Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Graduate Theses and Dissertations Dissertations 2020 The Black woman student experience: Black identity, activism, and fashion on the college campus Dyese Matthews Iowa State University Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd Recommended Citation Matthews, Dyese, "The Black woman student experience: Black identity, activism, and fashion on the college campus" (2020). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 17996. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/17996 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Dissertations at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Black woman student experience: Black identity, activism, and fashion on the college campus by Dyese L. Matthews A thesis submitted to the graduate faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE Major: Apparel Merchandising and Design Program of Study Committee: Kelly L. Reddy-Best, Major Professor Sara Marcketti Jeanne Dyches The student author, whose presentation of the scholarship herein was approved by the program of study committee, is solely responsible for the content of this thesis. The Graduate College will ensure this thesis is globally accessible and will not permit alterations after a degree is conferred. Iowa State University Ames, Iowa 2020 Copyright © Dyese L. Matthews, 2020. All rights reserved. ii DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my loving, sweet, and funny Auntie PeeWee. Thank you for always loving me and supporting me, we miss you. I also dedicate this thesis to my loving support system (loved ones, family, friends) who continually keep me encouraged through advice and prayer. And finally, I dedicate this thesis to Black women—keep shining sis! Psalm 46:5. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF FIGURES .........................................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... ix ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...............................................................................................................x ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................... xi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................1 Thesis Organization ................................................................................................................... 3 Definitions ................................................................................................................................. 4 Positionality Statement .............................................................................................................. 5 CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW .........................................................................................8 Racism ....................................................................................................................................... 8 Brief History of Black Oppression and Activist Movements .................................................... 9 American Civil War, Black Codes, and Jim Crow............................................................... 9 Civil Rights Movement ...................................................................................................... 11 Brief Overview: Black Lives Matter Movement ................................................................ 12 Continual Development of Black Identity ............................................................................... 15 Race and Ethnicity.............................................................................................................. 15 Black Woman Identity and Culture: Becoming Versus Being........................................... 16 Black Woman Identity: Self-definition .............................................................................. 18 Brief History of Activist Statements Through Dress in Black Culture ................................... 18 1940s .................................................................................................................................. 19 1960s .................................................................................................................................. 20 1990s .................................................................................................................................. 22 2000s .................................................................................................................................. 24 Black Student Experiences at Predominately White Institutions ............................................ 25 Theoretical Foundation: Critical Race Theory ........................................................................ 27 CHAPTER 3. RESEARCH DESIGN ............................................................................................29 Purpose and Research Questions ............................................................................................. 29 Participant Recruitment ........................................................................................................... 30 Data Collection ........................................................................................................................ 30 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................................... 34 Reliability and Validity............................................................................................................ 35 Reflexivity ............................................................................................................................... 37 Integration of Theoretical Framework ..................................................................................... 37 CHAPTER 4. RESULTS ...............................................................................................................39 Theme 1: Experiences on Campus .......................................................................................... 42 Safe and Welcomed ............................................................................................................ 42 Unsafe and Unwelcomed.................................................................................................... 46 iv Occurrences of Racism and Discrimination on Campus .................................................... 51 Theme 2: Black Identity Through Dress and Appearance....................................................... 54 Motivations to Show Black Identity in Dress and Appearance ......................................... 54 Examples of Dress Overtly Showing Black Identity.......................................................... 66 Experiences Showing Black Identity Through Dress at PWI ............................................ 83 Theme 3: Activist Identity Through Dress and Appearance ................................................... 90 Activist Identity .................................................................................................................. 90 Activism Involvement ........................................................................................................ 93 Examples of Dress Showing Activist Identity ................................................................... 96 Experiences Wearing Activist Clothing on Campus ........................................................ 104 Motivations to Purchase Activist-Related Clothing ......................................................... 107 CHAPTER 5. DISCUSSION .......................................................................................................110 The Context of the PWI for Black Women College Students ............................................... 110 Self-Definition: Becoming Versus Being and the Black and Activist Identity on the PWI .. 112 Black and Activist Identities: Dress and Appearance Practices on the PWI ......................... 113 Identity Rearticulation ...................................................................................................... 113 Identity Expression Through Dress .................................................................................. 114 Theoretical Interpretation ................................................................................................. 118 CHAPTER 6. CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................119 Limitations ............................................................................................................................. 121 Implications for Society and the Apparel Industry ................................................................ 121 Further Research .................................................................................................................... 123 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................124 APPENDIX A. DEMOGRAPHIC SURVEY