Negotiating "The Welfare Queen" and "The Strong Black Woman": African American

Middle-Class Mothers' Work and Family Perspectives

Author(s): Dawn Marie Dow
Source: Sociological Perspectives , SPRING 2015, Vol. 58, No. 1 (SPRING 2015), pp. 36-55
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc.

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44014691

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 The Work of Motherhood

Sociological Perspectives
2015, Vol. 58(1) 36-55
Negotiatin
©The Author(s) 2014
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and "The S sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav

DOI: 1 0. 1 1 77/073 1 1 2 1 4 1 4556546

African American Middle-Class spx.sagepub.com

(DSAGE
Mothers' Work and Family
Perspectives

Dawn Marie Dow1

Abstract

This research analyzes how African American middle- and upper-middle-class m

understand their work and family decision making in relation to two controlling images
Strong Black Woman (SBW) and the Welfare Queen - that they describe regularly confr
in their lives. In-depth interviews with 60 African American middle- and upper-middle
mothers reveal the strategies these mothers use to overcome assumptions that they are
single mothers on welfare or, alternatively, are self-reliant and resilient caregivers who
need help. Although most interviewees distanced themselves from the image of the We
Queen, they had a range of responses to the SBW: Some invested in it, some resisted it
some rejected it. This study shows how the controlling images of the SBW and the Wel
Queen influence the meanings African American middle- and upper-middle-class mothers
to their decisions related to work and family and create a sense of exclusion from white m
class mothering communities.

Keywords
race, class and gender, family and work, culture, middle-class mothers, African Ameri
mothers

I distinctly recall the interview I conducted with Kristen,1 a married mother of two, who was
employed as a lawyer in San Francisco. We met in a restaurant during an extended lunch break
to discuss her work and family experiences. When I asked Kristen if she had ever considered
being a stay-at-home mother, she said,

I don't think it is really acceptable for black women who are professional women to stay at home . . .
You just don't see it that much and I often wonder what the stigma of that is. Like is it a choice or
because of something else . . . Black women are portrayed as welfare recipients with a bunch of kids,

'Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA

Corresponding Author:
Dawn Marie Dow, Department of Sociology, Syracuse University, 3 1 9 Maxwell Hall, Syracuse, NY 1 3244- 1 090, USA.
Email: dmdow@syr.edu

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 Dow 37

so I thin
opposed

Althoug
to her,
be poor
home, w

I think a
every da
doing it
the day.
women h

Kristen
hood th
ing acti
the con
The for
because
values t
mother
men.

This tension between Kristen's desires to reduce her commitment to paid empl
desire to avoid the stigmas she associated with being a stay-at-home mother c
research questions:

Research Question 1: What images of motherhood do African American mid

middle-class mothers navigate when they make decisions related to work and
Research Question 2: How do they respond to, and understand, their decision
of these images?

Scholars have examined how controlling images have influenced mainstream

African American women and the formulation of government policies directly a
of poor and working-class African American mothers (Collins 2009; Hirschma
2001; Roschelle 2013). In the face of economic and structural constraints, thes
often created their own definitions of "good motherhood" (Blum and Deussen 1
images are different from stereotypes because they guide both the behavior tow
members of subordinated groups (Beauboeuf-Lafontant 2009). These image
people see and believe about the members of these groups and, if internalized
influence how members of marginalized groups view themselves and group m
known about the impact of these images on middle- and upper-middle-class A
mothers.
In this article, I describe how African American mothers have been excluded
images of motherhood that are derived from the ideologies of the cult of dom
separate spheres (discussed in more detail later in this article). Instead, the Af
middle- and upper-middle-class mothers whom I interviewed described regularly
controlling images of the Welfare Queen and the SBW during their quotidian ac
The mothers in my sample believed that they had to counter assumptions related
Queen to gain access to, and acceptance in, white middle-class mothering a

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38 Sociological Perspectives 58( I )

mothers' groups, "mommy and me" activities

experiences complicate discussions of middle-
ering the challenges that they believe they m
dominately white extracurricular enrichment
of the Welfare Queen (Pyke 2010), using them
African American mothers. Interviewees had v
resisting, rejecting, or attempting to transfor
counter assumptions they believed they encoun
racially specific controlling images influenced
ily and work decisions and experiences.

Conceptual Framing
The cult of domesticity and separate spheres
integral part in organizing America's gendere
the market and the family (Quadagno 1994
separate spheres ideology envisions men as th
women as the homemakers who raise the chi
The cult of domesticity emphasizes that wom
purity, submissiveness, and domesticity (L
ideologies did not always exist but were fo
middle-class families during the eighteenth a
presented to all white women and men as the
work decisions (Coontz 1992; Landry 2000;
working-class families often continued to ne
many of these families were able to symbo
in less visible paid work inside of the home,
work (Coontz 1992, 1997; Landry 2000; La
cult of domesticity and separate spheres infl
policies for widowed mothers in the early tw
ally only reduced, rather than eliminated,
underscored that, under ideal circumstances,
duties.
Contemporary examples of the separate spher
stream discourses (Belkin 2003; Slaughter
1996, 2003; Gerson 1985), that often pit bein
These ideologies, and the idealized images of m
about whether women can have it all - a fulf
choose between being a devoted mother or
scholars have noted that part of answering wh
standing the meanings that mothers attach t
motherhood that frame those meanings (B
201 1; Estes 2005; Gerson 1985, 2010; Macdona
have expanded the definition of intensive mo
managers of the care their children receive (C
others justify their decision to work outside of
interest" or "for their families" (Damaske 201
Not all mothers reconcile their work and fa
motherhood (Collins 2009; McDonald 1997,
ticity and separate spheres. For example, s

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Dow 39

workpla
occurre
These t
of capit
techno
majorit
althoug
lies fro
mother
cally no
African
spheres
Americ
and the
status. T
ent pos
about th
After e
domesti
teenth a
sphere,
Americ
"ideal" w
availabl
the 1950
a durabl
to work
standard
America
ally occ
During
mother
denied a
Social h
particul
cial assi
became
states r
that ben
in the 1
these re
thy of
Ronald
campaig
receivin

There's
and is co
getting
alone is

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40 Sociological Perspectives 58(1)

Reagan and his political strategists thus

polices using images of unwed African Amer
ent men as the prototypical beneficiary (Hi
the Clinton era, the image of the Welfar
Personal Responsibility and Work Act of
Solinger 2003; Nadasen 2007). Instead of b
tance that would enable them to do the impor
were described as lazy, lascivious, and lac
continues to have power, both in the politic
(Blake 2012; Stein 2013). The subtext is cl
appropriate use of African American mother
should be obligated to work.
Although African American mothers' partic
for their families' survival and encouraged by
to explain the challenges their families face
"Black Matriarch" was an emasculating figur
American families was attributed to African A
household (Massey et al. 2009; U.S. Depar
Research 1965). In response to the degrading
anhood that have been produced and projecte
have engaged in a continual practice of self-
there are a number of possible origins for th
an attempt to reject the pathological image of
of Labor, Office of Policy Planning and Res
mothers' familial duties as symbols of streng
ing their labor force participation as a failu
suggest that African American women create
rated paid work as a necessary component (B
2001; Landry 2000) and now take for granted
Damaske 20 1 1 ; Dean 20 1 3).
Numerous examples in both mainstream an
African American women as an important e
exposé "The Negro Woman," featured in Ebon
as the core characteristics of African Americ
E. Franklin Frazier wrote, "Neither economic
American woman] subordination to masculin
SBW has continued to appear in literary wo
Walker 1982) and popular magazines (Edward
in popular television shows including Julia (
Anatomy (2005-present), and Scandal (201
"Superwoman" from the album As I Am, Tu
and Kanye West's "Hey Mama" from the albu
nate from a desire to empower African Amer
functions as a controlling image that justifie
(Beauboeuf-Lafontant 2009). African Americ
201 1 ; Hooks 1984; Lorde 1984) argue that con
of African American womanhood and serve
women's subordinate place in society and th
these images, the SBW is often viewed posit
ideal to aspire.

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 Dow 41

Recent
support
emotion
(Sarkisia
to strug
bodies a
of Tama
trolling
upper-m
respond
This art
by analy
family
middle-
intervie
negotiat
hood th
analyzin
the Wel

Method

The interview data were derived from a study that took place from 2009 to 201 1 examining
60 African American middle- and upper-middle-class mothers understood their work, family
parenting decisions. Interviewees were asked about their childhood families, what their pare
expected of them as adults, their paths to motherhood, and how they made their decisions
work, childcare, schools, and parenting. The existing scholarship on mothers, with limited ex
tions, has primarily focused on the experiences of white middle-class mothers and the ex
ences of lower income African American mothers. African American middle and
upper-middle-class mothers were selected as a theoretical sample because of their econ
similarity to white middle-class mothers and their shared racial and cultural backgro
lower income African American mothers. Study participants were recruited through
snowball techniques. To ensure an educationally and economically diverse sample, I con
variety of mainstream (predominately white) and African American professional organ
women's and mothers' organizations, churches, community colleges, local unions, and so
These organizations were initially contacted by email and then followed up with a telep
I also recruited participants by visiting churches, hair salons and local businesses, and
announcements on local bulletin boards and Listservs that reach out to parents and m
general, and to African American mothers in particular. Once participants were iden
interviewed, they were asked to refer participants to the study.
To be included in the study, participants had to self-identify as African American, ear
family income ranging from $50,000 to $300, 000, 3 have attended a minimum of 2 ye
lege, be currently raising at least one child who was 10 years old or younger, and live
Francisco Bay area. Interviews lasted between one and three hours, and were conducte
interviewee's home or office, in university conference rooms, on playgrounds, or in re
and cafés.
Interviewees ranged from 25 to 49 years of age, included those who worked full-time or part-
time or stayed at home, and had an average of two children. Two thirds of the participants were
married at the time of their interview, and the remaining participants were never married, sepa-
rated, divorced, or widowed. Table 1 describes the characteristics of the sample of mothers.

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 42 Sociological Perspectives 58(1)

Table I. Characteristics of Interviewees: 60 African American Mothers.

Marital status Married or domestic partner 75%

Never married, separated, 25%
divorced, or widowed
Education level Some college 1 0%
College graduate 27%
Advanced degree 63%
Income 50,000-99,000 27%
100,000-149,000 23%
150,000-199,000 23%
200,000-300,000 27%
Homeowner Yes 50%
No 50%

Education level of High school graduate 2%

spouse or partner Some college 20%
College graduate 42%
Advanced degree 36%

Note. All mothers were between the ages of 25 and 49.

Informed by Michael Burawoy's (1998) exte

Anselm Strauss's (1967) grounded theory, I u
upper-middle-class mothers to examine both th
front in their lives and how those images influ
family experiences. The interviews from this
recurrent or divergent categories, concepts, and t
stood their life experiences. Although these
American middle- and upper-middle-class mot
motherhood that inform many mothers' decisi
dicate decisions that conflict with the images t
construct, enact, and validate alternative image

Negotiating the Welfare Queen

The majority of the mothers that I interviewed
assumptions about being poor and on welfare in
in the controlling image of the Welfare Queen.
described referring to husbands to underscore t
from their husbands, not from the state. To co
mothers often referred to their jobs, and, if marr
status and their jobs when interacting with oth
rently a stay-at-home mother because she had b
that she was single and on welfare when she we
She described what she did to counter the assum

I think about how I am dressed, like do I have a scar

my children. And I am always worried about that per
another ghetto mother. If I don't have my [wedding
kids, I wonder if people are thinking, "Here comes a
through the course of conversation, I will mention m

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 Dow 43

Althoug
that she
married
class. M
of their
acterist
others w

In the do
I make s
and how
certain w
think I'm
have to

For the
(and th
cues, su
(like we
Mother
particip
dren. Ch
main th
white m
there is the 'us.'" Christine believed that there is a racial divide in middle-class motherhood that
is produced by white mothers treating her, and other African American middle-class mothers,
differently in a myriad of child-related activities. She described,

I have friends who have left playgroups because the white women look at us funny or like you don't
exist. I had a friend who was at a [mother and child] gym class and she didn't exist to other women
in the class. They were all friends and laughing and talking and not trying to be friendly with her at
all, and they kind of looked at her with her kids and thought, "What are you doing with your kid; your
kid is not doing it right." So, I feel that a lot. It is actually surprising that in the Bay area you would
feel it so much. I have been at playgrounds, and it is not across the board, but they are looking at you
funny. Like those music-together classes, [white mothers] look at you like you are not there . . . There
are certain playgrounds that I don't go to because they are not friendly to black moms . . . They just
ignore us.

Christine participated in a range of middle-class mother and child activities but she felt that
she had to do additional work to be accepted by the white mothers who dominated these venues.
This was work she did not always want to do, that discouraged her from engaging in these activi-
ties, and made her feel that she did not fully belong and was not accepted in these settings. These
settings included parks in predominately white middle-class neighborhoods, children's muse-
ums, certain extracurricular activities, and other "mommy and me" activities. It was also work
she believed that white mothers did not have to do. A white mother's standoffish demeanor,
combined with what was viewed as a more cordial one to other white mothers, left a similar
impression on many mothers in my sample. The mothers in my sample felt that they needed to
demonstrate their class status to white mothers before these mothers would meaningfully engage
with them. These mothers consciously engaged in class perception management strategies to
attempt to overcome assumptions that they believed others were making, that they were poor and
on welfare, and to ensure they and their children were treated well. These mothers' accounts

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44 Sociological Perspectives 58( I )

suggest they did not have the same experience

dominately white extracurricular activities wit
The image of the Welfare Queen was, at time
upper-middle-class mothers described the bou
selves and other African American mothers th
ing their children. This often explicitly came
African American mothers to include in their
son and a daughter who worked full-time at
lenges she encountered in finding a commun
"defied statistics." Her ideal group members w
professionally accomplished, middle-class, ho
described her initial failed attempts to find su
group:

Before I found [my current] black mom's group

values, particularly in my age group. Before, wh
facilitated by the hospital where her child was b
young mother of twins in that class ... I knew she
I asked her if she wanted to go get a Jamba Juice.
father was. She didn't care who the father was. Eve
but she wasn't telling who she thought he was. It wa
And I asked her about, you know, "what are they
ho hos and she likes ding dongs" ... I just could
looking for people who would come over, and ha
swing set in the back yard. We'll all have a good ti
I thought I probably never would.

Sharon wanted to be a part of a community o

financially well-off, and married. She simulta
not middle class and not in stable relationship
middle-class lifestyle similar to hers and who
with the best educational and extracurricular o
mately joined, she said, "You don't join a grou
cares about things like nutrition and education
like this." For Sharon, these mothers not only
and support about motherhood for her, but th
on issues she faced in negotiating other white
For Karlyn, a single mother raising two chil
reminder of her duty to remember where she
choices for themselves and their children. Karly
a college degree and to attain middle-class stat
to create her own mothers' group, she said,

I went to [another African American] moms' grou

like me." It just seemed like they were catering to
biracial kids, and I thought that is not me. I am a
were I felt comfortable. I mean there were people
Links4 and Jack and Jill,5 and I was like, "No tha
who defined themselves - and this is just my perc
they made or what kind of car that they drove. I
even if you did not have any money, you could br

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 Dow 45

figure ou
for ever
level pos
of paren
head mo
do somet

Despite
marked
and Jill
and tho
ments.
torical l
middle
that exc
of Afri
was the
gain exp
often d
too inte
off. Those mothers were not "black mommas" like them.
In sum, the Welfare Queen - a gendered and racialized controlling image - played in the
minds of mothers as they encountered and strategized around experiences of exclusion. The
image of the Welfare Queen is pervasive in American popular and academic discourse and media
representations (Blake 2012; Gilliam 1999; Hancock 2003; Johnson 1995; Littlefield 2008;
Nadasen 2007; Stein 2013; Wagmiller 2006). To engage comfortably in white middle-class
mothering domains, mothers in my study believed that they had to overcome others' automatic
assumptions that they were poor, single, and on welfare. Until mothers believed that they over-
came these assumptions, they felt invisible in these environments but most were unwilling to
engage in this additional labor on an ongoing basis. The Welfare Queen was also internalized by
some mothers and used as a guide about how they should and should not behave. This image was
used to draw boundaries between themselves, as good middle-class mothers who were not "wild
parents," and other African American mothers who made less thoughtful choices about their
children and did not share their middle-class values. It was also used to evaluate the mothers they
wanted to have in their social circles.

Negotiating the SBW

Mothers were also regularly confronted by, and sometimes invoked, the controlling image of the
SBW as a way to make sense of their family and work experiences. The SBW represents extreme
female self-reliance, emotional resilience, and moral propriety and was produced by and for
African American women in response to negative mainstream images of African American wom-
anhood. Farah, a married and a working mother of two, had her first child when she was in col-
lege and had recently given birth to her second child. We met in the early evening at a café near
her work, where she planned to return after our interview. Farah was clear about her definition of
the ideal African American mother, and it conformed to the SBW. She explained,

[A SBW] is a strong woman, who can do all of the "Big Momma" things. She can cook like nobody
else can cook, she can iron, do all that stuff like nobody else can do, but then she also does her own
thing, whether that be work or some other activity . . . She is very confident of who she is and what
she wants in her life. She can do it all on her own.

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 46 Sociological Perspectives 58(1)

For Farah, the ideal mother was a SB W wh

her family, and is active in the community
formed to this image, Farah believed that her
munity at large judged her against it.
During my interview with Kristen, whose
tions African American middle- and upper-m
"I'm a strong black woman and I am proud of
she said,

To know your mind, to know what you want, to not compromise your values, don't compromise who
you are . . . You have to be strong in this society because there are so many people who are trying to
define you as a black woman. How you should be, what you should look like, who you should be
with, how you should act.

Kristen's description of being a SBW echoes Patricia Hill Collins's (2009) depiction of the
way that African American women, not just those who are middle class, engage in a continual
process of self-definition and valuation as a survival strategy within a society that might not share
those beliefs. Although most interviewees were critical of the SBW image, many adhered to
some of its elements, which affected their work and family decision making and the kinds of sup-
port they were willing to seek out from friends and family. Like other scholars (Beauboeuf-
Lafontant 2003, 2009; Collins 2009), I argue that although the SBW, in part, originates from a
desire to redefine African American female strength as a value to be revered, it has become a
controlling image that both empowers and constrains choices.

Investing in the SBW

Samantha was a married, working mother of one child, and was one of the few interviewees who
fully embraced the SBW and drew on it also to justify the current division of responsibilities in
her household. She described how the image of the SBW resonated with her:

I would agree with being a strong black woman; my mom is kind of my role model for that . . . she
had more resilience and strength than anybody ... I think it can have a negative connotation, but
when I think of myself, I kind of think of it as being a supermom . . . There is this idea that you are a
super woman in many ways because you have two full-time jobs. When you come home from work,
you are still working. And my husband totally acknowledges that the division of responsibility in
terms of raising our kid is probably 70/30 percent ... If I need to stay up late I will to get [a project]
done, and I think of those as being the characteristics of a strong black woman. As being a provider,
nurturer, and making sure your house is in order.

The image of the SBW gave Samantha a way to normalize the unequal distribution of labor in
her household. She viewed taking on the lion's share of household and childrearing duties as
unproblematic and simply what was required to be a good employee, wife, and mother. The SBW
supports the idea that African American women do not and should not need help, particularly
from the men in their lives.
Given the SBW is strongly connected to a "do it all" ethic that includes economic indepen-
dence from men, one might assume that stay-at-home mothers would be less invested in this
image. My data reveal a more complicated story about the place of paid work in defining a
mother's identity and experiences. Tamika, a married mother of one son, identified as a stay-
at-home mother but actually worked 30 hours a week. This apparent contradiction in Tamika's
self-identification as a stay-at-home mother and the amount of time she spent engaged in paid
labor was connected to her commitment to being a SBW. Tamika explained:

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Dow 47

I have th
somethin
"Honey,
husband
shrinking

Tamika'
son to p
expense
tions -
available
mothers
to 5 p.m
the nigh
school. I
the care
at-home
hours. B
from sp
Finally,
ters. Jor

I think it
Sometim
importan
settings
[but] to
things. Y

The ima
lenges i
show th

Resistin
Vastly m
were cr
times be

They cal
mother.
sure he
okay. Sti

Rebecca
had to p
if it did
nor dele
Sometim

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 48 Sociological Perspectives 58(1)

I think people need to know [being an African A

easy thing because, not only are we tackling bein
of race ... I know I have often woken up and tho
. . . Why should I have to do stuff when white w
to work today, but realistically as a black woman

Rebecca was clear that while she wished sh

her life, she did not feel she could without
Rebecca from publicly revealing a more nua
felt weak and needed help. Rebecca's experie
the SBW could be used as a strategy to avoid
Queen.
Mary, a married mother of two, was probably the most critical of the SBW image, while
simultaneously conforming to many of its characteristics out of necessity. Before Mary met her
husband, she created a savings account for getting married and having children. She was deter-
mined to stay at home with her future children but assumed that it was unlikely that the African
American man she hoped to someday marry would make enough income to enable her do so.
Mary ultimately married a man who was a high school graduate, earned less than half of her six-
figure income, and paid child support for a child from a previous marriage. Despite the financial
challenges it presented, when Mary became a mother she carried out her plan. She was a stay-
at-home mother for 3 years, but because of shrinking savings, she decided to find a temporary,
part-time evening job to increase her family's income. She had hoped that her husband would
respond by finding a second job, allowing her to return to being a stay-at-home mother, but six
months later, she was still working. In fact, Mary had increased her work hours and her husband
was not actively looking for additional income.
Mary provided a definition of the SBW while simultaneously identifying how it created chal-
lenges in her life and the lives of African American mothers. She explained,

One of the challenges that mothers of color face is our history of black women being the pillar in the
family ... I think the idea that we will provide the finances, do the childrearing, do the cooking, and
just do it all. If the man has married a strong black woman, he can end up not doing much of anything
because the black woman is not going to let her family fail, not going to let her marriage fail. She will
do what it takes to hold it together and . . . accept things from our men of color that maybe shouldn't
be accepted. We have seen our parents do it and we have accepted this role, but we need to reassess
it because we can't go on like that forever. I think that you can't maintain happiness and balance if
you are trying to do everything.

Mary's quote underscores the origins of the SBW image - the result of African American
women redefining their breadwinning roles in the family as unproblematic and, indeed, some-
thing to value. Mary interpreted both her savings for motherhood and her need to return to work
as examples of her strength. She made, what turned out to be, an accurate assessment of the
educational attainment and earning ability of the African American man she would marry.
Nonetheless, she felt that she should not have needed to take either action. She felt trapped by the
expectations she believed that the SBW image set for African American mothers and by the
larger context of the labor market. In addition, based on discussions with her husband and what
she perceived as his lackluster effort to find another job, Mary believed that he interpreted her
decision to return to work as what she should be willing to do as an SBW. At the time of the
interview, Mary was trying to negotiate a different division of household labor with her husband,
but she believed that the expectations set by the SBW presented a challenge in those negotiations
because she was expected to do it all.

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 Dow 49

Rejecti

A signif
whom d
mother
who are
Americ
ated con
this gro
her deci
many m
her hus
recounted,

After I became pregnant, it was expected that I go back to work . . . but I didn't go back to work. I
stayed home and took care of my daughter because that was what was in my heart to do. Ultimately
that led to the problems that led to my divorce, because that wasn't the marriage agreement, you
know.

Jessica also described resistance from her family: "Everybody thought I was absolutely crazy to
leave a job like that and they thought it was laziness." After a year of staying at home with her
child, Jessica enrolled in a graduate program in the hopes that her family would stop asking when
she planned to return to work. Making the decision to stay at home defied both her husband's
expectations for married life and her family's expectations that African American mothers, par-
ticularly those who are educated, should handle both work and family responsibilities.
Similarly, Rochelle, a stay-at-home mother of three, faced censure from her family and com-
munity for her decision to stay at home:

My in-laws feel that I should work. They make those sorts of comments . . . like my husband wouldn't
have to work so hard if you guys worked together and you got a job. Or they say things like he works
so hard because you like to go shopping. I have responded that, "it is not about me going shopping
but that I think it is important that I be home with my children." It is difficult to balance working and
taking care of my children, particularly when my husband is not around. My children enjoy that I am
at home with them ... If I had to work full-time, I would probably be depressed and resentful.

Rochelle's extended family's views of her as lazy and taking advantage of her husband meant
that her in-laws believed that she was not pulling her full weight in the family, even if she was
responsible for providing the primary childcare. In response to this resistance from her in-laws,
Rochelle joined a group of stay-at-home African American middle-class mothers, because she
needed racially attuned support about her decision. In this setting, other mothers experiencing the
same resistance from their families about not working could attach positive meanings to their
decisions to stay at home.
Many other interviewees echoed a similar need for support from African American stay-
at-home mothers' groups to offset the cultural expectation that they should work outside of the
home. They sought out, created, or yearned for groups that would validate and support their deci-
sions to opt out of careers. Indeed, in the late 1990s, African American Mothers United6 was
founded with the specific goal of connecting stay-at-home African American mothers with each
other to support their decision to reduce their commitment to paid work and to focus on raising
their own children. The emphasis on raising one's own children is directly related to the history
of African American mothers working as domestics and nannies in white middle- and working-
class families' homes. African American Mothers United recognizes that African American

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 50 Sociological Perspectives 58( I )

middle-class mothers were confronted by dif

should manage work and family. Acknowledgin
financial concerns, African American Mothers
lacked emotional and psychological support f
home. Sarah, a mother of one, who was pregn
part-time as a teacher, expressed this sentimen

What we all share in common is trying to maximiz

women stay at home for eight months, and they
definitely is important to me because I . . . know a
don't have kids, and I don't know a lot of people w
to be. I think a lot of people think, "What are you
your ass all day. Taking care of a child is work
because it is work. For me, for my self-esteem, it
who believe that it is an important thing. It is okay.

Sarah made it clear that by not working outs

tations of her spouse, family, and community,
ered her to interpret staying at home differe
pulling her full weight in her household, Sarah
work of raising her children. It is also import
mothers in my sample sought out race-specific
me that although white mothers might share so
would not understand the shifting economic a
that decision. By seeking support from simil
mothers were revisiting the strategies of self
fied as essential to the survival of African A
mothers in my study were, in part, choosing to
the historical inability of women of color to d
their own children to be an important privile
enjoyed and continue not to enjoy. In my study
the SBW to produce an alternative image of A
would gain greater acceptance within both Af

Conclusion

Increasingly, sociological researchers are exploring how the meanings that mothers att
their family, work, and life decision making influence how they experience moth
(Christopher 2012; Damaske 2011; Macdonald 2011). This literature generally assum
mothers are influenced by and evaluated by similar images of motherhood (Damaske 201
study adds to this body of literature by highlighting two controlling images of motherh
African American women confront - the Welfare Queen and the SBW - and how those
affect their decisions. These distinctly racialized images of motherhood represent a form
dered racism (Wingfleld 2007, 2009) that African American middle- and upper-middle-
mothers believe they must negotiate in their daily lives. In addition, these images influen
these mothers understand their choices and the meanings they attach to their experience
Existing research suggests that class has a stronger influence on parenting practices th
racial identity (Lareau 201 1), but these findings complicate those claims. The middle- and
middle-class African American mothers in this study believed that they confronted a ra
challenges when they participated in predominately white enrichment activities with

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 Dow 5 I

children
children
findings
can seek
image of
drearing
calling a
increased
These m
treatmen
acted wit
Many m
if they a
do it all
tried to c
middle-
the one
lead to s
African
must als
by other
to comb
from Af
a cultura
end resu
the inter
en's cult
America
rience th
division
differen
reconcile
constan
context.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, an
publication of this article.

Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Notes

1 . All names have been changed.

2. The share of employed African American women who worked as domestic workers increased
out of three in 1910 to a peak of three out of five in 1940 (Rollins 1985).
3. Although the income range is wide, and the upper range is high by national standards,
Francisco Bay Area, between the years 2006 and 2010, the median owner occupied h
was $637,000 (Bay Area Census 2010). If we take seriously the notion of potential home

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 52 Sociological Perspectives 58( I )

(Sullivan, Warren, and Westbrook 2000) as a s

upper end of this income range would be amon
area.

4. The Links, Inc., is an international, not-for-profit corporation, established in 19

website, its membership consists of 12,000 professional women of color in 270 cha
states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. It is one o
and largest volunteer service organizations of women who are committed to enrichi
ensuring the culture and economic survival of African Americans and other persons
(see http://www.linksinc.org/about.shtml).
5. According to its website, Jack and Jill of America was founded in Philadelphia o
from a meeting of 20 mothers under the leadership of Marion Stubbs Thomas, w
bringing children together in a social and cultural environment. In 1947, Jack and J
incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware as a non-profit organization. T
of America is a nationwide organization with more than 225 chapters in seven g
encompassing 35 states and the District of Columbia. Membership has grown t
mothers and associates, and more than 30,000 family members (see http://nationa
org/AboutUs/tabid/96/Default.aspx).
6. The name of the organization has been changed because some mothers identified
bers of this group.

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Dow 55

Author
Dawn M
Citizensh
Study of
earned a
Universit
context o

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