Sexual harassment in a multicultural workplace
Abstract
The present project explores the qualitative experiences that diverse groups of women have with sexual harassment in their working environments. The concept of “gender essentialism” is considered in social theory, in epistemology, and in the law. This project considers ways that women of color experience harassment in more complicated ways than currently included in the legal definition of sexual harassment. Using a multiracial feminist perspective, this project uses published sexual harassment and race/gender discrimination court cases to consider whether or not sexual harassment experiences of women of color are commensurate with legal and scholarly definitions of harassment. The results of this project reveal that diverse groups of women experience a type of sexual harassment that involves race-specific innuendo premised on racial-sexual stereotypes. The sample included in this study shows that women of varied ethnicities endure harassment that includes a synthesis of racist and sexist treatment. The legal analysis reveals contradictory results. The findings of this project provide evidence that the current definitions of sexual harassment are limited due to the exclusion of the ways that racial signification mediates sexually harassing conduct. In addition, the results further challenge the notion of the “gender essentialism.”
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Grauerholz, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Labor relations|Minority & ethnic groups|Sociology|Womens studies|Criminology
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