Senior, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Major: Sociology
Minors: Music Business, Music Management
Thesis Director: Tracey Lewis-Elligan, Department of Sociology
Faculty Reader: Eulalie Laschever, Department of Sociology
Bio: Miriam is a Sociology student with two music minors and has always been interested in Critical Race Theory and how it intersects with issues faced in the music industry. She is from Los Angeles, CA and moved to Chicago to go to DePaul and experience something different! Outside of her studies, she loves to paint, bake, and try out new coffee shops and restaurants with her friends and family.
Abstract: Miriam explores the abuse and neglect Black female musicians experience and the societal response. She reviews sociological literature as well as modern media to supplement her examination of three cases. The first being the shooting of Megan Pete (“Megan Thee Stallion”) and the internet jokes that resulted with news of the event. The second as the case of Tina Turner and the abuse she suffered from Ike Turner, resulting in cultural references exemplified most notably through the popularization of the phrase “Eat the cake, Anna Mae.” The last case as that of Melissa Benoist, a white actress best known for her role as “Supergirl” who shared her story with domestic violence on Instagram. This content analysis helps to answer the question, why do we normalize violence against Black female artists?
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