheembeddedness andrelationality
of
race,classandgenderandthemultiplicative nature
oftheserelationships:
racex classx gender
5. reconstructing the lived experiences,historicalpositioning,cultural
perceptionsandsocialconstruction ofBlackwomenwhoareenmeshed in
andwhoseideasemergeoutofthatexperience, and
6. developinga feminismrootedinclass,culture,genderandraceininteraction
as itsorganizingprinciple.

thetheorizing
Importantly, aboutrace,class and genderis historicized
and con-
textualized.

Race, Class and Gender: As Categories of Analysis

Racehasbeendefinedina numberofways,yeta fewpowerful

conceptual-
izationsareusefultoourdiscussion
ofBlackfeminist
theory.

feminist
Recently, historian notes:
Higginbotham

Like genderand class,then,race mustbe seen as a social construction

predicatedupontherecognition
ofdifference
andsignifying thesimultaneous
distinguishing andpositioning
ofgroupsvis-a-visone another.Morethan
raceis a highly
this, contested ofrelations
representation ofpowerbetween
socialcategoriesbywhichindividuals
areidentifiedandidentifythemselves
(1992: 253).

Theembeddednessofgenderwithin
thecontext
ofraceis further
captured
She
byHigginbotham. notes
that:

insocieties
whereracialdemarcationis endemictotheirsociocultural
fabric
andheritage- totheir
lawsandeconomy, totheirinstitutionalized
structures
anddiscourses, andtotheirepistemologiesandeveryday customs- gender
is
identityinextricably to
linked andeven determinedby racial We
identity.
aretalkingabouttheracializationofgenderandclass.(1992: 254)

OmiandWinant
pointout:

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34 RoseM. Brewer

Theeffort
mustbe madetounderstandraceas anunstableanddecentered
complexof social meaningsconstantly
beingtransformedby political
(1987: 68)
struggle.

Andfinally,
BarbaraFieldsconceptualizes
raceideologically:

Ifracelivesontoday,itdoesnotliveonbecausewe haveinherited
itfrom
ourforebears
oftheseventeenthcenturyortheeighteenth
ornineteenth,
but
becausewe continuetocreateittoday.(1970: 117).

Relatedly,genderas a categoryof analysiscannotbe understooddecon-

textualized
fromraceandclassinBlackfeminist Socialconstructions
theorizing. of
Blackwomanhood andmanhoodareinextricably linkedtoracialhierarchy,
meaning
systemsandinstitutionalization.
Indeed,gendertakeson meaningandis embedded
in thecontextof theracialand class order:productive
institutionally, and social
relations
reproductive oftheeconomy.

Accordingly, class as an economicrelationshipexpressingproductiveand

relations
reproductive is a of
majorcategory analysis inthenotionofthe simultaneity
ofoppression.
Yet,recentBlackfeminist writers (hooks,1984;Collins,1990;King,
1988)pointoutthetendency oftheoristswriting intheclasstraditions
toreducerace
and genderto class. Similarly Blackfeminist economist RhondaWilliams(1985)
placeschangesinthelab"market squarelyina race,genderandclassframework that
cannotbe explainedthrough traditional
labor/capitalanalyses.

Yet we canfallintothetrapofoverdetermination, especiallyinthecase of

raceas a categoryofanalysis.Infact,Higginbotham (1992) drawsourattention tothe
metalanguage ofraceinwhichinternal issuesofgenderandclassaresubsumed to a
unitarian positionofAfrican- Americans. Here,class is hiddenor misspecifiedand
gender is renderedinvisibleinthisconceptualization
ofAfrican- American inequality.
Indeed, raceinthecontext oftheglobalizationofcapitalism makesgenderthecenter
ofthenewworking class. Thus,thefollowing discussiondrawsuponrecentBlack
feminist theorizingto placeBlackwomenat thecenterofan analysisoflaborand
African- American classformation emphasizing therelational andinteractivenature
ofthesesocialforces.

Black Women's Labor and African-American Class Formation

Through the Prism of Race, Gender and Class

The contestation
amongscholarson race and class reflects
conceptual,
interests
political andcareerist
concerns.
Yet,thedebateontherelativeimportance
ofrace andclasshas beenfought on a nongendered
largely Thewritings
terrain. of

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 Race, Class and Gender
Theorizing 35

Blackfeminist intellectuals
giveus somenewinsight intohowraceandclassmight
be viewedinthecontext ofgender.Indeed,as theoristsexplicatetheintersection
of
race,genderandclass,ourconceptualizations ofracialinequality willchange.The
complexityofrace,genderandclassinteractions suggeststhatscholarlyworkmust
accomplisha number ofdifficult
theoretical
tasks,especiallyaroundinterrelationships.
Thus,inthecontext ofexplainingBlackwomen'slaborandclassformation, atleast
one questionis key:How doesexplicatingAfrican- American's womenpoorlypaid
productiveor unwagedsocial reproductive laborrecenter our understandingof
African-American andclassformation?
inequality I canbeginto answerthisquestion
byexamining morecloselythechangesinBlackwomen'slabor,drawing uponthe
of
insights Black feministtheorizing.

Theresearchonraceandlaboris striking. Baron(1971), ina classicessay

titled
"TheDemandforBlackLabor,"essentially discussesBlackmen'slabor.This
tendencyis pervasivein a gooddeal oftheworkon theBlackexperience (Collins,
1986,1990).Consequently, theinequality
ofAfrican-American lifeis conflated
with
Blackmen'sinequality.Indeed, much ofthediscussionofinequality intheUSA has
beencenteredonthedynamics ofeither
raceorgender;thistranslates intodiscussions
ofWhitewomenorBlackmen.Dismissing intersections
ofraceandgenderinsuch
autonomous analysesconceptuallyerasesAfrican-American women.RecentBlack
feminist
thinkingstrongly emphasizestheerrorinthiskind ofanalysis.

Accordingly,a criticaldefining
element ofthecurrenttimeis theregiona-
lizationandinternationalizationofwomen'swork.Indeed,a crucialdeterminant of
Blacklifetodayis notsimply Blackmen'smarginalization fromworkbutthesocial
transformationofBlackwomen'slabor.Furthermore, thetransformation ofBlack
women'slaboris tiedto structural changesin thestateandeconomyas wellas to
shiftsintheracial/genderdivisionoflabor.

Threemajorlabortransformations inBlackwomen'swagedlaborarekey:
(1) movementfrom domestictoindustrial
andclericalwork,a processstillincomplete
andparticularizedbyregionandclass(SimmsandMalveaux,1986); (2) integration
intotheinternationaldivisionof laborin low-paidserviceworkwhichis largely
of
incapable providinga familywage (Brewer,1983); and (3) the increasing
impoverishment andfragmentation ofBlack women,children andfamilies(Sidel,
1986).Ananalysis oftheNorthCarolinatextileindustryis a goodcase inpointofthe
above processes.Thesechangesare matchedby thepervasiveperipherization of
Black menfrommanufacturing workandthelaborforce(Beverlyand Stanback,
1986).Theorizingrace,classandgenderinthecontext ofthesebroad-based structural
changesinBlackwomen's laborexemplifiesa division
of waged labor builtonracial
norms andvalues,as wellas material
arrangements embedded in a gendereddivision
of labor.More recently, uneveneconomicgrowthand internationalization have

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36 RoseM. Brewer

Blackwomeninthecomplex
involved oflaborexchangeofwomennationally
circuitry
andglobally.

Inshort, firms
capitalist donothavetodependuponBlacklabor,either male
orfemale.Low-wage, low-cost laborcanbe foundall overtheworld.The world labor
forceis a cheap substitution forBlack labor in the USA. Yet, thisis further
complicatedbythefeminization ofmuchoflabor(low-paidwomenwithin theUSA
and outside).Furthermore, women'sworkin the USA is gender/race divided.
numbers
Disproportionate ofBlackwomenareatthebottom ofthisdivisionoflabor,
rootedinsocialmeanings systems whichgetremadeinthematerial contextofsocial
practicesas well as thecalculusof profit.Structurally,
suchprocessesanchora
disproportionatenumber ofAfrican-American womenat thebottomoftheservice
sector
withsomeregionalvariation andsomeconvergence ofwomen'sstatusacross
race in gender-segregated jobs. Thus, African-American women representa
significant
component ofthenewworking class.Whatmorecan be said aboutthe
social forcesintegralto African-Americanlaborchangesandclass formation? To
answerthis,I willlookcarefully atthestructural
shifts
ofthelastthirty
years.

Theconcrete manifestation ofregional

politicaleconomy is unevencapitalist
development (Clavellet al ., 1980). Today,US workers competeinan international
marketforlaborpower.Thereis a worldwidelatentreservelaborforcewhich
competeswithunskilled andsemi-skilled laborinboththeUSA andEurope.White
women, men and women of color Whitemaleworkers
and,increasingly, intheUSA
eitherdirectly
compete with or arebypassedin favor
of cheaperlaborinMalaysia,
Mexico, Singapore,thePhilippinesand theDominicanRepublicamongothers
(Williams,1985).

Thus,a regionalandinternationalapproachtopoliticaleconomy is central

to thisanalysis.However,thismustbe matchedbya concernwithracial/cultural
formation,genderinequality andconcrete Whiteworkershave
politicalstruggles.
beenin competition
historically withBlackworkers(Bonacich,1976). Theyhave
beenablehistorically
tocloserankagainst Blacklaborforthebestjobs. Blackwomen
andmenhaveoften beenleftwiththeleastdesirablework,butsomework.Today,this
is not so formanyAfrican-Americans. Duringtheera of advancedcapitalism,
competitionmovesbeyondtheconfines ofsingleindustries andnationsandbecomes
internationalized
(Williams,1985).

Economic changesarenotabstractions
fromtheactivities
ofagents.Choices
are made:whowillbe used,whowillnot.Thesechoicesarenotwhollyseparated
from cultural/racial/gender whichgetremade
practices underconditions ofinternation-
alizationof theeconomy.This meansthatmuchof theexplanation of African-
Americanmarginalizationfromtheeconomyis explainedas culturaldeficit.The
economic oftheBlackpoorandworking
locking-out pooris definedas a reflection
of

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 Race, Class and Gender
Theorizing 37

a cultureof povertyratherthantheremaking of racism,sexismand economic

oppressionunderconditionsofadvancedcapitalism. Thewhitepowerelitemakes
decisionsbasedonprofit
as wellas theideologyofraceandgender.

Uneven economicdevelopment therefore encompassesmore than a

labor/capitalstruggle.It is shapedby culturalprocessesreflecting long-standing
definitions,
perceptions ofwhatis naturalandgivenaroundhierarchies ofraceand
gender.It is theissueofwholoses.And,increasingly, theansweris youngBlack
womenandmenofAmerican innercities.Moreover, theconcernwiththechanging
divisionoflaborthrough economicrestructuring is matchedinthisdiscussionbya
concernwithracialandgenderdivisionsoflabor.Pivotalhereis theintersection of
race/genderhierarchiesandthewaycontemporary economicrestructuringis shaped
by existingarrangements of race/genderdivisions.Furthermore, class fractioning
withinthegender/class divisionoflaborintersects withracialconstraintswithinthe
gender/class divisionof labor.These processestakeon an urban,regionaland
internationalform.Consequently, although at issueis thetransformation ofBlack
women'slabor,itshouldbe viewedas a transformation inthreemoments: race,gender
andclass simultaneously.

Finally, andcurrently,
historically politicsandthestateappeartomediatethe
processofclass,raceandgender Hence,uneveneconomicdevelopment
struggle. and
economic area politicalprocess,too.Thestateanditspoliticalrelations
restructuring
are partofthecalculusofthechangeandrestructuring engagedin bycapital.For
example,Perryand Watkins(1977) explainthepoliticaland economicnatureof
sunbeltgrowthand development: a state/businesscoalitioncreateddesirable
conditionsin thesunbelt.So, movingdefensemoneyto sunbelt-based industries,
providingtaxbreaksandR&D subsidies, was essentialto earlysunbeltgrowth.It
was as mucha politicalas an economicprocess.

Thus, economicrestructuring, uneveneconomicgrowthand interna-

tionalizationof thelaborforceembodycultural, gender,politicaland economic
moments. The consequenceofthisnowin theUSA is thatabouttwo-thirds ofall
working personsareengagedinservices(Williams,1985). A goodnumber ofthese
are African-American womenperforming workin theformof
publicreproductive
nurses'aidesandold-ageassistants, andinfastfoodoutletsandcafeterias.Indeed,
nearlyall newjob growth duringthe1970sand 1980swas intheservicecategory.
Externallyandinternallywomenarefillingthesenewservicejobs. Theyarethenew
workingclass.Underconditions ofeconomicrestructuring,
highlyskilledlaboris
technical
largely laborandunskilledlaboroflargelymanualandclericallabor.Thus,
Black women'sworktodayintheUSA reflects thehighdemandforclericallabor
emerging outofrestructuring.
Moreover, Blackwomen'sclericalworkreflects the
partialcollapsingofa racial/gender
divisionoflabor.BothBlackandWhitewomen
dothesameworkinmostplacesintheUSA. Evenso,Blackwomenaremorelikely

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38 RoseM. Brewer

to be supervisedand Whitewomenare morelikelyto supervise(Simmsand

Malveaux, structural
1986).Nonetheless, changesbothintheAmerican economy and
globallyare changingcitiesand regions.This restructuring
is changingBlack
women'sworkandall women'srelation towork.

The secondtransformation in Black women'slaborreflects a changing

tothenewinternational
relationship divisionoflabor.Thereis a diasporicconnection
withAfricanwomenintheAmericas, theUSA, theCaribbeanandSouthAmerica.In
sub-Saharan Africa,in thewakeofcolonialism andimperialism,therehas beena
profound reconstitutionof Africanwomen'sproductive and reproductive labor
(Amadiume,1988). Whatis notwell understood in thisprocessis whatfurther
changesAfricanAmerican womenglobally willundergo. Within theUSA, shiftswill
be costlyin humantermsunderconditions of uneveneconomicdevelopment,
regionalandinternational
restructuring, laborchange.Jobloss is occurring formany
Blackwomenortheyareinpart-time ratherthanfull-time and
jobs (Woody Maison,
1984). Theirunemployment rateis amongthehighestin theUSA (Simmsand
Malveaux, 1986). Andparadoxically, just as someBlack womenare beingmore
tied
firmly towhite-collar/clerical
work, others arebeingexcludedfromtheeconomy
This
altogether. job loss is linkedto thereplacement ofthemostvulnerable women
ofcolorwithwomenworkers outsidethecountry andnewimmigrant womenwithin
thesociety.

This laborexchangeprocessis increasingly

beingstudiedbyscholarsin
researchon labortransformation
andThirdWorldwomenglobally(NashandSafa,
1976);Fernandez-Kelley,1983;LeacockandSafa,1986). Thesewriters discussthe
impactof thenewinternationaldivisionoflaboron womenofcolorglobally.It is
arguablethatThird Worldwomeninternationally
areanessentialpartofthesearchfor
cheaplabor(Safa,1983).FuentesandEhrenreich concur(1983). Womengenerally,
and ThirdWorldwomenspecifically, havebecomeessentialto cheaplaborin the
globalcapitalisteconomy.

Hence,giventheinternationaldivisionoflabor,someBlackwomenwithin
theUSA arelosingworkjustas theyaremakinga nicheforthemselves inregional
industries
suchas textiles.
Theracial/genderdivisionoflaborhistorically
intheUSA
has openedfromthebottom forBlackwomen.Thiscontinues to be thecase. For
example,as southernWhitewomenintextilesmovedtomoredesirableindustrial jobs
inthepasttwoandhalfdecades,BlackwomeninNorthCarolina,SouthCarolinaand
acrossthetextile
Southhavefilledtheunskilledandsemi-skilledjobs. Blackwomen
nowholdover50 percentoftheoperative positionsinmanysouthern plants(Woody
andMaison,1984).Yet,withplantclosedownandinternationalization, manyofthese
womenarebeingfired.Thenumber ofextileworkers peakedatover 1 millioninthe
1950s;in1978there were754,296(SawarsandTabb,1984). As usual,Blackwomen
wereagainthelasthired,thefirstfired.

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 Race, Class and Gender
Theorizing 39

GiventheregionalevolutionofBlackwomen'sworkwithin theUSA, North

Carolina
servesas a goodcasestudyoftheracial/sexualdivisionoflaborforAfrican-
Americanwomen.Someworkhas alreadybeendoneon thisprocessin theestate
the1930s(Janiewski,
through 1985).Clearly,
Blackwomen'sworkhasbeencarefully
craftedby economicand culturalforces.Well intothe 1960s,thestateof North
Carolina
wascompletely dominated,economicallyandpolitically,
byWhites.JimCrow
was onlyofficially comingto an end,andthevestigesofthecivilrightsstruggle
lingered.Whitemalesdominated thestatepolitically
andsocially.Nonetheless,
all
Whitessharedin a culturalheritageofwhitesupremacy datingbackto thedaysof
slavery,
acceptingthenotionoftheirspecialnessvis-a-visBlackwomen,whether they
themselves
wereeconomically ornot.ThismeantthatpoorWhitewomen
privileged
werecommitted tothepremisses ofwhitesupremacy as wellas wealthier
women.

Despitea sharedheritageofwhitesupremacy, a racialorderbuilton the

belief and ideologyof whitesupremacyalone wouldnothave endured.It was
solidifiedand maintained
through thedomination
of politicalinstitutions
and the
economiccontrol byWhitemaleelites.Economics,politicsandculture meshedto
forma specialkindofracialorderinNorthCarolina,butthelinchpinofthesystem
was Whitemaledomination andcontrolofkeypoliticalandeconomicinstitutions.

BythetimeoftheincorporationofBlackwomenintothetextile millsofthe
region,usuallyin the dirtiestand mostdistasteful
jobs, the racial and gender
distinctions
werestrong
enough togeneratefourseparategroupsoflabor:Whitemen,
Whitewomen, Blackmen, Blackwomen. Thegender distinctions
generated a different
kindoflaborhierarchy:
Whitemen,Blackmen,Whitewomen,Blackwomen.

BlackwomeninNorthCarolinahavebeenoverwhelmingly concentrated
in
thesecondarysectorofthestate.Secondary jobs aredirtier,
harderandlower-waged
thanprimary sectorjobs. Jobturnover is greaterandjob benefits arefewerin the
and
secondary primary sectors.US census datafor1980 showthatBlackandWhite
womenhelddifferenttypesofjobsinNorth Carolina.A typicaljob fora Whitewoman
waswhite-collar.
A largenumber ofWhitewomenwereclericalworkers, andothers
wereinvolvedin teaching, healthalliedprofessions and retailsales work.Black
womeninthestatewereinblue-collar occupations.Theseincludenondurable goods,
operatives,privatehouseholdworkers,serviceworkers.And unlikethe nearly
completeshiftofBlackwomenoutofdomestic worknationally,a somewhat greater
oftheBlackwomeninthestatewereinvolvedindomestic
percentage work.Overall,
there
hadnotbeenmajorpenetration intowhite-collarclericalworkforthesewomen.
Theywerenearlyall inthelowerreachesoftheoccupational structure.

Thus,whenBlack womenmovedintoindustrial workin NorthCarolina

textilemills,theydidso without withWhitewomen.The genderdivisionof
parity
laborwas overlaidwiththeparticularities
ofrace.Onlyinthe1980sdidBlackand

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40 RoseM, Brewer

Whitewomenbeginto sharea commonoccupational Currently,

trajectory. thereis
some convergence ofall racialethnicwomen.
similarto thenationalconvergence
SomeBlackwomeninthestatearemovingintoclericalwork.Moreover, thereis a
mixedworkplace
racially forwomeninNorthCarolinatextile millstoday.Evenstill,
Black womenoccupya disproportionate of low incomeworkin this
percentage
intheSouth(WoodyandMaison,1984).Theybearthebrunt
industry oflay-ofifs
and
hasbeendevastated
theindustry andclosedowns.
byplantmobility

Morebroadly, uneveneconomicgrowth
as notedearlier, andinternational-
izationhaveinvolvedthesewomenina complexcircuitry offemalelaborexchange
nationallyand globally.Racial segmentation of laborpersists,rootedin cultural
assumptionsand socialpractices, as well as thecalculusofprofit.Consequently,
althoughoccupational
segregation all womenfrommeninthelaborprocess,
separates
thereis noisearoundrace.

Raceinthecontext ofgenderandclassmeansAfrican-Americans arequite

vulnerable.Forexample,Black women arestill
more likelythan White women tobe
low
paid wages, tobe tobe
unemployed, supervised rather than to (Simms
supervise
andMalveaux,1986). Giventhesedifferences (Wallace,1980), theirrelationshipto
capital is different
from that of White women. Even a
still, small groupof Black
womenaremoving intothewhite-collaroccupations.Theirnumbers areindicative
of
growing of
significance classrelativetoracein nationallabor markets.

Nonetheless,itis theservicesectorinwhicha disproportionatenumber of

African-American womenwork.Thisjob slotforBlack womencannotprovidea
wageforhighschooleducatedand/or
family lessskilledurbanBlacks.Thisis highly
problematicin themidst of extremelyhighBlack maleunemployment rates.In the
caseofAfrican-
American adolescents,thenearlycomplete erasureoftheir
laborforce
has
participation occurred. Wallace
Phyllis (1974) is one ofthenew earlyscholars
whoplacethisrealityincontext. Shepointsoutthat:

Blackteenage
females groupsinthe
oneofthemostdisadvantaged
constitute
labormarkets
oflargemetropolitan
areas.(1974: 8)

WoodyandMaison(1984:3) elaborate
thispoint:

Currentemployment indicatesubstantial
patterns in
underrepresentation
anda strong
hiringblackwomenin all incomelevelsinkeyU.S. industry
ofdiscrimination
possibility basedonrace.

Indeedtheworking
pooras a significant
segmentoftheworkingclassmust
be understood
ina gendered Blackmalejoblessness
context. alonedoesnotaccount
forthetremendous of
disadvantagetheBlack segmentation low
poor.Race/gender and

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 Race, Class and Gender
Theorizing 41

wages as reflected
inthepositioning
ofAfrican-
American
womenareconceptually
toAfrican-
central Americanclassinequality
today.

Social Reproduction: Gender Inequality at Home and Work

in the Context of Black Women's Labor Transformation

Labor is notsimplyaboutwagedworkat thesiteofproduction. Within

households, Black women a
performsignificant portionof thesocial reproductive
labor.Thesocialization
ofchildrenandthecleaning, cookingandnurturing fonctions
arealldisproportionately
Blackwomen'swork.Indeed,poorBlackwomenareoften
expectedto do everything. Theirworkwithinthehomeis devalued,eventhough
housework is accomplishedundertrying circumstances:substandard housing,no
household washersanddryers, orfewappliances.Yetthesewomenareincreasingly
expectedto workin low-paidjobs to qualifyforAid to FamilieswithDependent
Children (AFDC). Indeed,"workfare" is thekeyto recentpublic"welfarereform"
Here
legislation. again, raceand gender intersect
to anchorAfrican-
American women
ina different
stratumfromWhitewomenorBlackmen.

Furthermore, thepublicservice
workreferred toearlieris increasingly
public
socialreproductivework:careforaged,sickandchildren. Itfallsdisproportionately
onBlackwomenandotherwomenofcolor.Yetwagesareverylow andtheaverage
servicesalaryis less than$12,000peryear(Williams,1985). Theresimplyis not
enough money tosupport a family.
Giventhis,someformofstatesupport shouldmake
up a portionofthesocialwageforyoungBlackpeople.Realistically, withsevere
cutbacksinthesocialwage,increasing immiseration forpoorAfrican- Americansis
Thus,Blackmalemarginalization
likely. fromwork,anda particular typeofworkand
welfareforthepoorestAfrican- American is likely.Thus,Blackmalemarginalization
fromwork,and a particular typeof workand welfareforthepoorestAfrican-
American women, pointtoextremelydifficulttimesaheadfortheBlackpopulation in
theUSA. Theincreasing impoverishment oftheBlackfamily mustbe viewedinthis
context:Black women'splacement in poorlypaidjobs, Black men's increasing
marginalizationfrom work altogether littlestatesocialsupport
and formen,women
or children.Out of theseprocessesemergesthelowestsectorof theBlack class
structure.

For thisreason,although therehas beenan assaulton theBlackworking

class, thereis a
still working class.It is conflatedwiththeworking poor.Itis highly
exploited and has experienced heavy assaultson itswage.It is a classwhichis often
poor and female. Sidel (1986) points outthatmanypoor families are headedby
womenwhoworkallyearlong.Forthosehouseholds, theproblemis notlackofwork,
it is low wages.The problemis also,as notedintheNorthCarolinaexample,sex
segregation demarked bya racial/gender divisionoflabor.Thelaborforceparticipa-

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42 RoseM. Brewer

tionofBlackmenhasdroppedprecipitously andnowabout55 percentofthemare

inthelaborforce. haveprofound
Suchrealities forAfrican-
implications American life.
UnderstandingBlackmen's inthe
placement economy a
providesonly partialanalysis
ofwhatishappening.Explicating inthecontext
Blackwomen'slabortransformation
oftheAfrican-American
of race,class andgendergivesus a fullerunderstanding
experienceinthe1990s.

Summary

Mypurpose hasbeentoexplicate someoftherecent theorizingonrace,class

and genderbyBlack feminist thinkers in theacademy.Thistheorizing is further
exploredin an analysisof Black women's labor and African-American class
formation. Thelabortransformation ofBlackwomenhasbeenexplicated intermsof
economicrestructuring andcapitalmobility, racialformation andgenderinequality.
It is a processlinking BlackwomenintheNortheast andMidwesttotheSouthand
Southwest, Asia,Africa andtheCaribbean. Itisnotthetieofpoverty toprosperity, but
thetieofsubordinate statustosubordinate statuscrosscut by internalclass differences
inalltheseregions. Becauseofclass,whichintersects withraceandgender, a sector
ofBlackwomenis intheupwardly mobileintegrated sectorofa servicized economy.
Thesearewomenwhoaremoving outofthefast-growing femaleservicesectormade
up ofclericalsintothesomewhat slower-growing hightechnology fields,whichare
male dominated. the
Still, rateof into
change high-paying fields
has beenslowfor
Blackwomen.In 1970, 1 percentofAfrican- American womenwereengineers and
by 1980 7
only per cent were and
(Amott Matthaei, ). 199 1 More oftenBlack women
professionalsareghettoized inthelowest-paying professional fields.Theyarepoorly
in
representedengineering, computer science, and otherhighly skilledfieldswithhigh
pay. Currieand Skolnick (1984)aptly notethat "short ofan unprecedented shiftinthe
sexcomposition oftheseoccupations, theirgrowth (highly paidprofessionals) seems
unlikely tohavea verystrong effectontheoveralldistribution of(Black)womenin
thejob hierarchy."

a discernible
Finally, number ofBlackwomenaresubemployed (desirefull-
timeratherthanthepart-time worktheyhave)orhavebeenmarginalized fromwork
altogether(WoodyandMaison,1984). Thisoccursacrossregions;itis especially
evidentinnorthern andsouthern innercitiesandruralareas.Abouthalfofall poor
female-headedBlackfamilies areintheSouth.Additionally,thebifurcation ofBlack
women'slaborplaysouta certain logic.Somewhat higher levelsofclericalandwhite-
collarserviceworkarebeingperformed byskilledBlack womenin thenortheast,
midwest andwestwhilecapitalmobility hasdevastated theBlackmalesemi-skilled
andunskilledworking class inolderindustrialareas.Whatis leftis a servicesector
of racial minoritywomenworkingforlow wages. Simultaneously, thereis a
marginalizationof someBlack womenfromworkaltogether. Theydependupon

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 Race, Class and Gender
Theorizing 43

transfer theinformal
payments, ofbartering,
economy hustling, andkinship
exchange,
support.

Even now,thelargestcategory
ofBlack womenworkersin theUSA is
clericalandserviceworkers
(SimmsandMalveaux,1986). Thelatteris a category
encompassinghousehold
workers,cleaners, andpublicserviceworkers,
janitors, jobs
whichareextensionsoftheprivatehouseholdservicerole.Internationally,
thereis a
broadbaseofwomendoingsemi-skilledlaborintheelectronics, andother
computer,
"sunrise"industries
whichhavegoneabroad.Thisis thework,primarily,oftheWhite
andAsianworking-classfemaleintheinternalnational
women'seconomy.

theintersection
Finally, ofrace,classandgender, ininterplaywitheconomic
accounts
restructuring, fortheinternal fractioningandseparation ofwomenfromone
another.Yet thisis nottheentirestory. Cultural practice,beliefsandideologyalso
structurefemalelabor.Theideologyofwhatis appropriate Blackwomen'sworkis
playedoutinthearenaofthepublicsocialreproduction oflabor.Kitchenandcafeteria
workers,nurses'aides: thesearedefined as appropriatejobs forBlackwomen,very
muchas thedomesticlaborof a generation ago was defined as "Black women's
work"Itis onlywhenall theseprocessesarebetter understood thatperspectiveson
African-American inequality will be more accurate. Crucially,the Black class
structure
ismadeinthecontext ofeconomic, staterestructuringandpoliticalstruggle,
and the recreation of race,and a gender/racial divisionof labor.These are not
unrelatedphenomena. The resultis a highlycomplicated positioningoftheBlack
populationwith some sectorsclearlyworse off thaninthepast, and othersectorsmore
securelytiedtomainstream institutions.
African- American womenareatthecenterof
this reconstitution
of Black laborand class formation. Most important, onlyin
theorizingthecomplexity of theintersections of race,class and gendercan we
adequatelypreparetostruggle forsocialchangeintheAfrican- American community.

Conclusions

In theorizing
theconstructionofrace,classandgenderinintersection, three
keythemesareapparent. First,genderalonecannotexplaintheAfrican-American
woman'sorman'sexperience. Feminism mustreflect in itstheoryandpracticethe
raceandclassterrainupon which and
hierarchy inequality arebuiltgloballyandwithin
theUSA. Second,thesimultaneity ofthesesocialforcesis key.In turn,practiceand
strugglemust be anti-sexist, anti-racist
anti-classist, andanti-homophobic. the
Finally,
"gender,race,class"dynamic is themajortheoretical
frame throughwhichgenderis
incorporated intodiscussions
ofthepositionofBlackwomen.Alone,theyarerather
sterilecategoriesinfusedwithmeaningdevelopedoutof manydecadesof social
thoughtonclassandrace.Ininterplay withtheconceptgender, theparadigm becomes
fairlyrich(Brewer,1989). It is thesimultaneity of theseforceswhichhas been

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44 RoseM. Brewer

identified thinkers.
and theorizedby Black feminist Preliminary in this
thinking
direction
suggests basedandholistic.
thatanysuchanalysesmustbe historically

Giventhewritings ofBlackfeminist thinkers inthesocialsciences,social

scientificanalysesembodying race, class and genderare growing.Simmsand
Malveaux(1986),Dill (1979) Collins(1986),King(1988) andHigginbotham (1992)
areamonga growing number ofBlackfeminist socialscientists.
Thesewriters critique
tendencies
parallelist andoppositionaldualistic
thinking. Theold additivemodelsmiss
anessential difference
thequalitative
reality, inthelivesofAfrican- American women
throughthesimultaneity
ofoppression andresistance.Thuswe mustthink manyofthe
extantanalyseson African-Americans throughthelensesofgender, raceandclass.
Thisisjustthebeginning phaseofthekindofworkwhichmustbe donefora robust
andholistic ofAfrican-
understanding American life.

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