“If you don’t know the difference between white feminism [versus] intersectional feminism [,] then you’re probably a white feminist” (qtd. in Dastagir, 2018). Everybody falls into certain groups that relates to each individual person – whether that is age, gender, sexual orientation, race, or any other characteristic. Each person therefore identifies in more than one subgroup. Intersectional feminism is the overlapping of these categories in the feminist movement. And as later generations became and are becoming contributors to the feminist movement, it is moving away from its roots as a movement of gender equality and toward a movement of acceptance and equality for all characteristics. Intersectional feminism is the understanding of how a …show more content…
One of the largest movements coming from this new wave of feminism is the #MeToo Movement – a movement in which women of all ages are sadly being raped and molested by men for no apparent reason other than because they have the power and strength to do so. It is a movement that brings into light the violence being thrown upon women. Although it does not seem to affect the #MeToo Movement, intersectionality plays a vital role. Laverne Cox said “I notice when some trans women have come forward and say that they have been sexually assaulted there has been a different tenor in terms of the ways they’ve been believed as opposed to other women who are not trans” (qtd. in Perez, 2018). Cox is saying that when people other than white and straight are sharing their heartbreaking stories, the audience treats them differently; differently than they would if a straight white woman shared the exact same story. There is a different tenor, different perspective, when it comes to race and sexual orientation with the #MeToo Movement. Intersectionality plays a vital role in feminism; with it, it can be seen that people with different identities are being treated differently, even though similar crimes are …show more content…
“Recently, some people have expressed the worry that recognition of the multicultural dimension of society results in a devaluation or destruction of traditional values” (Cyrus, 1993). Therefore, people are worried that intersectional feminism and recognition of the overlapping characteristics of people would have negative impacts on “traditional values.” However, it needs to be understood that the values of the 1840s are not the same as those of the twenty first century. Therefore, if a society thinks that this new ideology – intersectional feminism – is disturbing “traditional values” then the problem is with society. “The degree of flexibility of a society is a good index of its strength” (Cyrus, 1993). For society to reach its utmost potential, it need not worry about the destruction of traditional values by intersectional feminism, but rather embrace it. Furthermore, for there to be a change in society, the whole picture must be understood. Intersectionality allows feminism to be more inclusive to other minorities and transitions feminism away from focusing on white women. Intersectionality is vital to the feminist movement because in order for a change to occur the entire picture must be
Angela Davis incorporates the theory of intersectionality to explain the emergence and inaccuracy of the myth of the black rapist in her paper. Within this paper, which is titled “Rape, Racism and the...
According to feminist scholar Victoria Bromley, intersectionality is a theory used by feminists that considers the intertwinement of systems of oppressions, intricate multiple identities of individuals, and social inequalities of society. Each of these factors influence the lives of humanity and have ultimately created a world where being different can either be a negative or positive thing. Through the use of expression and persuasion, Bromely argues that intersectionality analyzes the complexity of multiple identities and their interrelationships, the experiences and positionalities of those with multiple identities and their existence within the frameworks of power, which are systems of inclusion and exclusion, and hierarchies of privilege,
“[T]he cage may or may not be specifically developed for the purpose of trapping the bird, yet it still operates (together with the other wires) to restrict its freedom” (Alexander, 184). This metaphor used by Michelle Alexander gives a good basis on the idea of intersectionality within feminist theory. What Alexander has stressed hugely in ‘The New Jim Crow’ is the idea of racial hierarchy, which bell hooks also stresses in her chapter Men: Comrades in Struggle in her book ‘Feminist Theory: from margin to center.’ She discusses the hierarchy of men and women while also discussing race. She claims that the history of the feminist movement has not wanted to “acknowledge that bourgeois white women, though often victimized by sexism, have more
Intersectionality is complex. For example, I experience race differently as a black female than a black man does. And similarly, a white woman experiences sexism differently than me. Despite the four systems of oppression that were discussed, there are also many ways in which I am privileged. As someone who conforms to gender norms, is heterosexual, able-bodied, credentialed, young, middle class, and fertile, my standing in society is a lot higher than most. The unique thing about intersectionality is both the oppression and privilege have made me into who I am today and have ultimately changed me for the better.
According to feminist Victoria L. Bromley, if feminism is about combating all forms of inequalities, including oppression, towards all social groups, then feminists must study how masculinity oppresses both men and women. Patriarchy, men’s powers and dominance, hegemonic masculinity, the idea that the “dominant group” in society is most powerful, and hyper masculinity, the exaggeration of the emphasis on male characteristics, all lead to oppression through multiple forms: privileges and unearned privileges, hierarchies of power and exclusion. Bromley argues that the feminist approach towards eliminating oppression, is to use an intersectional analysis, a theoretical tool used for understanding how multiple identities are connected and how systems
Feminism is a political movement that seeks equality between the sexes. Motivated by the search for social justice, feminist analysis provides a wide range of perspectives on social, cultural, economic, and political ideologies. Important topics for feminist politics and theory include: the body, class and work, family life, globalization, human rights, popular culture, race and racism, reproduction, sex work, human trafficking, and sexuality. From early beginnings, to its current state, feminism has been a pervasive movement that has incited social, political and economic change and advancements. Generationally speaking, over the decades feminism has taken on many different meanings. Feminism has become a spectrum; each generation, or wave,
Intersectionality according to Patricia Hill Collins is the “theory of the relationship between race, gender and class” (1990), also known as the “matrix of domination” (2000). This matrix shows that there is no one way to understand the complex nature of how gender, race and class inequalities within women’s lives can be separated; for they are intertwined within each other.
Feminism must be intersectional because equality struggles go farther than gender. As a human race, we are all different, but all deserve justice in social, economic, and political matters. Intersectional feminism is beneficial to everyone. It focuses not just on combating gender inequality, but also racism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, fat/skinny shaming, classism, etc.
The term “intersectional feminism” has underlined most of everything we have discussed in class so far, and rightfully so. Regarding Woman’s Gender Studies, talking about intersectionality is one of the most important conversations to have because it is paramount for feminist analysis. Throughout history, many scholars have produced exemplary pieces when true intersectionality is misused or blatantly ignored, and stress its connection to feminism. Intersectionality matters because feminism cannot be inclusive without it.
In order to fully explore the complexities of the relationship between feminism and multiculturalism, we first need to understand the terms which are being used. I believe that Okin (1999) describes feminism best when she explains it as “the belief that women should not be disadvantaged by their sex, that they should be recognized as having human dignity equal to that of men, and that they should have the opportunity to live as fulfilling and as freely chosen lives as men can” (p10). The exact definition of multiculturalism is harder to specify. Taken literally, it can mean multiple cultures living t...
This essay will aim to discuss the relationship between Western Feminisms and International Feminisms as explored by various non-Western Feminists. It will aim to investigate the origins of this 'relationship ', the complexities/complications within it, evaluate how effective both paradigms are in the third wave and ultimately what is still needed to be done to create a transnational, intersectional feminist movement irrespective of the backgrounds of all women.
Intersectionality is a term used to describe a situation whereby an individual has multiple identities and as result, the person feels that he or she doesn’t belong to one community or another. Because of the many conflicts in an individual’s identities, he or she could be a victim of multiple threats of discrimination (Williams, 2017). The discrimination could be a result of race, gender, age, health and ethnicity among others. To give an example, a black transgender woman could be discriminated in the workplace because of being black and also because she is transgender. From an intersectionality perspective, the woman faces multiple threats of discrimination because of the overlapping identities of gender and race and therefore the transwoman faces a bigger struggle (Barber, 2017). Transwomen of color will most likely encounter prejudices in the form of homophobia, racism or sexism in many dimensions of their life. The perspective of intersectionality is not only applicable to women but it can also be applied to males. For example, a gay Latino man could be discriminated based on race because he is an immigrant into
Intersectionality also known as intersectional theory originally was a theory which was encoded in feminism. Intersectionality was a term in which feminists developed to explain how they were being socially oppressed because they were woman, in particular this theory addressed issues of the women’s suffrage movement and women wanting to retain the same rights as their male counterparts. As time progressed it became more common to see see it branched out into multidimensional levels of institutions such as- race, class, sexism, culture, religion, and even biological transgender. Intersectionality by definition aims to analyze multiple identities exposing different types of discrimination and disadvantages that occur
Multiracial Feminism: Recasting the Chronology of Second Wave Feminism introduces ideas by Becky Thompson that contradict the “traditional” teachings of the Second Wave of feminism. She points out that the version of Second Wave feminism that gets told centers around white, middle class, US based women and the central problem being focused on and rallied against is sexism. This history of the Second Wave does not take into consideration feminist movements happening in other countries. Nor does it take into consideration the feminist activism that women of color were behind, that centered not only on sexism, but also racism, and classism as central problems as well. This is where the rise of multiracial feminism is put to the foreground and
Among the many subjects covered in this book are the three classes of oppression: gender, race and class in addition to the ways in which they intersect. As well as the importance of the movement being all-inclusive, advocating the idea that feminism is in fact for everybody. The author also touches upon education, parenting and violence. She begins her book with her key argument, stating that feminist theory and the movement are mainly led by high class white women who disregarded the circumstances of underprivileged non-white women.