Mamie Phipps Clark Essay

744 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: How racism affects education

Mamie Phipps Clark Although Mamie Phipps Clark is not a common name in discussions of scientific and academic achievement, she remains a very influential psychologist over the course of history. Her work contributed to the disestablishment of school segregation and increased awareness in racial bias in children. She was well educated despite all the barriers against her. And she was a loving mother, husband, and friend to those who knew her. Mamie Phipps Clark is, for all intents and purposes, an extremely talented woman and an expert in her field of developmental psychology. Mamie Phipps Clark was a renowned psychologist who researched on the detrimental effects of school segregation on black children. She was born to Katy Florence and Harold One experiment that Phipps Clark is famous for is the Doll Experiment, in which she had black children chose between two dolls, one with light skin and one with dark, and assign them characteristics. She asked this of over 100 children from both segregated and integrated schools. The data she collected suggested that all though the majority of black children identified the darker doll to look like them, they assigned the black doll with negative traits and wanted to play with the white doll instead. However, it was shown that the children from integrated schools were more aware of the injustice and had more equal opinions on which doll was better. This research and discovery gave new knowledge on the perception of self image, and more particularly race, in children. It demonstrates how we are shaped from an early age by our environment, conditioned to think what is ‘nice’ or ‘mean’, ‘pretty’ or This influenced the livelihood of countless children and their families by providing them with the psychiatric care they needed. Many of the children they served were racial minorities, and Phipps Clark and her husband observed that the children were often misdiagnosed at their schools compared to their white counterparts. Not only did the pair work tirelessly to provide aid to their community, but also they aimed to close the racial gap that scientific research and experimentation was often guilty of. The research and experiments that Phipps-Clark conducted were also integral in the Supreme Court case determining whether segregated schooling was unconstitutional or not; had that research not been presented in the case, history could have turned out very

Show More
Related

  • The Life and Legacy of Dr. Kenneth B. Clark: The History of an African-American Psychologist

    1811 Words  | 4 Pages

    Kenneth Clark attended mostly black public schools in New York City (Jones, 2005). During this time period, which was in the early to late 1920s, many African-Americans were not attending four-year universities, but were going into trades after completing high school (Jones, 2005). Miriam Clark had much higher aspirations for Kenneth than for him to acquire a trade (Jones, 2005). Miriam Clark transferred Kenneth to George Washington High School in Manhattan to receive an education that would prepare him for college (Jones, 2005). In 1936, Kenneth Clark graduated from Howard University with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in psychology under the direction of Francis Cecil Sumner, the first African- American to receive a doctorate in psychology (Jones, 2005). Kenneth Clark continued his education and became the first African-American to receive a doctorate degree in psychology from Columbia University (Klein, 2004). While at Columbia University, Clark met Mamie Phipps, to whom he married in 1938 (Jones, 2005). In the following years, most of Dr. Kenneth Clark’s research was conducted with his wife, Mamie Clark, whom also received her doctorate in psychology at Columbia University (Jones, 200...

    Read More

  • Septima Clark and the Citizenship School Movement

    2198 Words  | 5 Pages

    Septima Poinsette Clark also known as the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement," (Crawford, 1993, p. 96) used education to empower others. Her life's work enabled many people in the segregated South the opportunity to learn to read and write so that they could fully participate in a democratic society by exercising their right to vote. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the philosophy of education of Clark and the events that shaped that philosophy.

    Read More

  • Understanding Race: Unveiling White Privilege

    1068 Words  | 3 Pages

    Moreover, her argument relates to the historical events of US imperialism and to the term White Supremacy, the belief of superiority of the white race over others. History has also shaped the idea of discrimination, from the trade of African American slaves between European slave owners to Martin Luther Kings stand against racism. For instance, in the 1940s, psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark designed and conducted a series of experiments known as “the doll tests” to study the psychological effects of segregation on African-American children ("Brown At 60: The Doll Test"). In today’s world, social media became a source for controversial topics such as racism. As I was scrolling through the Facebook platform I landed a video that went viral when a white mother captured her daughters’ reaction on receiving black dolls as gifts for Christmas. The older one politely tries to accept it while the little one throws it aside and cries uncontrollably. I was questioning the parents’ motives because they were laughing and taking it as a joke. It frankly proves that some parents do not know how to inculcate their children on viewing people equally. It makes one question whether or not racially colorblind people

    Read More

  • Biography of Florence Kelley

    1600 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...ugh her work in college, at Hull House, or with the NCL, Florence Kelley’s impact was truly remarkable. She never criticized any potential cause that she encountered, and she helped most everyone that needed it. The proof is in her career. She not only helped start the NCL, a general workers’ league, but also the NAACP, one of the first organizations founded solely to help alleviate the lives of colored people. She made massive contributions to the US Children’s Bureau, and inspired countless people from all walks of life. One of which was Kelley’s on protégé, Frances Perkins, who would later go on to become the Secretary of Labor, the first female cabinet member, under President Teddy Roosevelt. Wherever you look, Kelley’s impact is there. She affected every type of person, and toiled for social justice for all; regardless of race, gender, or age.

    Read More

  • Brown v Board of Education

    2329 Words  | 5 Pages

    The request for an injunction pushed the court to make a difficult decision. On one hand, the judges agreed with the Browns; saying that: “Segregation of white and colored children in public schools has a detrimental effect upon the colored children...A sense of inferiority affects the motivation of a child to learn” (The National Center For Public Research). On the other hand, the precedent of Plessy v. Ferguson allowed separate but equal school systems for blacks and whites, and no Supreme Court ruling had overturned Plessy yet. Be...

    Read More

  • Debra Ambrosetti's Lookism And Self-Worth?

    1206 Words  | 3 Pages

    In schools, teachers inadvertently advertise discrimination. A critical analysis conducted by Debra Ambrosetti confirms that “teacher[s]lack of awareness of their own deep-seated prejudices [is] harmful to the students they will teach”, for they project their prejudices on to their students (Ambrosetti 53). A teacher may dislike African American students in their personal life and may, either subconsciously or deliberately, discriminate against the minority student, affecting the overall quality of education for the pupil. The instructor will begin to call on the African-American student less, and “attractive students may outperform their peers because they are expected and encouraged to do so” (Toledano 684). Thus according to a study conducted by Enbar Toledano, a District Court law clerk, data shows that the teacher will pay more attention to the student she may favor- which will always be the more attractive student. In addition, a recent social experiment found that the “attractiveness of a student was directly related to the teacher’s expectations of the student’s intelligence, popularity and educational motivation” (Ambrosetti 51). However, all of the factors that determine attractiveness in contemporary society depend strictly on looks, as she will not be popular if she is not visually appealing. In schools, those who are unsightly are often bullied. If she is bullied, she will lack motivation, thus the instructor’s perception of her will be

    Read More

  • Racial Segregation In Public Schools Case Study

    1286 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kenneth Clark performed a doll test to prove the psychological damage in segregated children. "The Dolls Test was an attempt on the part of my wife and me to study the development of the sense of self-esteem in children.” In a majority of the doll cases, black child had thought that the African American doll was inferior to the white doll. These children that were tested showed signs of psychological damage, and this damage was brought upon by racial segregation. This sort of mental abuse brought upon these children are only one of downside to as to why there should not be black schools and white schools. On top of this, there will also be an uproar when creating segregated school systems. As stated early, it goes against the very definition of racial equality, something that the black community has been shedding blood over for decades. However Du Bois, in “The Journal of Negro Education” would state that the black community would

    Read More

  • Charlotte Lotte Stephens

    510 Words  | 2 Pages

    Charlotte “Lottie” Stephens was the first African-American teacher hired in the Little Rock School District. Charlotte was born to slaves, William Andrews and Caroline Williams Andrews. Charlotte’s parents were both urban slaves which enabled them to have certain privileges such as an education and a home. Her father was taught how to read from his master, and later taught Charlotte how to read because he wanted his children to

    Read More

  • Racial Stereotypes on Television

    1870 Words  | 4 Pages

    Pauker, Kristin, Nalini Ambady and Evan P. Apfelbaum. "Race Salience and Essentailist Thinking in Racial Stereotypes Development." Child Development (2010): 1799-1813.

    Read More

  • The Lives of African American People and Their Attributions to the Black Community

    2631 Words  | 6 Pages

    Born in Princess Anne, Maryland on June 27, 1894, Crystal Bird Fauset was born to the late Benjamin Oliver Bird and Portia E. (Lovett) Bird (“The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed”). She was orphaned and raised in Boston by her maternal aunt, Lucy Groves, where she attended public schools and excelled as an outstanding student despite the tragic passing away of her parents at an early age (“World Black History”). Later on in life, she studied at Teachers College, Columbia, University, in the late 1920’s and earned her degree in 1931(“The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed”).

    Read More

  • Mamie Till Research Paper

    1251 Words  | 3 Pages

    Imagine your only child being killed for just for talking, flirting, or even whistling at a person who is the opposite race as you are. Well that’s exactly what happen a women name Mamie till. Her only son Emmett till was killed for just whistling at a white woman. Mamie was so anger and hurt that she exposes Emmett tills body for the whole world to see what racism lead to. Exposing Emmett tills body change on how America views on racism.

    Read More

  • The Life and Legacy of Dr. Kenneth B. Clark: The History of an African-American Psychologist

    889 Words  | 2 Pages

    To address the concerns of social justice, while Clark was in office, he helped develop the Board of Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Psychology in 1972 (Pickren, 2002). Though Dr. Kenneth Clark has contributed much more to the world of psychology, he most importantly opened up and investigated racism and the psychological effects it has on children and has helped change the face of education in the process.

    Read More

  • Why Is Rosa Parks Essay

    1244 Words  | 3 Pages

    To begin, Rosa Louise Mcauley was born on February 4, 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama . Her parents were James Mcauley and Leona Edwards. Rosa’s father worked as a carpenter while her mother was a teacher. Due to little wages her and her family were among the lower class of society. Rosa lived her childhood on a farm but was a very sick little girl. Because she was sick so often, Rosa was a very small child. Rosa’s parents split while she was still at a young age so her mother, Leona, decided to move to Pine Level with another family the Edwards, who were former slaves. Even at a young age Rosa was faced with racial discrimination and the Jim Crows Laws. The schools were separate, along with the bathrooms and even buses. She and all the other black children were forced to walk to school apposed to all the white children who were able to ride the bus. Even at this time in her life the Ku Klux Klan were very active in her area. Rosa had remembered a time where her grandfather in Pine Level held a gun on her porch while the KKK walked by .

    Read More

  • Angela Davis and Feminism

    1570 Words  | 4 Pages

    Angela Davis is an international activist/ organizer, author, professor, and scholar who defends any form of oppression. She was born January 26, 1944 in Birmingham, AL to Frank and Sally Davie. Both of her parents are graduates of historically black colleges. Her father attended St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh, North Carolina and became a high school teacher. Sally Davis attended Mile College in Birmingham, AL and became an elementary school teacher. Angela Davis’ mother was heavily involved in civil rights movement in the 1960s and was a leading organizer of the Southern Negro Congress, an organization influenced by the Communist Party. Growing up around the ideas and theories ...

    Read More

  • Anti-Bias Education: Social Identities

    992 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many social identities to take into consideration. It is not just race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, language and social class. There are also categories such as health, education level, and body type. With a surplus of social factors, it is easy to have a hidden prejudice toward certain social identities. It is critical to first acknowledge how institutional forms of prejudice will covertly affect a child’s educational experience. As you can imagine, overt prejudice, a term used to describe the explicit discrimination you see, is easier to spot and therefore avoid. But the covert/indirect prejudices are much easier to slip through the cracks of lessons and classroom materials. For example, having a selection of children’s books that showcase only white, slim, heterosexual family structure is an illustration of a way ...

    Read More

More about Mamie Phipps Clark Essay

Open Document