Revisiting the Pass: An Examination of Identity Management Strategies of Black Queer Women in the South

Identifier

1114

Author

Claudia Shunta Williams

Date

2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Major

Sociology

Committee Chair

Zandria Robinson

Committee Member

Beverly Bond

Committee Member

Jeni Loftus

Abstract

How do historically shaped and culturally specific identity managment strategies of Black queer women in the South inform levels of disclosure about their stigmatized identities? How does racial socialization and racial identity shape the ways that Black queer women experience their sexualities? How do these strategies impact Black queer women's experiences in the workplace context? I utilized an intersectional methodological approach to analyze nine in-depth interviews with self-identified Black queer women in Memphis, TN. Respondents reported gender and sexual identity policing throughout their maturation from childhood to adulthood, feelings of isolation or perceived difference, and salient experiences with respect to privacy and disclosure that shaped their identity management strategies. I propose these culturally situated experiences inform the ways that Black queer women manage levels of disclosure about their sexual identities and that these strategies impact how they experience, navigate, and disclose in the workplace context.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to the local University of Memphis Electronic Theses & dissertation (ETD) Repository.

Recommended Citation

Williams, Claudia Shunta, "Revisiting the Pass: An Examination of Identity Management Strategies of Black Queer Women in the South" (2014). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 943.
https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/etd/943