The Missing White Woman Syndrome
Shaquja Clark
The United States has a serious case of missing white girl syndrome. This term (coined by the Late Gwen Ifill) is used to describe the extensive news coverage and fascination of missing or abducted affluent white women or teenagers. Women of color are missing and or abducted at higher rates than white women but there is little to no media coverage about their cases. It is an unspoken epidemic that silently plagues the black community. The Missing White Woman Syndrome implements the idea that women who do not fit the description of young, white, and beautiful –typically black women- are less newsworthy. This reinforces the social hierarchy in the news industry.
The lack of diversity in the newsroom makes it that much harder for the women of the Black community to be represented and advocated for. The media also has no interest in Black women who are considered to be of a lower economic social status. When most hear the term ‘missing person’ most think of Caylee Anthony or Natalee Holloway, but no one thinks of women like Unique Harris or Phoenix Colden. Baker of the Augusta Chronicle wrote a piece that noted the impact White, men, and women media decision-makers have on the news audiences’ perceptions on what and who is newsworthy. He additionally added that he “White young women are not the typical missing person in America, yet they receive substantial news coverage because such women still remind mostly White media decision-makers of their wives, daughters, sisters, classmates, co-workers, friends and acquaintances.”. Baker then went on to say that covering stories of missing women of color with ethnic names are mixed with racism and unconscious indifference by these same media decision-makers.
Columnist Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post wrote that the news coverage for White missing women is more than a story, “it’s always a saga”. White women are seen as the
damsel in distress. The journalist added these sagas are narratives of “something seen as precious and delicate being snatched away or defiled, or as “whiteness under siege”.
Natalie Holloway was an 18-year-old high school graduate who disappeared in Aruba on a class trip. On Thursday, May 26, 2005, Holloway and 124 fellow graduates, plus 7 chaperones, of Mountain Brook High School arrived in Aruba for a five-day, unofficial graduation trip.
Holloway was last seen by her classmates leaving the Aruban bar and leaving in a car that belonged to a man she had just that night. She was never seen again. Even without a discovery of the body, she has been declared deceased in absentia. Natalee Holloway’s disappearance caused a media frenzy. For months there was round-the-clock coverage on the investigation to find the missing high school graduate. The same type of attention was not given to Unique Harris.
Unique Harris was 24 years old when she went missing from her Southeast, Washington DC home in 2010. Harris was a mother of two boys and enrolling in school to become a massage therapist. On the night of October 9, 2010, Harris was at her home with her cousins for a sleepover. The next morning her cousin discovered Unique was not in her bed. The police made an arrest but no one has been convicted. The mysterious disappearance did not receive national attention like that of the Natalee Holloway case. Considering the neighborhood in which Harris went missing people are reluctant to make contact with police. Also, abducted or missing individuals that are from or live in underfunded neighborhoods do not receive the amount of air time of an affluent family, typically white.
Another “less than newsworthy” is the missing person case of 23-year-old Phoenix Colden. She was a college student at the University of Missouri. She was last seen in the driveway of the family’s home in St. Louis County, Missouri that afternoon. A few hours later her car was found by police in an impound lot. It was discovered about 30minutes from her
home with the keys still in the ignition. No one has reported seeing Phoenix since that day. The families of these victims spread the word mostly by themselves. Posting fliers, hosting community events to bring awareness, or talking to the people in the community.
Organizations such as the Black and Missing Foundation take matters into their own hands to find the unrepresented people that are still out there waiting to be found. It is a non-profit organization that was established to bring awareness to the cases of missing people of color. The organization provides the families of the victims with vital information regarding how to communicate with law enforcement about their case and helping them to locate their loved one(s). Most importantly they educate the black community on personal safety. Founded in 2008 by DerricaWilson, a former police officer, to help those who have no way of spreading the word of their loved one’s disappearance. BAMF uses a variety of media to help locate missing persons of color for this severely underserved population. BAMF has even helped families reunite with each other. They have a hotline to call if anyone has tips on a missing person’s report. (BAMFI, 2015)
Despite representing less than fifteen percent of the population, black Americans accounted for nearly 35% of all missing persons reported in 2018. Black and Missing report that 37% of missing minors and 28.2% of missing adults in 2018 were black. Black women are disappearing at alarming rates, but nothing is being done to prevent or find them.
