How does the world perceive black female bodies?
The body can be defined as “the physical structure of a person or an animal including bones, flesh, and organs” (Google). Every human being has a body, yet not all are able to embrace the feeling of self-worth and claim their own identity due to the stereotypes and racism surrounding how they are viewed which stem from the history of dehumanization during the times of slavery. African Americans, specifically black females, have been sexualized and exploited for their bodies due to the fact that their body types are different from those of white women.
Black Bodies are a hot topic of conversation between videos, articles, poems, and more. Serena Williams has been criticized for her body by many different people because it is not the ‘typical’ body of a tennis player as discussed in the video below.
She has been mocked by other players, had unfair calls against her by referees, and shown in a negative light by the media. In one instance a fellow competitor Wozinacki has been shown mocking Williams’ appearance on the court. She was seen stuffing her shirt and skirt to make her boobs and butt larger to imitate Williams’ build. In Rankine’s Citizen the image is described as, “we have Wozniacki’s image of smiling blonde goodness posing as the best female tennis player of all time” (Rankine 36). Wozniacki is described as “blonde goodness” even when doing something offensive and racist. Serena Williams is described as “angry and offensive” after losing her temper on a clearly biased umpire. She was even labeled as “immature, and classless” for a “three second victory dance” after winning two gold medals. However, after an offensive act, Wozinacki is described as “smiling blonde goodness.” When Serena had an outburst at a linewomen who made an incorrect call, the Grand Slam Committee decided she should lose her match, pay a $82,500 fine, and go on a two-year probationary period. The committees decision was made based on context but, “it is not difficult to think that if Serena lost context by abandoning all rules of civility, it could be because her body trapped in a racial imaginary, trapped in disbelief–code for being black in America– is being governed not by the tennis match she is playing in but a collapsed relationship that had promised to play by the rules” (Rankine 30). Because of this Serena is trying to develop a new lens around the African American body type by creating a new clothing line to promote size inclusivity and representing everyone. When Serena was on the cover of Vogue she stated, “I like who I am, I like how I look, and I love representing the beautiful dark women out there. For me, it’s perfect. I wouldn’t want it any other way” (Good Morning America).
Serena Williams also was featured in Beyonce’s Lemonade but in a much more positive light than past sporting matches. In an interview about why Beyonce chose her, Williams said, “I know Beyoncé pretty well, so they were like, we would love for you to be in this particular song. It’s about strength and it’s about courage and that’s what we see you as” (Ivie). In “Apathy”, Beyonce recreates Serena Williams’ iconic pose from her December 2015 Sports Illustrated cover, showing how the identity of the African American women is escaping the exploitation of their bodies as Serena Williams was the first black woman ever to win the Sportsperson of the Year award. This demonstrates the acceptance of the African American body type by a magazine that typically sexualizes the female body.
Serena Williams is not the only black woman who is viewed in a certain light because of her body. In the poem, Hottentot Venus, Morgan Parker references Sarah Baartman who was referred to as a freak attraction due to her large buttocks. Her body shape was exploited for white profit as she performed on stage and for wealthy customers in their homes in skin-tight clothing because Baartman was seen as abnormal, embodying the terms used in 13 Ways of Looking at a Black Girl such as “exotic” and “chocolate” since she was identified for her body rather than for who she is as an African American woman (Parker 29). After her death, a plaster cast was created of Baartman’s body and then dissected to be placed on display in a Paris museum until 1974. This shows the people’s infatuation with female black bodies, causing African Americans to grow up lacking self-love because historically, whites dehumanized their body type rather than accepting the differences of their beauty. In pop culture, Lizzo is known for normalizing beauty for all sizes, body types, as well as color body to promote body positivity and inclusivity as seen in her music video of her song, “My Skin” which can be viewed below.
African American women like Serena Williams and Lizzo are speaking out to change these stereotypical views of the black female body as represented through the exploitation of Sarah Baartman to exemplify how African American women can develop an identity for themselves that is based on the self-love and self-worth they have for who they are as a women rather than the racism that causes them to question their beauty be of their body image.
Works Cited:
Good Morning America. “Serena Williams Talks Body Image, Says She’s Been ‘Undervalued’ and ‘Underpaid’.” Good Morning America, https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/serena-williams-talks-body-image-shes-undervalued-underpaid-73440162.
Ivie, Devon. “Like Any Encouraging Friend Would, Beyoncé Told Serena Williams to ‘Just Dance’ for Her Lemonade Cameo.” Vulture, Vulture, 8 May 2016, https://www.vulture.com/2016/05/serena-williams-explains-her-lemonade-cameo.html.
Parker, Morgan. There Are More Beautiful Things than Beyoncé. Tin House Books, 2017.
Parkinson, Justin. “The Significance of Sarah Baartman.” BBC News, BBC, 7 Jan. 2016, https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35240987.
Rankine, Claudia. Citizen. Penguin Books, 2015.
