African American women share the common ground of surviving in a racially stratified society. Nonetheless, the diversity of their experiences emerges. This article contrasts the lived experiences of two elderly African American daughters of the Jim Crow South. Commonly shared social markers (race, gender, and historical and regional contexts) are held in contrast to their notably different social classes. Salient features of their diverse experiences corroborate the supposition that although all African American women encounter racism, social-class differences influence how racism is experienced. Family racial socialization pathways are conceptualized as reliance on personal resources versus reliance on personal defiance.
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