The jezebel stereotype blamed Black women for white male sexual assault

Evidence

Since woman was designated as the originator of sexual sin, black women were naturally seen as the embodiment of female evil and sexual lust. They were labeled jezebels and sexual temptresses and accused of leading white men away from spiritual purity into sin. One white politician urged that blacks be sent back to Africa so that white men would not fornicate or commit adultery. His words were “remove this temptation from us.” Although religious white women, white men, and black men argued that white men were morally responsible for sexual assaults on black women, they tended to accept the notion that men succumb to female sexual temptation. Because sexist religious doctrines had taught them that women were the seducers of men, they believed black women were not totally blameless. — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 99

Categorization

• DEFINE: Introduces the jezebel stereotype, a foundational concept in Black feminist thought about representation of Black women.
• XREF: connects to: White male sexual power over slaves redirected white women’s anger onto black women — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 451; Hypersexuality stereotypes justify sexual assault of black and Latina women; Institutionalized sexism protected black male sexuality while legitimizing black female assault — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 66 (+5 more)

Related

• Labeling black women as sexual savages enabled their rapes by denying their humanity. (similarity 0.88)
• White sexual assault of black women was excused by blaming the victims’ morals. (similarity 0.86)
• White male sexual power over slaves redirected white women’s anger onto black women (similarity 0.85)
• Institutionalized sexism protected black male sexuality while legitimizing black female assault (similarity 0.84)
• Nineteenth-century sexual morality taught mistresses to blame enslaved women for rape (similarity 0.83)
• White writers fabricated black women’s unchastity to justify racial segregation. (similarity 0.83)
• Hypersexuality stereotypes justify sexual assault of black and Latina women (similarity 0.82)
• Historians have normalized and minimized the rape of enslaved black women. (similarity 0.80)
• Black men asserted dominance over women to compensate for losing to white men (similarity 0.80)
• White male brutality toward Black women stemmed from patriarchal misogyny, not racism alone (similarity 0.80)
• White mistresses often punished rather than protected sexually exploited slave women (similarity 0.80)
• Sexual exploitation dehumanized black women more than labor exploitation did (similarity 0.79)
• Enslaved women were no more sexually liberated than white women. (similarity 0.79)
• Abolitionists who condemned rape still blamed enslaved women as accomplices. (similarity 0.79)
• Enslaved women absorbed anti-woman violence that white women otherwise faced (similarity 0.79)

Broader Connections

• White sexual assault of black women was excused by blaming the victims’ morals. #corroborates (0.85) — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 177
• Hypersexuality stereotypes justify sexual assault of black and Latina women #corroborates (0.80)
• Institutionalized sexism protected black male sexuality while legitimizing black female assault #expands (0.60) — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 66
• White male brutality toward Black women stemmed from patriarchal misogyny, not racism alone #expands (0.50) — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 99