Race and class work together to stratify and divide women in modern society. This is because societal structures impose different expectations, responsibilities, and stereotypes upon women that they must overcome daily. Women of each race and class face unique challenges respective to their backgrounds. Race and class also determine how women of different backgrounds relate to each other; often, different socio-economic standing or racial/cultural background can so alienate women that they view each other as "Others". This is extremely detrimental because it works against a collective woman consciousness, and women learn to marginalize each other instead of provide empathy and support.
The Upper Class
The "Real" Housewives of Beverly Hills
Paris Hilton, Millionaire Heiress
Upper class women, or the women who are viewed as successful, are disproportionately white women. They live in beautiful mansions and condominiums in places like Santa Monica, Hollywood Hills, Hampton, and New York City; they wear designer clothes, have designer pets, and lead seemingly problem-free lives. Their mass amounts of money allow them to spend time on pursuits like shopping, socializing, and filming reality TV shows. These women are at the top of both racial and class hierarchies and very image conscious, but their privileged positions only serve to shelter them from the harsh realities that their less fortunate sisters face everyday. Because of this, they feel they are not subject to the patriarchy that subjugates so many other women, and can see feminism as irrelevant to daily life. In fact, upper class women can contribute to the cause of feminist issues, such as by hiring and exploiting women of color as domestic workers. However, their elite standing in society does not necessarily mean they have more respect; often, these women are young "trophy wives" of older business men, and thus are valued (and most likely married) for their looks. As a result, many of these women have body image issues and are the primary undertakers of base of cosmetic procedures such as breast implant surgery, liposuction, and Botox. This emphasis on looks and image demeans these women because it teaches them that what they say and how they act does not matter, as long as they look beautiful doing it. In some cases, the pressure to be young and beautiful can be so great that these women develop neuroses or mental illnesses and start to unravel, much to the delight of the media. A recent example is Amanda Bynes, an ex-child star whose recent makeover and obsession with being beautiful have made national headlines. Even in the case that they are independently successful, these women can still face discrimination in the workplace as well as from their non working peers.
The Middle Class
A typical soccer mom
The middle class of modern society developed in the aftermath of WWII, when servicemen returned home and got married. To accommodate these young couples, houses were built on a mass scale in suburbs separated from the inner cities, away from other communities of color. The G.I. Bill offered economic independence to soldiers, many of whom were able to (for the first time) buy a home and start a family. As a result, the middle class came to be synonymous with white, cookie cutter suburbs and the nuclear family model. The nuclear family model relies on a working father, a stay at home mother, and children. The family was held together by the reproductive work of the mother, who was expected to always put the needs of her other family members before her own. She was also responsible of keeping the family image intact; whatever injustices she faced at home, she was expected to keep quiet and keep smiling so that others would not be aware of their family issues. Predictably, prescriptions for and distribution of anti-depressants among housewives during this time period were at an all time high.
Today, while gender roles are less rigidly enforced, middle class women still feel incredible pressure to be "perfect" wives and mothers. Above all, middle class mothers are expected to prioritize their children; if a woman chooses to pursue a career over spending time with her children, she is often demonized or called an "absentee mother". Furthermore, she faces challenges at work such as glass ceilings, which are systematic barriers that prevent advancement and promotion of women to administrative positions. This is justified by the expectation that women, i.e. mothers, hold their households in higher priority than they do the workplace. That being said, both the productive and reproductive work done by middle class women is constantly devalued and seen as a gendered obligation, rather than as a positive contribution to society. Because of this, stereotypes like the soccer mom continue to define the middle class.
The Working Class
A typical nanny and her charge
A Call to Action
Working class women suffer the worst under societal structures of oppression. Especially since the majority of the women who comprise this category are women of color, they must face what author Patricia Hill-Collins has called the "matrix of domination"; that is, the intersection of their race, class, and gender conspiring to keep them at the very bottom of the social hierarchy. Women in this position have the least amount of resources available to them, and are often demonized for not following traditional femininity in terms of childcare because need necessitates otherwise. Because of their lack of education, the work available to these women is often arduous, low paid reproductive work, such as live-in nannies, maids, or even nail salon workers. Women's emotional and physical labor is heavily exploited in these fields, as the workers neglect their own families to take care of their employers. In the case that women take government aid in order to support their family and spend time with their children, they are deplored as irresponsible "welfare queens" who leech off tax-payers money to fund their lifestyle. Ultimately, women are color as depicted as the cause of societies ills, and thus are the subjects of much systematic oppression, such as the lack of reproductive options and resources available to working class women.
Continue reading to see what other stereotypes exist about women...
The Upper Class
Upper class women, or the women who are viewed as successful, are disproportionately white women. They live in beautiful mansions and condominiums in places like Santa Monica, Hollywood Hills, Hampton, and New York City; they wear designer clothes, have designer pets, and lead seemingly problem-free lives. Their mass amounts of money allow them to spend time on pursuits like shopping, socializing, and filming reality TV shows. These women are at the top of both racial and class hierarchies and very image conscious, but their privileged positions only serve to shelter them from the harsh realities that their less fortunate sisters face everyday. Because of this, they feel they are not subject to the patriarchy that subjugates so many other women, and can see feminism as irrelevant to daily life. In fact, upper class women can contribute to the cause of feminist issues, such as by hiring and exploiting women of color as domestic workers.
However, their elite standing in society does not necessarily mean they have more respect; often, these women are young "trophy wives" of older business men, and thus are valued (and most likely married) for their looks. As a result, many of these women have body image issues and are the primary undertakers of base of cosmetic procedures such as breast implant surgery, liposuction, and Botox. This emphasis on looks and image demeans these women because it teaches them that what they say and how they act does not matter, as long as they look beautiful doing it. In some cases, the pressure to be young and beautiful can be so great that these women develop neuroses or mental illnesses and start to unravel, much to the delight of the media. A recent example is Amanda Bynes, an ex-child star whose recent makeover and obsession with being beautiful have made national headlines. Even in the case that they are independently successful, these women can still face discrimination in the workplace as well as from their non working peers.
The Middle Class
The middle class of modern society developed in the aftermath of WWII, when servicemen returned home and got married. To accommodate these young couples, houses were built on a mass scale in suburbs separated from the inner cities, away from other communities of color. The G.I. Bill offered economic independence to soldiers, many of whom were able to (for the first time) buy a home and start a family. As a result, the middle class came to be synonymous with white, cookie cutter suburbs and the nuclear family model. The nuclear family model relies on a working father, a stay at home mother, and children. The family was held together by the reproductive work of the mother, who was expected to always put the needs of her other family members before her own. She was also responsible of keeping the family image intact; whatever injustices she faced at home, she was expected to keep quiet and keep smiling so that others would not be aware of their family issues. Predictably, prescriptions for and distribution of anti-depressants among housewives during this time period were at an all time high.
Today, while gender roles are less rigidly enforced, middle class women still feel incredible pressure to be "perfect" wives and mothers. Above all, middle class mothers are expected to prioritize their children; if a woman chooses to pursue a career over spending time with her children, she is often demonized or called an "absentee mother". Furthermore, she faces challenges at work such as glass ceilings, which are systematic barriers that prevent advancement and promotion of women to administrative positions. This is justified by the expectation that women, i.e. mothers, hold their households in higher priority than they do the workplace. That being said, both the productive and reproductive work done by middle class women is constantly devalued and seen as a gendered obligation, rather than as a positive contribution to society. Because of this, stereotypes like the soccer mom continue to define the middle class.
The Working Class
Working class women suffer the worst under societal structures of oppression. Especially since the majority of the women who comprise this category are women of color, they must face what author Patricia Hill-Collins has called the "matrix of domination"; that is, the intersection of their race, class, and gender conspiring to keep them at the very bottom of the social hierarchy. Women in this position have the least amount of resources available to them, and are often demonized for not following traditional femininity in terms of childcare because need necessitates otherwise. Because of their lack of education, the work available to these women is often arduous, low paid reproductive work, such as live-in nannies, maids, or even nail salon workers. Women's emotional and physical labor is heavily exploited in these fields, as the workers neglect their own families to take care of their employers. In the case that women take government aid in order to support their family and spend time with their children, they are deplored as irresponsible "welfare queens" who leech off tax-payers money to fund their lifestyle. Ultimately, women are color as depicted as the cause of societies ills, and thus are the subjects of much systematic oppression, such as the lack of reproductive options and resources available to working class women.
Continue reading to see what other stereotypes exist about women...