Are We Not Men?

Masculine Anxiety and the Problem of African-American Identity

Author: Phillip Brian Harper
ISBN: 9780195126549

In 1995, popular anxieties about black masculinity became evident in public reactions to the conclusion of the OJ Simpson trial and the Million Man March on Washington. The nation's divided response to the OJ verdict, together with the controversy surrounding Louis Farrakhan's call to black men to come together for a "day of atonement" brought issues of race and gender to the forefront of national debate. In his timely and incisive book Are We Not Men?, Phillip Brian Harper explores issues of race and representation and shows that ideas about black masculinity have always played a troubled role both in the formation of African-American identity and in the mass media at large. What is at stake when a picture of OJ Simpson is darkened on the cover of Time magazine? Why is AIDS still seen as a white gay disease when a quarter of deaths from AIDS from 1981-1991 were among black males? Using examples from a variety of cultural contexts, ranging from sports and pop music to literature and te

Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publish Date: 1998

Subjects: Literary Collections / Essays, Literary Criticism / American / African American

This book is available in the following Community Centers: Cross-Cultural Center (Location: Black/African American (BLCK))