‘It’s About the Way I’m Treated’: Afro-Latina Black Identity Development in the Third Space

Abstract

Through an ethnographic study of an afterschool program serving girls of color in the New York City metro area, this study examines how girls who are ethically Latina and racially Black embrace and articulate AfroLatinx identity. It asks, what are the contexts and institutional processes that facilitate the development of a Black identity among Latina youth? I find that while the Latinx home and school contexts produce a mestiza identity that erases and subjugates Blackness, study participants find viable and affirming representations of Afro-Latinidad through their participation in this afterschool program. Specifically, I argue that the programs’ Black staff members and social justice-centered curriculum produces an increased identification with Blackness among Latina youth. Understanding how Afro-Latina girls learn to embrace their Black identity challenges us to examine how to leverage curriculum and pedagogy to affirm the racial identities of all Black girls.