Critical Intersectionality : Bromley Won 't Be Making Your Head Spin

According to Kimberlé Crenshaw, the concept of intersectionality refers to the way multiple oppressions particularly among the women are expressed. Kimberlé Crenshaw uses a scenario of traffic flow to describe intersectionality. She argues that many times black women find themselves in an intersection as a result of race discrimination and sex discrimination (Kimberlé 139). They suffer in many ways that may not be placed easily in legal categories of sexism or racism. The injustices they experience are a combination of both sexism and racism and they are “invisible” in the legal framework. An example of such injustices is employment discrimination that these women experience because they are women and black at the same time. A company like

Women and men are born equal. However, females are receiving unequal judgement and unfair treatment in the society, and thus Marilyn Frye brings up the notion of “oppression”, claiming that women are oppressed. Throughout the essay, I will first give the definition of Frye’s oppression and then list 5 critical qualifications to be considered oppressed. After that, I will explain my appreciation on Frye’s perspective on elaborating oppression using the “bird cage” analogy. I will support Frye’s “double-bind” argument for sexism followed by flaws in the argument. Furthermore, I will point out some social group are mistakenly placed inside or outside the parameters of oppression, once the theory of oppression extends over other marginal groups.

Intersectionality is a framework that must be applied to all social justice work, a frame that recognizes the multiple aspects of identity that enrich our lives and experiences. This framework synthesizes and complicates oppressions and marginalization’s. In the article, “Why Intersectionality Can’t Wait” Kimberle Crenshaw talks about how the purpose of intersectionality has been lost. Intersectional somehow creates an environment of bullying and privilege checking. This society cannot afford to have movements that are not intersectional because all races need to be embraced and have equality.

Roderick Ferguson’s article, “Nightmares of the Heteronormative,” details the ways that the categories of home and domesticity are constructed in a manner made to be accessible by people of color, using the queer of color critique. Similarly, Kimberle Crenshaw’s “Mapping the Margins” coins intersectionality to explore the ways that sexism and racism intersect to produce the doubly marginalized experience of being a woman of color.

Privilege and oppression provides a framework for understanding how institutional structures and ideologies shapes individual experiences. Privilege and oppression also explains “how power operates in society” which led to the formation of “a dominant group and a marginalized group” (Launius and Hassel, Threshold Concepts, 72-73). “Oppression can be defined as prejudice and discrimination directed toward a group and perpetuated by the ideologies and practices of multiple social institutions” (Launius and Hassel, Threshold Concepts, 73). While, privilege refers to the “benefits, advantages, and power that accrue to members of a dominant group as a result of the oppression of marginalized group”,

This essay will critically analyze the various forms of oppression that are set out through Audrey Lorde’s concept of the “mythical norm” as discussed by Barbara Perry. Through the “mythical norm”, it can be seen that oppressions exists through the forms of racism and sexism which are exhibited through many scholarly texts and articles. Racism can be seen as a means of privilege and power that is given to individuals who coincide with the criteria of societies norm. In this case, these individuals consist of white, heterosexual, male beings who unknowingly oppress their racialized counterparts. Oppression can also be seen through the form of sexism. Sexism looks at the injustice and inequality of male dominance over female, which results to men being more privileged and advantaged in society over women who are disadvantaged. Therefore, privilege and power is obtained by those who coincide with the concept of the “mythical norm”, leaving minority groups who do not coincide with this conception oppressed through the forms of racism and sexism.

As many women struggled to retain their values and traditions, there were existing male dominated conceptions of race and white dominated conceptions of gender. Kimberle Crenshaw describes the concept of intersectionality where race and gender interact in various ways to shape multiple dimensions experiences for different groups

Chapter 9, Gender Inequality, is a satisfying look into gender disparity. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the chapter was written from a feminist perspective, because feminism as a whole is usually thought of as something only women should care about or benefit from. However, feminism is important to both genders, and should be at the forefront of social discussions. One of the most important parts of the chapter is when the author discusses not only the differences between men and women, but the differences between women of different races, classes, and sexualities. This intersectionality is not usually discussed as much as the “women vs. men” debates, but are just as key to change as feminism itself. One group I was surprised

Intersectionality is a term that describes the ways which oppressive institutions such as, sexism, homophobia, racism, classism etc interact. Categories such as gender, ethnicity, poverty and mental illness reinforce each other in ’‘Women on the Edge of Time’’ and they overdetermine a negative outcome. Piercy put Connie in positions where she came to understand sexism, working class opression and white supremacy in both her personal life and in Mattapoisett.

In our Society, we deal with many form of oppression in our daily lives. Unfortunately, different groups of people are more oppressed than others. Oppression is the unjust treatment of a group of people. I believe, our government is a major culprit as they are responsible for oppressing most of society. This involves many groups, such as single mothers, the working class, African Americans, gays and lesbians. In my paper, my personal views will be addressed incorporating ideas from several readings pertaining to different forms of oppression. A summarization of each article will be provided as well.

Kimberlé Crenshaw is an esteemed civil rights advocate and law professor. Crenshaw introduced the concept of “intersectionality” to the acclaimed feminist theory close to 30 years ago in a paper written for the University of Chicago Legal Forum, describing the “intersectional experience” as something “greater than the sum of racism and sexism. (Crenshaw)” She wrote in terms of intersectional feminism, which examines the overlapping systems of oppression and discrimination that women face, based not just on gender but on ethnicity, sexuality, economic background and a number of other axes. She speaks on it in a sense that the term intersectionality provides us with a way to see issue that arise from discrimination or disempowerment often being more complicated for people who are subjected to multiple forms of exclusion because of the protected clauses they may possess. Crenshaw speaks on the “urgency of intersectionality” in her Ted talk. This as well as her spreading awareness for the #SayHerName campaign drives a tie between the necessity for intersectionality advocaism and the the occurrences of neglect and violence present in societal happenings today. The question that stands in the forefront of her work is how can we effectively apply an intersectional methodology to analysis of violence and other acts against people who are often being neglected of any sort of recognition in social issues today? Intersectionality is one of the better known concepts within the

Intersectionality theory recognizes the complex nature of societal discrimination so it attempts to explain or make sense of the human traffic situation of the indigenous women. Intersectionality is a method of studying the relationship between multiple dimensions of social relationships and subject formations. It seeks to understand and explain the dynamic interaction of class, gender, and ethnic/racial forms of domination and subordination, as well as the different ways in which each dimension is experienced by people separately as well as through the other dimensions (Satzewich & Liodakis, 2013):50. The argument from the intersectional theorist is that race/ethnicity, along with class and gender are bases affecting individual and/ or group

Social constructs shape the way individuals live their everyday life, with respect to their geographical location being put into context. The effects of social constructs can also be witnessed upon studying their influence on feminism, and its advancements in history. In this discussion I will explain the following terms: genderism, binary, patriarchy, liberal feminist theory, systemic oppression, social feminist theory, and institutional sexism, and how they highlight the explicit dichotomy of equity in North-American society. These constructs create stigmas around the study of feminism, and all of its prior successors, making it more difficult to advance in the workplace, and in societies perspective.. This process oppresses many individuals,

The course is structured through scale modules, each lesson building upon each previous one to describe the expanding dimensions and conversations regarding the sociopolitical construction, representation and promotion of Women. For example, the course begins with an overview of the terminology found in many of today’s academic and political discussions regarding gender: what is feminism? What is sex and gender and how are they different and why were they ever linked? What is the gender binary? What does it mean to be transgender or intersex? The socially-constructed profile of women can now be considered in relation to men in terms of divisions of labor and political rights. Intersectionality is then

There are many interpretations of intersectionality, but without a doubt, the critical theory of intersectionality is based on the understanding that oppressive institutions within society take different forms for specific cultural and social positions of individuals and groups. Among the concerns in the article, Joan Simalchik and Hunter College Women’s and Gender Studies Collective discuss the ways in which intersectionality provides a better understanding of how relations of power and privilege and the intersection of gender and race influence women’s everyday lives.