Nineteen Fifty-Six Vol. 3 Issue 1

JOLENCIA JONES
GENDER ROLES
IN THE BLACK
COMMUNITY
16
Typically, gender roles are ways people are
expected to behave based on their gender
identity. At a young age, children are
taught to behave according to their gender. This
includes telling girls how to dress, how to behave
femininely and how to speak. Boys are expected to
be strong, confident and protective.
As people get older, gender roles start to vary
depending on life circumstances, religion or
culture. Women are often deemed as responsible
for domestic chores whereas men are deemed as
providers. These roles can put people into a social
constraint, impacting their life.
“I think challenging and changing the impact of
gender roles in a person’s life is important and
in doing so offers the individual the potential
to live a happier life, feel less constrained, and
generally improve our relationships with others,”
Utz McKnight, a professor at the University of
Alabama, said. “If possible, gender roles should
not over determine how we view our ambitions,
pursuits, and social self-descriptions.”
Gender roles often start at home at an early age.
Many Black women find themselves conforming
or defying gender roles because of their
circumstances. According to Statista, there were
approximately 4.25 million Black families in the
United States with a single mother in 2020. Black
women are forced to be financially, emotionally,
and domestically responsible for a household by
themselves.
The lack of a parental figure can skew a child’s
view of a certain gender. Single Black mothers and
fathers often must play both gender roles. It also
often leads to women teaching young boys how to
become men whereas little girls lack male love. The
cycle of gender roles in children is often repeated
by what an individual sees around them.
Religion is a core tenet in many Black households
in America. According to a study done by Pew
Research Center in 2014, nearly 8-in-10 Black
Americans identified as Christian. Many of the
gender roles that exist come from the Bible.
“The Black church has not only had an impact on
gender roles, it has shaped its very performance,”
Jurrita Williams, a Gender and Race Studies
professor at UA, said. “Without the ability to form
itself outside of the fight for freedom from white-