The Affective Colonial Structure: A Trajectory Resumed by Aging Black Women

In multiracial and racist societies, race act as a social criterion whose symbolic function is to allocate subjects into class structures, taking as a reference the racial standards of the dominant group. This article investigates how racial prejudice and its effects influenced the affective and romantic trajectories of Black women and how this phenomenon acquired meaning in their respective aging processes. Qualitative in nature, this study collected the narratives of 15 elderly Black women whose statements were explored by discourse analysis. Findings revealed the impact of colonization and the myth of racial democracy in the elaboration of negative stereotypes about Black women, which persist to this day, and the effects of these aspects on reports of loneliness and the emergence of matriarchal families. It also compares past experiences with the possibilities of today’s youth. Finally, given the relevance of the research results obtained, it suggests further investigation of the racial, social, and gender elements that constitute affective choices.

Keywords:
Affective choices; Black Women; Colonization; Aging