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Abstract

Around the world, the representation of Black women in media is often flawed, as ideologies shaped by racism and white supremacy dominate the social construction of the representation of Black women in print media. This paper examines the use of “click speech” responses to a Facebook post where we condemn the use of what we perceive to be negative images of Black women used to market rum. Specifically, we ask the question: How do Belizeans respond to our request and our framing of the marketing campaign as being racist and sexist? Using a Belizean feminist lens, we analyze click speech responses to our request. A mixed response of those who supported our requests to remove the caricature from the rum label and those who did not support our position that the marketing campaign was both racist and sexist were found through content analysis. Many of the comments suggested that we were creating an issue, that there is nothing wrong with the image, and that we were importing American ideas of racism and sexism to Belize where they do not exist. This study contributes to that gap in the literature that ensures that Belizean women are represented in ways that their voices are not misrepresented and ensures that this research contributes to Belizean knowledge.

Author Biography

Dr. Kiesha Warren-Gordon is an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice/Criminology at Ball State University and the Director of the African American Studies Program. Her work centers on critical approaches of community engagement while working with marginalized communities. Her research explores the intersection of race, class, and gender as it relates to violence, and intercultural conflict. Currently, Dr. Warren-Gordon’s research projects include critical pedagogical approaches to teaching positive community involvement outside of traditional criminal justice educaDr. Deborah Mencias McMillan is an Assistant Professor of English at Galen University in Belize. She is a community worker and a local voice on women’s issues including violence against women. Dr. McMillan heads a nonprofit neighborhood organization that works to transform women out of poverty. She currently serves as the Vice Chair for the Belize Chapter of the Caribbean Women in Leadership organization.tional norms.

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