Rikiesha Pierce

Major and Classification

Sociology

Faculty Mentor

Amon Emeka, Ph.D.

Department

Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

McNair Project

“Gangsta Feminism: Hip-Hop and the Third Wave Feminist Movement”

Project Abstract

This is a multi-method and multi-disciplinary project rooted in anthropology, African American Studies, and Performance Studies. The project is an investigation of the complex relationship between hip-hop and the social narrative of the Black American experience presented in the media. The research entails a music video that highlights skin-tone bias and unequal gender relationships in colored communities, particularly African American. Its innovation is a highly reflective performance ethnography piece that compliments an investigation of theories of humor, race, gender, and resistance through artful expression. The research shows that college-aged people of color without previous exposure to gender studies are able to use hip-hop to identify gender inequity through music videos, highlighting hip-hop’s utility as a feminist platform.