NCJ Number
216574
Journal
Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Volume: 48 Issue: 6 Dated: October 2006 Pages: 887-904
Date Published
October 2006
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This article examines the content of various popular media forms--specifically in covering the murder of Anthony Walker in the United Kingdom--in assessing the historical and contemporary images and mythologies that continue to stigmatize interracial relationships, notably between Black men and White women.
Abstract
The authors conclude that popular and media representations of intimate interracial relationships contribute to an environment that facilitates, if not encourages, violence against persons involved in intimate inter-racial relationships. This article begins with a consideration of the ways in which cultural constructions of race and gender provide the context in which intimate inter-racial relationships are enacted and perceived. The article then addresses the ways in which the images of intimate inter-racial relationships are portrayed in the media. The authors suggest that although there are some exceptions, the media's tendency has been to portray intimate inter-racial relationships in derogatory ways, whether as inherently problematic or as inherently dangerous to "racial purity." Such portrayals can provide justification to some for attacking individuals involved in intimate inter-racial relationships. Anthony Walker, a 17-year-old Black youth was brutally beaten and then fatally assaulted with an axe. The "provocation" for the attack was his having a White girlfriend. This article ends with a discussion of how widespread mythologies about intimate inter-racial relationships that are reflected in the media might contribute to violence against those involved in such relationships. Although the discussion focuses on the United States, material and examples are also drawn from the United Kingdom. 24 references