Poll: Which are You, “Black Woman” First, or “Woman” First, “Black” Second?

I am Barbadian first :)

I cannot imagine what it's like to be a woman who happens to be black. I've been aware of both at various points in my life, sometimes even at the same time (i.e. a "black woman," someone who has a separate identity from either a non-black woman or a black man). 

I am definitely aware of different parts of my identities depending on the situation.  In the quiet moments, however, I'm really just me.

I think a better poll would be: which takes the highest priority: being a woman, being black, or being a black woman. My answer: being a black woman. That title best captures two of my most cherished identities.

I disagree, I am well aware that I am a Black Woman that doesn't mean I'm running around with the black panthers and taking up these "black causes". I do see myself as a woman before I think about being black because regardless of my skin color my breasts will still be sticking out of my chest as a sign of my sex. What right do you have to tell me or anyone else that if you decide you are a black woman rather than the latter then you are not free to be yourself. We all ascertain our own identities if I want to be a black woman that rallies for black causes then that is who I am. If I want to be woman first then black then that is also who I am. I never forget that I am black ever, however, more than that I am constantly reminded I am a woman.

On another note what is this regular woman you are talking about? Does Hispanic, or Asian, or White not follow other women? Are they freer because they are not black and we are the only ones pretending? Do their people not have causes or have their loyalty questioned? Who is this perfect woman that you are hoping to be like? Why can the two not go hand in hand, black and woman? Can I not be in an interracial relationship and still love my people? Can my people not still love me? It seems you might have an issue with being black. I happen to love it and being a woman it's who I am, who I was born. Sure life can be difficult but it's difficult for anyone alive if you fight against who you are then you just make it harder on yourself.

To answer you poll question I am both black and woman, they harmonize and keep me from nothing. I fight for my people and love Asian men. I also enjoy other causes politics, environment, and racial equality for all humans. If that means I am some kind of black woman rebel riser then so be it.

The fact that most women on here might end up having biracial daughters...I wonder if the skin color is the real issue and all that comes with it? There will be times where coming together with women similar to yourself is important, example dark skin black women, brown skin women and light skin women, though we are all "black" we all have different issues and treated differently in the Black community. I think we just group with who we have things in common with. Example I want to know how to do my hair I look at women on youtube that look like me in complexion and see what type of hair they have and decide if that is what I want. It is not that plain cut anymore, just like the "race" check box is not that clear cut anymore. There will be biracial kids being raised here and they are neither black or white!

Both. One doesn't come before the other in any circumstance, at least that I can think of right now. There isn't a category listed for this perceptive but I'putting it on the table anyway.

Sometimes I "forget" that I'm black.  I know that I am black, but when I interact with people it's not at the forefront of my mind.  So when someone says I'm "the black girl", I'm a bit taken aback.  It seems as though they just see me as a black woman as opposed to a woman that just happens to be black.  Maybe it's just me.

I don't think I've ever posted a response.  I just  read comments, think, read some more...  I had to really contemplate  this one...Black or woman?  I can't really decide which one.  I depends on the circumstances.

 I can't honestly say that I've felt marginalized because of my gender, but I have felt considerably devalued because of my race.  I am constantly having to field questions or reprogram perceptions of what it means to be black.  I teach advanced placement courses in a predominantly white setting and my students are constantly "surprised" by me, mostly because of their narrowed views of who I should be.  The other day one asked me if I preferred to be called African American or Black.  I replied that I considered  African American to have specific cultural/identity designations.  I am black, but I am from the Caribbean.

In fact, I see myself as a Caribbean person first, then black and then female.  I have no idea why this is, but I tend to relate well to other West Indian people, no matter the gender or race.  For me, culture trumps everything.

I can't really say I became aware of the color of my skin until I moved to the United States.  I assigned no positive or negative connotations to it...it just was, like the skin of most of the other people I saw growing up. When I moved here, I began to pick up on the negative images that seem to be attached to people with brown skin.  So, I had to actively (in the conscious part of my brain) fight against it, especially in my twenties.  That's when my internal lens started to change a bit, and I had to do some self-assessment to assure myself that I was the same smart, valuable human being I had always been.  I think the racialized thinking here can force you to do that. 

I realize, however, that the racialized thinking  changes when I go home to the Virgin Islands.  There, color becomes irrelevant. Then the lines of demarcation become more about class than race.   I wonder if that is because I am in the majority there and therefore I become part of the "default" race? There, my race has no importance. I am one of many.  Here, I am very, very aware of being in the minority.  

Yes, context plays a big role for me.  I am always astounded by those Americans who can genuinely move beyond it in a meaningful way where race becomes incidental...I am not quite there and honestly wonder if I ever will be while I am within these borders.

I a work in progress when it comes to this issue.

Well, I'm me first. That  before every other label I or the rest of the world could put on me.

As I said earlier,I definitely see myself as black first... Even then, I never really saw my womanness as separate from my blackness...they are pretty intertwined with one another in a very intricate and complex way.

I grew up in a very pro-black household (my family were involved with militant groups back in the day) so race, culture and all that good stuff was pretty much in the forefront of my identity for most of my life...But with age, and life's experiences, that racial identity is becoming less and less important to me as an individual.  As I mentioned in an earlier post being black (or a woman) isn't the alpha and omega of my existence.  They are only elements of who I am.

I am not blind to how society (or anyone else) may identify em, I also do not concern myself with them...I don't allow what someone else thinks of me determine who I am as a person.

Hey Chris...First Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays!...LOL!

I see myself as.....1. The Daughter of King Jesus...he he 2. Woman 3. American 4. Who happens to be Black 5. Very Pretty...just thought I'd add that in there...lol!  Love this post and its a great question.

Hmmm, good question, Christelyn.    

Woman, human, Black American. and just fabulous, dahling, bwaaaahahahahhaa.   I am all of those and one of the three may be more pronounced on any given day.    Love being a woman (thank God-dess), human, and Black with the frailties, fissures, and, life lessons all the way up to and through lifes' triumphs in being all (and more than) the three.    

The two are intertwined (I explained a bit elow) but most times I think I'm a woman who is black (the woman part coming slightly before the black part, but not by much)....this is why I hate when men and people in general other me!!! Yes, I'm black..and you shouldn't have to ignore my blackness or pretend you don't see color to get along with me....the problem is not the color it's the negative meanings people attach to colors...but blackness does not define who I am on the inside... I don't have a narrow definition of blackness, so I feel like I can still identify as black and not be fully down with the black community (lots of love for the people I know in blackistan, including many I went to school with but I'm following a different path)...and have a wide variety of interests....basically, blackness to me is more about my physical appearance, shared experiences (doesn't automatically mean you have much in common on an individual level..but a lot of black people have had similar experiences of being the only black person in class/ at work, being watched in the store, and with the women here, people's reactions to you dating white men, etc, etc)...., and ancestry...rather than something that dictates what you can or can't do..... Basically, I can be black and know every word to "Sweet home Alabama" (because, I actually did grow up in a very white area of Alabama for some time too!) while caring about some of the issues in the black community...and getting passionate about social inequalities (especially race related ones).. I'm just me! 'I'm both of those things but I'm a whole bunch of other things too...It's complicated when you try to choose...

I would have answered this question SO differently about 5 months back (it's a long story trust me) but at this moment I would say I am a Black woman first. Being in graduate school this semester with my 19 classmates who were all white (and mostly female) taught me this really quickly. I know it may sound weird but in a way I think "Black" meaning I see life through the lenses of my cultural background. This doesn't mean I am not open minded, but I am just mindful of my own culture and what that means to me.

Now on top of that I have a bunch of other identities such as nerd, female, 20-something, aunt, daughter, the list goes on and on. Those identities are just as much a part of my life as being Black.

I have many identities and roles, none are always in play or relevant. I use Black as a shorthand descriptor and also because it is frequently what matters in the racialized world, not because I fully embrace such a muddled concept that will never define me. I have ancestors from multiple continents and my majority African ancestry is beautifully impure and multiethnic. I am human first, woman second, American third and New World multiethnic/cultural mutt next.

I feel like there were, are, and will be so many black women out there fighting for my right to identify myself as human first.  So I am.

Happens to be sounds like its a mistake i was born black lol I am a woman that is african american that is black.

I don't initially identify myself by my gender or race.  I am me.  Unique, distinct, special -- one of billions of human beings on this planet.

Am I proud of being a Black woman? Yes.  But I would be proud of myself no matter what I was.  Thankfully my parents raised me to love myself, regardless of the racism, sexism, other isms I may face.  So I cannot say that I place much emphasis on my race or gender as the essential part of who I am.  It just happens to be who I am. 

I love being a Black woman because it doesn't make any sense to waste your whole life hating who you are. 

So, as usual, I am the red-headed step-child in the room. I am definitely one hundred thousand percent black woman first. The two are mutually inclusive. For me, they cannot exist unto themselves. I am not saying that I see life through a racialized lens but I am hyper-aware (especially living in Orange County California) that those around me do.

I grew up in a predominantly black city (Oakland) and went to predominantly black schools. I am from what many would call the hood. And, I have experienced a lot of the statisticallyblack folk prevalent consequences of that upbringing. Likewise, my family members' lives are indicative of this upbringing as well. And, since I am married to a black man and have two beautiful little chocolate babies (hopefully one day it will be three), I am constantly aware of our shared "station."

I often feel that there are not enough folks willing to fight the good fight when it comes to race. And the whole notion of race transcedence (which I advocate) has become synonymous with race minimizing. I think one day, when I see a more level playing field and more equal circumstances, I will be human first. But, my black womanhood has put me in a great many situations where my humanity was disregarded. And, my black womanhood is often used as a reason to treat me and others like me as less than human. So, for those reasons, I am soldiering along the war-torn black woman battlefield until the fight is over.

I'm a woman first and foremost, and an uppity old one at that!  My gender defines most of my other roles in life, and is a source of pride and satisfaction for me. I'm an American second, and feel damned lucky to be so in spite of the difficulties of the past.  I'm a wife, mother, sister, auntie, cousin, college graduate and a business woman.  I'm Black because that's in my blood and it shows on my brown skin.  My racial make up, however, is the least important thing in my life and does not define me except for my appearance.  Most importantly, I am an individual, a free citizen and, I hope, an agent for good on this earth.

I will say that other people look at me simultaneously as a black woman. But it really depends on the circumstance. While I believe that most people will identify first with gender (men too), it's not always the case. 

Its funny this question has come up on here because I took an ethnic studies course at school and my professor ( a white french man married to a black woman) asked us to write a paper answering this. Particularly whether we felt we were first and foremost our race and then gender or the other way around? When i wrote my paper I felt that I am black first and then a woman. However now a few years later I think about it and I am certain it's the other way around. I am a woman first and then my race comes second.

 I AM WOMAN...not a woman...WOMAN......and none of that other shit matters when the lights go off...the shade of my WOMAN-NESS is merely an additional physical treat. 

If gender trumped race then 'spoils of war' would not include rape of the women which disrupts the entire culture of a homogeneous group. 

I am woman. And will not accept the garbage nor the sterotypes this world may throw at me.

Woman First! I LOVE being a woman and everything that comes with being a women. I would be ME no matter my race. Many of my beliefs stems from my upbringing and moral compass not my race.  Race will always be secondary. 

Finally an article by Christelyn. I see myself as black first here in the US. Back in home country, human first. There is more equality there. If there was less of a deal made about black women then that would change. I think it would be great if we were seen by others the way we see ourselves.  But experiences seems to say different based on the amount of black blogs and books and articles which speak to a specific experience.

Human Being

Gender female

Black. 

Citizen of the World.

In that order. 

The first two labeled by fellow human beings and dictated by biology.

The third labeled by fellow human beings and dictated by current social constructs. 

The fourth labeled by me and dictated by me.