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And When The Act Stops, My Liberation Begins: Performances of Black Women Student Affairs Professionals in a New Normal White Territory

Bizzell, Cerelia V
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9247-1795
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1720785362233654

Abstract Details

2024, Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, Educational Leadership.
This study explores specific examples of social pressures and performances Black women student affairs professionals have navigated, adapted, and challenged since the pandemic's beginning (2020) to the present era. While utilizing Black Feminist Performance Theory (BFPT) and radical Black subjectivity (hooks, 2015), this study centers on the narratives of 10 Black women in Midwest and Southern states who have worked in student affairs since 2019. These stories were used to reflect and emphasize the fears of many Black women who work within Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs). I argue that many Black institutional staff have been encouraged to appease and perform for white audiences due to fear of isolation, consequences, and the threat of survival, which impact their well-being and livelihood. Additionally, this study explored how Black women define and work towards liberation from white dominance and influence while also creating space to reflect and (re)imagine Black freedom. Consequently, to secure this potential freedom, the Black pained body (Hartman, 1997) is centered within this study as a means to bring awareness to what binds the Black spirit and the liberating process of finding the confidence to shed the inauthentic character that many Black women professionals are pressured to accept and engage in.
Denise Taliaferro Baszile (Advisor)
Ganiva Reyes (Committee Member)
Érica Fernández (Committee Member)
Thomas Poetter (Committee Member)
159 p.
African American Studies; Education; Educational Leadership; Gender Studies; Higher Education; Personality; Womens Studies
Black feminist performance theory, performances, liberation, Black subjectivity, student affair professionals, Black, women

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Bizzell, C. V. (2024). And When The Act Stops, My Liberation Begins: Performances of Black Women Student Affairs Professionals in a New Normal White Territory [Doctoral dissertation, Miami University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1720785362233654

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Bizzell, Cerelia. And When The Act Stops, My Liberation Begins: Performances of Black Women Student Affairs Professionals in a New Normal White Territory. 2024. Miami University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1720785362233654.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Bizzell, Cerelia. "And When The Act Stops, My Liberation Begins: Performances of Black Women Student Affairs Professionals in a New Normal White Territory." Doctoral dissertation, Miami University, 2024. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1720785362233654

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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© 2024, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Miami University and OhioLINK.