Intersectionality describes our overlapping identities and the ways that those overlapping identities connect systems of oppression. The term was coined by legal scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989 to describe how systems of oppression overlap to create distinct experiences for people with multiple identity categories. When it comes to social science, there are countless terms that aim to aid us understand the world around us, so what’s the significance of intersectionality?
Intersectionality is important because we live in a world where individuals and communities face differing types of oppression, which can hinder our ability to access opportunities and resources. Intersectionality helps us to also understand privilege and how these structures dictate so much of our lives. It highlights how discrimination and exclusion are not simple ideas and cannot be solved by focusing on a single problem. A person’s identity or perceived identity can have a profound impact on the forms of discrimination that they may face. Every individual has multiple identities, such as race, class, gender, religion, they are overlapping, not singular, intersecting points of oppression that an individual may face.
This approach is crucial in understanding the inequalities different groups face — and by extension, how to overcome them by considering the complexity of the identities and patterns of oppression that individuals face within a given society. A more in-depth analysis of oppression helps us to improve equality in society, for example, in the case of social mobility. In the UK, minority ethnic people remain more likely to be in poverty than the majority White population. Social mobility means the ability to change your station in your society’s class structure (or social hierarchy) over a period of time. Intersectionality helps us gain a better understanding of the precursors that impacts ones’ ability to improve their social mobility and get out of poverty. Higher education has been globally recognised as a medium through which individuals can overcome a variety of social barriers and inequalities, thus an indicator of social mobility is access to higher education.
Intersectionality can help us to understand a range of inequalities and how to defeat them, such as health inequality. During Covid-19, intersectional research from Runnymead Trust suggested that individuals from minority ethnic groups in the UK are more likely to have had to work outside of their home during the national lockdown and are more likely to work in occupations with a higher risk of COVID-19 exposure, such as health and social care.
Having a framework that helps understands the world around us helps us to combat forms of oppression. It can help be applied in policymaking. This is because policy can help decision makers consider power dynamics, their own experiences and influence when making decisions. A “one size fits all” approach to narrowing inequality leaves people behind, especially where multiple inequalities intersect. In addition, an intersectional approach does not give higher status to any one inequality or experience of discrimination. Too often, a dilution or misappropriation of intersectionality is used which attempts to work “for everyone” and as a consequence ignores the specific and nuanced experiences of discriminations at the intersections of inequalities.
In order to help people improve their social mobility, we can use intersectionality to write policies that will increase diversity within higher education. For example, in the UK, there is disproportionate representation of working-class students and Black, Asian, Minority, Ethnic students. In the UK, student finance makes the means to take out a loan possible from working class backgrounds. However, this policy alone does not address the lack of Black, Asian, Minority, Ethnic students, who statistically are also more likely to be working class. Taking this into consideration, universities need other policies to help students from ethnic backgrounds, who have intersecting forms of discrimination.
At the University of Manchester, they have introduced the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic programme. The aim of the programme is to reduce barriers into higher education experienced by children and young people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds. The programme consists of projects that work directly with minority groups that are underrepresented or are experiencing barriers in accessing higher education. This policy ensures that marginalised groups are reached by reducing the barriers to their participation in the way of information. Working directly with schools to let students know about the opportunities at Manchester. Another example of this can be ensuring venues are fully accessible and suitably located, translations are provided where necessary, using trusted mediators where necessary, and providing incentives and reimbursements to contributors in exchange for their input. Along with this, the University of Manchester have a scholarship called Article 26 for Asylum seekers, or children of asylum can apply. This shows that the university is using the lens of intersectionality to form policies to make it a more representative and inclusive environment.
On a personal level, intersectionality is important as it helps us to understand other people’s experiences and struggles. It helps us to put ourselves in another’s shows by providing a deeper explanation of factors that may influence who we are, in other words we can improve our understanding of our complex differences and experiences. While we may not understand what inequality and discrimination feels like, it is important and helpful when connecting with someone to have a better picture of their struggles. The power of empathy under intersectionality is the ability to listen, be curious, and build relationships with others over what might otherwise divide people. In addition, instead of forcing one’s self to use intersectionality to identify a component of your identity that will be common with someone else’s, use intersectionality to celebrate differences and leverage empathy to understand those different experiences and design inclusive workspaces and experiences for employees. Intersectionality is a useful analytical framework, a way of understanding the world around us which in turn helps us inform our activism and policies to improve equality in society.
Meriam
