Crenshaw's Mapping The Margins Analysis

In “Intersectional Resistance and Law Reform,” Dean Spade proposes that the United States was founded through “racialization…(which) continues to operate under new guises… that produce, manage, and deploy gender categories and sexuality and family norms” (16). More over, these laws and norms tend to maintain the “status quo,” and employ an inherently flawed justice system that is only equipped to address single-axis discrimination issues (5). Thus, the intersectionality movement is largely dismissed by the social and justice systems, as it utilizes “critical intersectional tools… that are often (too) difficult for legal scholars to comprehend” (17). Interstionality’s progress is also impeded by advocates leaving to support single-axis issues. However, Spade warns that this approach is ineffective, as it fails to protect the most marginalized members of society.

In “Coalitions as a Model for Intersectionality: From Practice to Theory,” Elizabeth Cole addresses how the intersectional approach should be utilized to form coalitions that seek to advance marginalized populations (1). However, unlike the feminist movement, that narrowly defined its goals and constituency, these newly formed coalitions should be broad based, incorporating diverse populations and directives. Moreover, the alliances can even be formed by seemingly unlike populations, which when analyzed through the intersectional lens, may share similar experiences and goals. In addition, by examining the numerous axis of gender, race, and other intersectional components, one can identify other similarities not previously recognized.

According to Nicki L. Cole’s article, “Definitions of Intersectionality,” the concept of intersectionality “refers to the simultaneous experience of categorical and hierarchical classifications,” including race, class, and gender. Consequently, the different forms of oppression, such as racism, classism, and sexism, depend on one another and intersect to form “a unified system of oppression” (Cole). Using the concept of intersectionality as an “analytical tool,” social scientists may research “how different forms of privilege and oppression exist simultaneously in shaping [one’s] experiences in [society]” (Cole). In the article, “The Case for Reparations,” the concept of intersectionality reveals that capitalists purposely pitted the various

Intersectionality illustrates how people face a multitude of experience based on their social identities. In Mapping the Margins, Crenshaw explores how race and gender detriments violence against women of color. She spoke about how spousal violence differ for women of color compared to white women. In 1990, Congress made the Immigration and Nationality Act to protect immigrant women who were abused by their American husbands. The act also stated an immigrant had to be married to a United States citizen for two years before gaining permanent resident status.

It is impossible to discuss gender and the influences it has on one livelihood without acknowledging the other aspects of one’s identity. Other aspects such as race, class, and sexuality in combination with will always play a major role in one’s life choices and the way they are perceived by others. The term intersectionality as stated by Susanne Hochreiter offers a way to understand the multiple grounds of identity when considering how the social world is constructed. Intersectionality explains why gender cannot be in isolation from other inequalities in the social world. As a black Haitian woman raised in America, it is clear to see that my identity occupies several spheres.

Intersectional activism is composed of many different components and it often looks different depending on a number of factors including the location and identity of the people participating in the activism. When looking at the literature on intersectional activism, themes appear that are repeated across the literature. Intersectional activism is not a monolithic concept, as such, though two works might address the same theme or topic that does not mean that they approach the topic in the same way. Though not the same, the topics hold importance across the different forms of activism. These repeated topics include the importance and difficulties arising from coalition building, organizational structure and goals, the role of institutions, and

Intersectionality This reading is centered around Kimberle Crenshaw’s idea of intersectionality and how we often are a part of multiple social identities at one time. Her idea of these multiple identities contribute to her argument that society often treats people according to a specific social group versus all the groups in which they belong. Crenshaw gave the example of the Hispanic mother that was a victim of domestic violence and was not able to adequately convey her claims because of the language barrier between her and her crisis counselor. The son of the woman would have been able to translate but the counselor declined saying that would further disempower her.

Intersectionality can be described as the effect of overlapping of systems of discrimination, based on social categories like race, gender, and class, on an individual or group. White feminists did not understand why it was necessary to combat the racial systems that effected Chicanas. Chicanas faced ideologies of racial inferiority and hyperfertility, which contributed to the reasons why they were victims of forced sterilization. To combat forced sterilizations, Chicanas urged feminists to include a 72-hour waiting period for sterilizations and informed consent (Davis, 131). However, because white feminists at the time were focused on obtaining immediate rights to their bodies, they saw informed consent and a waiting period for sterilizations as inconveniences (Davis, 131).

INTERSECTIONALITY IN PRACTICE According to Valentine (2007), feminist geography studies tend to look at intersectional types of issues which limit their analyses to the relationship between particular identities such as class or gender rather than addressing the full implications of the above theorisation of intersectionality (Valentine 2007, 14). The reason behind narrowing the scope of empirical work is due to the complexity of intersectionality itself. Valentine further argued that researching on intersectionality has the tendency to collapse back to focusing on the non-privilege groups rather than how privileged identities are done and undone. Moreover, when research on intersectionality are done in practicality, and due to certain limitation,

“The feminist theory criticizes the hierarchical structures in society that treat women and minorities unfairly; sociology has traditionally been male dominated; feminist theory is rooted in conflict and symbolic interactionism” To look at it in the Aryan’s perspective, they consider themselves as the minority, for they believe other races are out to kill them and the whites are becoming the minority. As I watched videos and interviews with people who associate themselves with the KKK, they believe that, President Barack Obama, is ignoring them. They do not feel heard, protected, or present in America. This theory affects the points raised in the book by putting the readers in an Aryan’s perspective. Even though the Feminist theory could be a theory used as a basis, but the Symbolic Interaction Theory would be better to use to study this issue.

Without applying intersectionality in analysis, oppression can only be understood in general terms, which can cause forms of oppression to become undetected (Mattsson, 2014). Instead, intersectionality, demonstrates the complexity of gender, sexuality, class, and race avoiding stereotypes as a whole, rather than simplifying an individual based on one characteristic (Mattsson, 2014). For example, when I was working at a Community Centre in the Jane and Finch area, I had a conversation with my co-worker. He described the barriers and struggles he has faced because of his race and socioeconomic status. It was through this conversation that I realized the pre-conceived notions my co-worker had about me, as a white individual who did not grow-up in the same neighbourhood.

Furthermore in defining intersectionality, Hill Collins (1998: 27) argues: That scholarship in the 1980s and 1990s increasingly focused on uncovering connections amongst systems of oppression organised along axes of social class, gender, race and nationalism. Within the paradigms of intersectionality, any specific locations, social location where such systems meet or intersect generates a distinctive group history or experience Hill Collins(1998) further expatiates her argument by stating that, “ for example, intersectionality holds that knowing a woman lives in a sexist society is insufficient information to describe her experience; instead it is also necessary to know her race, sexual orientation, class, etc. , as well as her society’s attitude toward each of these.”

Issues concerning “white feminism” often include things like the denunciation of rape culture, and equal pay for equal work. It may be said that my argument that “the only thing that matters is gender” effectively erases or ignores the struggles of women in a minority while effectively promoting a singular way of viewing both feminism and patriarchy. While I already addressed that race does, in fact, have a role in patriarchal hierarchy; the role of “white feminism” is often misconstrued. The

(Weil & Ohmer, 2013, p. 131) outline the importance of intersectionality, writing, "It calls attention to the all-too-frequent identification of people only by race, or by race and gender, without acknowledging their multiple aspects of identity… intersectionality incorporates the whole person-not just a category. " Although the primary focus of the (Mirzrahi & Lombre, 2006) article is on intersectionality within the Women's Movement (or the lack thereof), the authors' research demonstrates the fundamental importance of addressing the "whole person" and not just their perceived identity (Weil & Ohmer, 2013, p.

Cultural Diversities and Differences “Look how they treat us” is a poem by Saul Williams in his collection of poetic literature compiled in the book US (a.) (Williams, 2015). In the poem, Saul Williams describes how the invention of social media has changed the social interactions and ideas. Further, the article describes how people have mixed serious issues about race differences and atrocities being bestowed among the unprivileged population with entertainment. Moreover, Saul notes that people do not think through what they share so long as it has come to their mind.