Intersectionality

What did kimberle crenshaw suggest we do with oppression?

Instead, I suggest that we examine our different experiences within the more fundamental relationship of damnation and subordination To focus on the particular arrangements that race or class or gender takes in our time and place without seeing these structures as sometimes parallel and sometimes interlocking dimensions of the more fundamental relationship of domination and subordination may temporarily ease our consciences. But while such thinking may lead to shortterm social reforms, it is simply inadequate for the task of bringing about long-term social transformation.

What is intersectionality? Who coined this term? Why is this concept important in understanding inequality?

Intersectionality introduced by Kimberle Crenshaw: § How biological, social and cultural categories (gender, race, class, ability, sexual orientation, etc.) & other axes of identity intersect on multiple and simultaneous levels § How those intersections contribute to & are shaped by systematic social inequalities Intersectionality refers to a framework to explore the dynamic between coexisting identities and connected systems of oppression

What are controlling images?

A controlling image is similar to a stereotype; an image that is used to incorrectly represent a group of individuals based on racist or sexual notions. Patricia Hill Collins, a noted sociologist and black feminist describes controlling images as " images are designed to make racism, sexism, poverty, and other forms of social injustice appear to be natural, normal, and inevitable parts of everyday life"

Why is oppression contradictory?

Adhering to a stance of comparing and ranking oppressions the proverbial, "I'm more oppressed than you"—locks us all into a dangerous dance of competing for attention, resources, and theoretical supremacy.

• Who is responsible for the concept of the "oppressor within"?

Audre Lode: "The true focus of revolutionary change is never merely the oppressive situations which we seek to escape, but that piece of the oppressor which is planted deep within each of us. • Each group identifies the type of oppression with which it feels most comfortable as being fundamental and classifies all other types as being of lesser importance.

What is intersectionality?

the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage. the term "intersectionality" to deal with the fact that many of our social justice problems like racism and sexism are often overlapping, creating multiple levels of social injustice.

• In her TED talk, Kimberlé Crenshaw argues that "if you're standing in the path of multiple forms of exclusion, you're likely to get hit by both." What does she mean? What are some examples she gives?

Only if the court was able to see how these policies came together would he be able to see the double discrimination that Emma DeGraffenreid was facing. I had come to recognize that the problem that Emma was facing was a framing problem. The frame that the court was using to see gender discrimination or to see race discrimination was partial, and it was distorting this intersection, the roads to the intersection would be the way that the workforce was structured by race and by gender. And then the traffic in those roads would be the hiring policies and the other practices that ran through those roads. Now, because Emma was both black and female, she was positioned precisely where those roads overlapped, experiencing the simultaneous impact of the company's gender and race traffic. The law -- the law is like that ambulance that shows up and is ready to treat Emma only if it can be shown that she was harmed on the race road or on the gender road but not where those roads intersected. So what do you call being impacted by multiple forces and then abandoned to fend for yourself? Intersectionality seemed to do it for me.

What happened with the story of Emma according to Kimberle

Story of Emma DeGraffenreid: she applied for a job, and she was not hired, and she believed that she was not hired because she was a black woman. claim of race and gender discrimination The real problem, though, that the judge was not willing to acknowledge was what Emma was actually trying to say, that the African-Americans that were hired, usually for industrial jobs, maintenance jobs, were all men. And the women that were hired, usually for secretarial or front-office work, were all white. Only if the court was able to see how these policies came together would he be able to see the double discrimination that Emma DeGraffenreid was facing. I had come to recognize that the problem that Emma was facing was a framing problem. The frame that the court was using to see gender discrimination or to see race discrimination was partial, and it was distorting this intersection, the roads to the intersection would be the way that the workforce was structured by race and by gender. And then the traffic in those roads would be the hiring policies and the other practices that ran through those roads. Now, because Emma was both black and female, she was positioned precisely where those roads overlapped, experiencing the simultaneous impact of the company's gender and race traffic. The law -- the law is like that ambulance that shows up and is ready to treat Emma only if it can be shown that she was harmed on the race road or on the gender road but not where those roads intersected. So what do you call being impacted by multiple forces and then abandoned to fend for yourself? Intersectionality seemed to do it for me. But saying her name is not enough. We have to be willing to do more. We have to be willing to bear witness, to bear witness to the often painful realities that we would just rather not confront, the everyday violence and humiliation that many black women have had to face, black women across color, age, gender expression, sexuality and ability.

What does the concept of the "oppressor within" signal? How do we address this concept, and make change?

To get to the top of the oppressor, Patricia Hill Collins ØNew visions of what oppression is ØNew categories of analysis inclusive of race, class, gender, sexuality, ability, citizenship status, etc. as distinctive yet interlocking structures of oppression ØNew ways of thinking that are accompanied by new ways of acting • Once we realize that there are few pure victims or oppressors, and that each one of us derives varying amounts of penalty and privilege from the multiple systems of oppression that frame our lives, then we will be in a position to see the need for new ways of thought and action This collectively involves: • Challenging "controlling images" and their intersectional impacts... • § Noticing what's missing • § "To dehumanize an individual or group is to deny the reality of their experiences" • § Thinking intersectionally • § Coming to terms with how privilege and oppression has shaped our individual biographies • § Making the choice to challenge the oppressor within each of us, rather than accepting it

What do intersectional inequalities shape in regards to violence?

Two intersectional identities: Gender and Race Anti-queer violence is evaluated differently by victims depending on their positionalities. FEAR OF WALKING ALONE AT NIGHT BY GENDER SEXUALITY SUBGROUPS • White queer people are able to overlook the racialized implications of their violent experiences, while LGBT people of color - who do not have the advantage of white privilege- contend with discourse that they have disappointed their racial communities. §Meyer p. 853

Where does the concept of standpoint come from?

Where are you coming from? • How has your experience shaped your understanding of others? • Taking into account your standpoint in things and realizing its effect

What happens when we forgo and neglect the notion of intersectionality?

Without frames that allow us to see how social problems impact all the members of a targeted group, many will fall through the cracks of our movements, left to suffer in virtual isolation. But it doesn't have to be this way.

• What are the key facets that Collins argues are vital for building effective coalitions? Building coalitions:

• Coalitions must attend to power and privilege • § Coalitions must avoid voyeurism • § Coalitions must involve deeply listening to one another and developing empathy • § Coalitions must involve individual accountability - and grappling with who we are and what we've inherited • § Coalitions must see difference as a site through which to build connection