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ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

Navigating Secret Societies: Black Women in the Commercial Airline Industry

Morrison, Shannon M
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587030922882857

Abstract Details

2020, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies.
A little over 4% of women in the United States hold the certification necessary to fly for a commercial airline like Delta, American, or Southwest. Even fewer of that 4% are women of color. The numbers are consistent across the industry, where the majority of positions are still held by white men. Yet, the industry would have you believe it has made great strides in addressing the lack of diversity and inclusion; they do so each year during Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and Pride Month, where airlines publish articles or social media about `their all black/all-female/ all LGBTQ flight crew.’ Despite the importance of representation when it comes to outreach to younger people, it is not enough for aviation organizations to rely on representation as a means for claiming `achievement’ of diverse and inclusive workspaces. I argue that this requires aviation organizations to utilize self-reflexive practices that are not encompassed in representation alone. In order to critically examine why these organizations remain resistant to the inclusion of diverse individuals, this project reflects on the experiences of Black women, working in the field of aviation, through the writings of Black Feminist scholars. Having a more robust understanding of the complex experiences of Black women is imperative if aviation organizations wish to implement structural changes that will ultimately enable them to create, sustain and recruit underrepresented individuals.
Guisela Latorre (Advisor)
Wendy Smooth (Committee Member)
40 p.
Womens Studies
Black women, aviation, diversity and inclusion, history, womens studies, Black feminist theory, intersectionality

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Morrison, S. M. (2020). Navigating Secret Societies: Black Women in the Commercial Airline Industry [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587030922882857

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Morrison, Shannon. Navigating Secret Societies: Black Women in the Commercial Airline Industry. 2020. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587030922882857.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Morrison, Shannon. "Navigating Secret Societies: Black Women in the Commercial Airline Industry." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587030922882857

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1587030922882857
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.
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