Resistance and Gendered Racism: Middle-Class Black Women's Experiences Navigating Reproductive Health Care Systems

Abstract

A core issue in reproductive justice concerns how racism impacts reproductive health outcomes for Black women. However, the intersectional experiences of middle-class Black women navigating racism in reproductive health systems have not been fully captured in psychological literature. By utilizing a Black feminist approach to qualitative inquiry, this study situates the psychological dynamics behind middle-class Black women's interpretations of and reactions to gendered racism in reproductive settings within the historical context of slavery and its aftermath. The data analysis of 12 interviews captures how middle-class Black women reflect on their interactions with gynecologists, narrate their anticipation of gendered racism, and interpret and respond to experiencing gendered racism. Findings from this study suggest that gendered racism is a haunting of embodied gynecological trauma that maps onto the historical legacy of slavery. This study offers psychology an empirical and analytical framework for moving forward with its conceptualizations of how race, gender, and class intersect in service of reproductive justice. Results from this study can be used by clinicians to guide their clients towards healing gendered-racist-related stress, as well as medical schools to educate obstetricians and gynecologists on how to provide anti-racist care to their Black patients. Online slides for instructors who want to use this article for teaching are available on PWQ's website at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/suppl/10.1177/03616843231168113 .