Respectability politics, or the politics of respectability, is a political strategy wherein members of a marginalized community will consciously abandon or punish controversial aspects of their cultural-political identity as a method of assimilating, achieving social mobility, and gaining the respect of the majority culture. As a sociological term, it is often pejorative, typically used in a manner critical of the ideology.
The term "politics of respectability" was first coined by historian Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham in 1993. According to her, respectability "emphasize[s] reform of individual behavior and attitudes both as a goal in itself and as a strategy for reform of the entire structural system of American race relations."
Concept
When marginalized figures promote respectability politics, they may be attempting to gain social credibility by regulating the "undesirable" beliefs and behaviors of the other members in their social group. Proponents of respectability politics might attempt to portray their personal social values as being continuous and compatible with dominant values. They may prefer not to challenge the mainstream for its failure to accept the marginalized group into the mainstream and that diversity also exists within the group.
According to Performing a Vanilla Self by scholars Alice E Marwick and Mikaela Pitcan, respectability politics consists of three main facets. The first is to reinforce a hierarchy contrasted between a respectable individual and a shameful other. The second is to encourage people to defy stereotypes attributed to different aspects of their identity in attempts to present one's self as respectable. Finally, the third facet involves tailoring one's behavior to better comply with white, middle-class cultural norms, and consequently reinforcing the status quo. A hypothetical example of this in play would be a person who chooses to speak standard American English, as opposed to African-American vernacular English to a non-Black audience as a method of aligning themself with white cultural norms.
Black respectability politics
The term "politics of respectability" was first used in the context of Black women and their efforts to distance themselves from the stereotypical and disrespected aspects of their communities. Respectability politics continues to influence the behaviour of racially marginalized Black individuals today who gain status and rights by "adhering to hegemonic standards of what it means to be respectable". Black individuals practicing respectability politics are stereotyped as being most concerned with laziness, intellectual inferiority, violence, and immorality. While respectability politics has been an important way for Black citizens of the United States to integrate into their free lives post-emancipation, today there are many examples of Black individuals arguing that "a deliberate concession to mainstream societal values" does not promote respect, but is instead a defense mechanism of minority communities. Some research studies associate part of the high burden of mental health problems with Black Americans on assimilationist behaviors. Researchers Hedwig Lee and Margaret Takako Hicken argue that further conversations about respectability politics should always consider the challenges Black Americans negotiate in everyday social spaces and establish how they impact Black American mental health.
The development of African-American politics of respectability has been traced to writers and activists including W. E. B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington, and has been used as a way of understanding the election and political trajectory of Barack Obama. The former president has also been criticized for his use of respectability politics during his presidency, such as the time he brought up issues of Black criminality during his speech following the November 24th grand jury decision regarding the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. One of the most open proponents of respectability politics is former basketball player Charles Barkley. Scholars have linked the television series Black-ish to a variety of intersections and fiscal perspectives springing from Black respectability politics.