Researcher Profile - Shardia Briscoe-Palmer
Shardia Briscoe-Palmer
The Politics of Black Masculinities and Colonial Legacies
Shardia Briscoe-Palmer is an Assistant Professor in Sociology in the School of Sociology and Social Policy.
To be able to examine societal trends and identify social injustices through an array of different critical approaches is a skill which will serve you well not only in the completion of your degree programme, but with your own contributions to society.
How would you explain your research?
I am a Political Sociologist with a research interest which sits at the intersection of race and gender. My research specialism examines masculinities within society, with a specific focus on the constructions of Black Masculinities over time and differences in gender performances amongst changing spaces. Black men and their masculinities sit at a crossroad of being perceived as exhibiting gender privilege, whilst experiencing discriminative oppressions due to race and other social factors.
Over the years my research has led me to examine the political sociologies of Black men inclusive of constructions of masculinities within political spaces, experiences of sex and reproductive healthcare (SRH) and more recently perceptions of belonging in space and place. More often my research implements qualitative methodological approaches, including narrative research and participatory action research, which enables me to place my participants at the center of my research, design and evaluation.
My own subjectivity and reflective practices are significant aspects of my research. As a Black British female, I am aware of the impact and possible influence of my presence in male dominated spaces, including academic conferences. However, this has never prevented me from persevering in this field and it never will! I thoroughly enjoy my research and the insight it has provided me, thus far.
What inspired you to pursue this area?
When studying for my master's degree, I took a module called ‘Gender and Development’. I remember asking the module convenor why we explore concepts of inequality under the banner of gender, when the subject focus was always that of women! This was true especially when learning about, at the time – showing my age - the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs), now Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It puzzled me why developmental inequalities relating to men, did not also have a targeted global initiative.
I also remember at the same time experiencing many stops and searches with my then boyfriend, now husband – a black man. I remember asking the police officer, why does he keep getting stopped? Why do you think he has done something wrong? And I will never forget his response “because he shouldn’t be in this type of neighborhood” - meaning a black man shouldn’t be driving around an affluent area when he doesn’t live / belong here.
Fast forward to my PhD and I spent my research time answering my own question. The way all men had been constructed through a lens of hegemonic domination, privilege and racialised gendered binaries, meant the possible inequalities, oppressions and discrimination of some marginalised men went unnoticed or worse silenced. And so, my interest in this field grew and my research on The Politics of Black Masculinities flourished.
How will your research affect the average person?
My research encourages people to start to view long held perceptions and stereotypes of groups within society and start to hopefully deconstruct some of them by questioning the knowledge production practices which has taken place in order to think in a certain way. By doing so it calls attention to the injustices and often irrational thought processes we have of one another, changing one individual's attitude at a time.
How does your research influence your teaching?
Informed by my research, my teaching always encompasses an intersectional pedagogical approach to teaching and learning. The modules I teach and how I delivery my lecture content, encourages students to explore their own identities as well as the identities of those around them through a reflective manner of constant fluidity, questioning the how and the why in the knowledge production of our identities. It is then vital to question and challenge this process to allow for further reflexivity and revision of the self.
What's been the greatest moment of your career so far?
Attending an international conference in Slovenia, Holland and being invited to sit on a roundtable in Hungary, within 8 weeks (about 2 months) of one another, to present my research to audiences of up to 2,000, on a platform never experienced before. It hits me when sitting on the airplane or sitting next to a senior career scholar that this is my job, and what a privilege it can often be.
What's the biggest challenge in your field?
The biggest challenge in my field at the moment are the current social and political discontents associated with exploring identities through a myriad of fake news and social media algorithms. I find that everyone has an opinion, even not having an opinion is in its self-opinionated, but very little discussion in the public eye is informed or supported by scholarship or statistics, beyond surface level. This makes it very challenging to deconstruct perspectives of fake news and re-construct with academic rigor.
What advice would you give to someone considering an undergraduate degree in sociology?
100% go for it! Of all the social sciences, sociology gives you breadth and depth into not only the social worlds around you but also insight into associated disciplines such as politics, law, education, etc. To be able to examine societal trends and identify social injustices through an array of different critical approaches is a skill which will serve you well not only in the completion of your degree programme, but with your own contributions to society.