African American Sexuality in White Culture - Essay Example

African American Sexuality in White Culture Sexuality and the Black Church, by Kelly Douglas Brown, looks at the taboo matter of sexuality that has for long been shunned by members of the African American community and its church. The author asserts that this notion of Black sexuality has got in the way of beneficial response to the AIDS predicament and early pregnancies, frustrated healthy male and female relations, fostered prejudice of sexual diversity, and made feminist and African American theologians mute on issues concerning sex (Brown 8).

This paper is a personal response to Sexuality and the Black Church. The paper will look at How White people need to become aware of the set legacy and take responsibility for transforming patterns of privilege, how writing the book helps her heal her suffering and helps other women to break stereotypes toward African American women, and the negative influence of the White culture on sexuality of the African American Women. White people need to become aware of the set heritage and take blame of the changing patterns of privilege.

There have been a number of instances that both disconfirm or confirm the author’s feeling that African American religious institutions are unforthcoming in dealing with sexual issues in an open manner. White people should be conscious of the legacy and take responsibility for transforming patterns of privilege by looking at sexuality as a frame for matters that are evidently issues of sexual politics. In addition, there are church leaders in the African American religious institutions who give advice about who people are supposed to have a relationship with.

White people should be aware of such plain statements about sexual activity than they would ever expect to take notice of in a place of worship (Brown 24). In addition, the author does not highlight the legacy of racism as a justification for misogyny or homophobia in the places of worship. The white people should be aware that the legacy of racism is as a consequence of the negative effect of their culture on African American sexuality and is the result of the transformation. They should also know that this is a challenge presented to every individual.

White people will also have to know that the effect of this legacy is a chance for the African Americans to reflect more clearly on sexual issues in places of worship. Writing the book helps her heal her suffering and helps other women to break stereotypes toward African American women. The author uses her theological knowledge to highlight a different view within African American religious reflection than the spoken practice she recognizes as prevalent. She is aware of the existent hostilities and calls for the places of worship to get more on the scholars resources.

Also, she goes into discussions with a deep sense of reverence for the discursive activities of her interlocutors. In addition, she is aware that even though, historically, Christianity perceived sexuality as harmful, the embodiment of Jesus Christ implies an extremely different explanation of the body, and in the end, of human sexuality. The author asserts that, “the fact that Jesus was embodied calls us to appreciate the human body as a gift of God” (Brown 115). The body signifies a locus for human contact with God.

The death of Jesus Christ and his enthusiasm was intended for preserving life. His enthusiasm is a reminder to members of the African American that human passion, which can be articulated through human sexuality, “is God’s passion bursting forth from the human being as an insatiable desire to foster life in all aspects of one’s living” (Brown 120). This helps her overcome her suffering and helps other women to break stereotypes toward African American women. The book also highlights the negative influence of White culture on sexuality of the African American Women.

The discussion about African American sexuality has pervaded the lives of the African American Women in destructive ways. African American Women frequently internalize the White culture’s hegemonic discussion on their sexuality leading to contempt for themselves and their bodies. In addition, the White culture presumes that Black sexuality has so persistently been utilized to dictate African American Women that the African American Women society is portrayed as quiet, unwilling, and not able to talk about issues of their own sexuality (Brown 68).

Moreover, it denies the complete humanity of African American Women. In conclusion, the author’s prominence on matters, for example, sexism and homosexuality in the Black church indicate that, even though these issues trouble the White community as well, the perseverance of these issues in African American communities comes from a specific historical incident of exploitation. Work Cited Brown, K. D. Sexuality and the Black Church. New York: Orbis, 1999. Print.