LABOR: Black Nannies Are NOT Slaves!

Labor has been embedded in my existence long before I even took my first breath. It is ancestral; every woman who came before me in generations was forced to grasp the

concept of working to survive. Working at the expense of their livelihood, working for little to nothing.

“Forced to labor for the 'satisfaction of the immediate needs' of their owners and overseers, however, those needs were defined, the captive female body was subjected to innumerable uses. It could be converted into cash, speculated, and traded as a commodity, worked to death, taken, tortured, seeded, and propagated like any other crop, or murdered.” (Hartman, 168-69) 

Coming to terms with this historical reality is gutwrenching. And although I didn’t have to live through slavery, the residuals of slave labor were still passed down throughout the generations. In the present day, Black women are still disadvantaged in the workplace when it comes to obtaining connections, lower wages, etc. Aside from the unrealistic ideals about labor that society impresses upon us, these facts are the reason why Black women still feel the need to work to prove that they deserve recognition and equality in these spaces. 

Because I am aware of the historical context of labor (specifically concerning Black women), I have the utmost respect and compassion for my ancestors who compromised their morals, values, and dignity to stay alive. I also believe that I have refined my understanding of labor and productivity in an effort to break generational curses passed down throughout the generations. I understand that labor is a necessity for survival in the world. However, I value a good balance between work and leisure. “As 'free' laborers, the former slaves should be bound not by the institution of bondage but by labor contracts negotiated annually with a landlord.” (Jones, 44) My ancestors didn’t have the luxury of having agency over when they wanted to work, so to combat toxic work culture and capitalist ideals, I intentionally choose to tend to my well-being when I feel that I need to.

As a Black nanny, I have experienced working with many kinds of family dynamics. Each family has a varying idea of what role they’d like me to play as a caregiver. Because paying for a good nanny is expensive, I have found that the demographic of families that can afford to pay for care for their children is white. I have experience working with families that view nannies as an extended part of their family. These are the families with whom I found myself feeling safe and supported. In addition to their children, they would ensure that they were providing a work environment that was also comfortable for me. “Black women’s domestic duties— as caretakers of children and producers of clothing and foodstuffs— nourished and sustained the South’s labor force.” (Jones, 44)

These are the families that I tend to stick with for long periods. 

I have also experienced the latter working within childcare. Some parents tend to hire nannies to make up for what they lack. These are the families with whom I find myself having to assert boundaries. Their children often have behavioral issues, and the parents want me to provide the discipline and structure that they don’t get regularly. It is safe to say that as a nanny, it is not my duty to parent other people’s children, but rather to provide extra support for the parents for the sake of implementing normalcy in their children’s lives. However, some parents want me to do tasks that are outside of my job description (washing dishes, cooking dinner for the entire family, cleaning the house, and paying for their children) or even pay the rate. “As domestic workers, black women were conscripted to a role that required them to care for and replenish the needs of the white household, and tend to the daily activities necessary for its maintenance.” (Hartman, 171) 

Not to mention that wealthy white kids aren’t inherently aware of their privilege unless their parents are aware and educated, but the reality of that is usually slim. There have been times when I have had to teach the kids that I work with lessons on their privilege, which can be exhausting. Oftentimes, I have to double down on my communication with these families to make it known that I am not a slave and I will not bend myself in half to accommodate their selfish needs. “They were forced to perform the affective and communicative labor necessary for the substance of white families at the expense of their own.” (Hartman, 171)

No amount of money or bribing would get me to budge on my values in the workspace. I feel that wealthy white people tend to dangle money in front of me as an incentive to work harder or do more for them. “These whites believed that, now that the Civil War had destroyed the institution of slavery, it was essential that black men and women return to the cotton, rice, and sugar fields.” (Jones 43-44) 

I foresee this being no less different than white slave owners forcing labor onto my ancestors. The only difference now is that I have the choice to stand up for myself and draw the line when I feel that a toxic work culture is taking a toll on me. 

---

Works Cited:

Jones, Jacqueline. Labor of Love, Labor of Sorrow: Black Women, Work and the Family, from Slavery to the Present. Basic Books, 2010. 

Hartman, Saidiya. “The Belly of the World: A Note on Black Women’s Labors.” Souls, vol. 18, no. 1, 2016, pp. 166–173., https://doi.org/10.1080/10999949.2016.1162596.