Romantic apartheid Flashcards
describe the apartheid in the USA
- a formal, codified system of racial segregation
- “Jim Crow” laws –> segregating white and black americans
- separate but equal in theory
- inequitanle in expreience/practice
- laws upheld by court and police
- often policed by vigilante groups, using violence to enforce segregation and discrimination
- black women were seen as oversexual
- black men were seen as predatory
- anti-miscegenation laws – anti interracial marriage law
how has the romantic apartheid been reinforced in the context of online dating?
informally by the discourse of “personal taste”
are our “personal tastes” really just “personal tastes?”
no - they are socially/historically constructed
what are reasons that socially progressive daters, who say they’re open to any race, use to justify why they don’t date this way?
seemingly interpersonal factors:
- just don’t click
- not enough in common
- different values/culture
- no chemistry
what is sexual racism?
prioritizing individuals as romantic partners in a way that reinforces ideas of racial hierarchy
how does online dating facilitate sexual racism?
- can be specific about your preferences
- anonimity: can reject without conflict/confrontation
- choices can expose differences between what you say and what you do, which is an opportunity for reflection and growth but is typically explained away
what is colour blindness/colour blind racism?
the belief that racial matters are the outcomes of non-racial dynamics
how has american courtship evolved throughout the centuries?
traditional court ship model - originated within the women’s parents’ home; family involvement –> early 20th century - dating moved outside of the hom; beyong the parent’s watchful eyes; public gain more control
when dating moved outside of the home, it could have led to greater freedom in interracial relationships, but what did it coincide with?
- white-led resistance to interracial relationships
- new anti-miscegenation laws
- widespread propaganda
- differential interpretation of the law
Describe 5 ways in which racialized and gendered preferences and desires take centre stage on online dating sites
- explicitly allow racial preferences/filters
- matching algorithms affect matches as well
- digital “marketplace” and norms of self promotion
- stereotypes invoked in descriptions of desired partners (and allowed)
- anonymitiy supports this dynamic and contributes to disinhibition re-racial discrimination
what are 3 reasons/rationalizations for why white daters hide their digital sexual racism behing a cloack of colour blindness?
- cultural racism: black women represent a race/stereotype, while white women are individuals – cultural relativism
- public vs private distinction: publicly progressive, dating preferences should be private (basically do’t want to be judged or “contribute to racism”)
- naturalization: don’t control who we are attracted to
what is cultural relativism?
assume race has culture and everyone of that race must have the same values, beliefs, religions, etc
what are 3 reasons for why/ways mostly people of colour, sometimes white people too, challenge digital sexual racism?
- unmasking racism (naming it – calling people out)
- challenging white’s racialized preferences – e.g. only dating coloured women to reject the desirability hierarchy
- challenging internalized racism – identify your own naturalization frame and challening it
what is misogynoir?
misogyny directed towards a black woman where both gender and race play a role
what is the online disinhibition effect?
the lack of restraint one feels when communicating online in comparison to communicating in-person –> lots of openly expressed racism and sexism in online dating communications
