women histories, incest sexual abuse. institutionalized. But what if ...

men and received far less support from their community,
which in these cases tends to doubt their claims of abuse, siding
instead with the attacker. Boxer Mike Tyson and the late
rapper Tupac Shakur—both convicted rapists—are widely
regarded as victims of the criminal justice system and women
who "were asking for it."
Then consider the case of Girl X. A nine-year-old black
resident of Chicago's infamous Cabrini-Green housing project,
Girl X was raped, beaten, strangled, bunded, and then forced
to swallow gasoline in a stairwell last January. Although the
child (whose real name has never been released) survived, she
was unconscious for a month and may never regain her eyesight.
Despite the hideous nature of the crime, community
leaders remained silent for weeks following the incident and
condemned the attack only after a local columnist publicly
embarrassed them in print for their inaction. In the end, the
community was moved less by Girl X herself than by the lack
of media attention she received in comparison to JonBenet
Ramsey, the white Colorado girl who was murdered in
December 1996. In other words, the
community chose to focus on racist
media outside the community rather
than the gender violence within it;
racism was the issue, not sexism.
Incredibly, when convicted sex
offender Patrick Sykes, 25, confessed to
police he raped Girl X for "sexual gratification,"
some in the community said
he was a victim. A radio station poll
found that while Black women felt
relieved after his arrest, men believed
Sykes was innocent and his confession
coerced by the police. The cumulative
effect of cases like these is that Black
women's experiences with violence are
overshadowed by those of Black men.
Similarly, the interests of battered
women can be suppressed by community
concern for incarcerated men.
Traylor says she has seen this happen
to her own clients.
"When the women go back to
their community they are punished for
R A C E A N D G E N D E R
"....we want
to figure
out how we
can create
other solutions
that might
be more
productive
for us and our
community."
raising their claims by their own family members and by the
neighborhood. It's really the impact of racism on the community,
and how it internalizes itself and plays itself out," she
says. This punishment can take several forms. Some families
may not offer material or emotional support when the woman
tries to leave the relationship, refusing to give the woman a
place to stay or to help with child care while she finds a job or
new home. Even if relatives provide some material help, the
women may be silenced by their families and told not to discuss
the abuse.
The founders of the task force have already experienced
the community's wrath firsthand. The organization grew out of
the so-called "homecoming celebration" held for Mike Tyson
after his 1995 release from prison. Calling themselves African
Americans Against Violence, Garfield and other activists held a
rally to oppose the celebration and raise awareness about the
kind of abuse of which Tyson was accused. Opposition to the
rally was bitter and came mostly from other Black women.
Rally organizers realized the community has ignored this issue
for so long that it could only be addressed
through an ongoing, grassroots effort, and so
the task force was launched. "We have to
shift political consciousness to include the
issues of women," Richie says. "It's consistent
with the history of community selfdetermination
to say, We've got to end violence
against women. We've got to get
empowerment zone money. We've got to figure
out whether or not we want Barnes &
Noble in Harlem. We've got to make sure
some money for job corps comes back into
our community. And our kids need summer
jobs. All those things are part of the same
ideology. We have to re-immerse the rhetoric
into something that's radical. And I think
the Black community in Harlem is a wonderful
laboratory for that because there are
still folks there who talk about the need for
community development."
E. Assata Wright is a freelance journalist
based in Jersey City, New Jersey. Her work
has appeared in TTie Village Voice.
47 - on the issues