Womanist Preservation: An Analysis of Black Women ’s Spiritual Coping

The highly spiritual and religious nature of Black women is fairly established in the social science arena, yet the transpersonal field yields very little discourse on this relevant nexus. This static void resembles the macro and micro aggressions Black women face routinely in the Western world which perpetually diminishes and nullifies their collective character and lived experiences. The ostracism Black women face regularly stems primarily from the triple threat of racism, sexism and socioeconomic status which thereby stimulates the inherent and roused use of spiritual practices as a form of resiliency. By analyzing existing research this investigation exposes the experiences, strategies, and research methods that apply to Black women's use of spirituality to cope with mundane and oppressive transgressions with the spiritualized support of family, church, and a deeply personal relationship with what Alice Walker calls the divine, Mama. Multiple measures, instruments, and culturally appropriate research structures are reviewed to explicate and expand the transpersonal womanist orientation.