Noun. The notion of “hypersexuality” in modern media and culture functions as a means to further alienate certain groups from mainstream society. In the U.S., a relatively conservative nation in regards to sexuality, the presentation of specific groups as being “hypersexual” serves to demonize those populations. Historical examples can be found in the narratives of Asian American women being promiscuous “gold-diggers” (prevalent in the mid 1900s) and of Black women “naturally” being more sexual than white women. Such narratives are essentially propaganda aimed to stereotype minorities in “mainstream” circles.

Examples

“In the media, Black women often play roles such as the “hoe,” the “stripper,” the baby mama, and the jezebel stereotype, which “represents the African- American woman as a promiscuous man eater” (Versluys 2013). If you were to come up with similarities between all of these roles, the underlying common factor that can be found is the proponent of sex. Black women in the media are portrayed as sexual objects and this is not on accident. Hollywood works hard at perpetuating dehumanizing stereotypes of people of color, and Black women often take the target hit for this.”

Matthews, Annalycia D., “Hyper-Sexualization of Black Women in the Media” (2018). Gender & Sexuality Studies Student Work Collection. 22. https://digitalcommons.tacoma.uw.edu/gender_studies/22