Learning about Cognitive Dissonance and Race Relations: A Study of the Personal Narratives of Older White Southern Women Who Grew up with Maids

Abstract

A critical analysis of the content of a recent collection of personal narratives of 23 older White women from the Deep South who grew up with domestic servants in their homes was conducted to study how these Whites who enjoyed the fruits of segregation look upon their White privilege from the perspective of today. The interviews revealed much about the close bonds that formed across racial lines. However, they also provide a wealth of information about how the White individuals handled the dissonance or discrepancy between their personal values of today and their behavior and attitudes back then.

KEYWORDS:

• Segregation
• cognitive dissonance
• African American women
• maids
• domestic servants