Intersectionality of Gender Inequality and Racial Discrimination
Intersectionality can be defined as the study or concept of discriminative or oppressive institutions on disenfranchised groups or minorities, and the way these groups are interconnected. The theory of Intersectionality is based on the concept that oppressive institutions within a society, such as racism, ageism, sexism, and homophobia, do not act independently, but are instead interrelated and continuously shaped by one another.UCCNRS Webpage on Intersectioanlity
The concept is thought to have first emerged during the 1960s in relation to the development of a radical and multiracial feminist movement. The actual term of Intersectionality theory was first developed in 1989 by Kimberlé Crenshaw of UCLA School of Law and Columbia Law SchoolCrenshaw, Kimberlé. “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Anti-discrimination Doctrine, Feminist Politics and Antiracist Politics” University of Chigaco Legal Forum 1989: 139-167. , yet it was pushed even further into the spotlight with its utilization by Patricia Hill Collins in the discussion of black feminism.
Intersectionality of Gender Inequality and Racial Discrimination
The Intersectionality of gender inequality and racial discrimination may be interpreted as the relation between these two institutions and how they are influenced by one another. That is to say that discrimination experienced because of gender, for example gender discrimination against women, can be directly related, encouraged, and shaped by someone’s race or ethnicity as well. The combined effects of racial and gender discrimination on the advancement of women has been attracting attention to such substantive issues as migration, human trafficking, and violence against women.UN Women Watch
Women may experience racism specifically because of their gender, such as sexual violence against women members of particular racial or ethnic groups during armed conflict in which rape is used as a weapon or even an instrument of genocide, such as within the context of ethnic-based conflicts within Bosnia and Herzegovina and Rwanda .UN Women Watch
Other examples of intersectionality include the preference for fair skinned women in arranged marriages and the usage of the phrase “wheatish complexion” even by women with dark skin tones when creating their online profiles in matchmaking websites.
This topic has been met with some extensive research in terms of how the Intersectionality between gender and race leads to ethnic-based violence, trafficking, and obstacles within the economic, political, and social spheres, both private and public. In addition is has brought challenges to the forefront of how to properly study Intersectionality, as it is a field that is both multi-dementional and multi-departmental.Columbia University webpage on Intersectionality
References
- Bond, Johanna E. “International Intersectionality: A Theoretical and Pragmatic Exploration of Women’s International Human Rights Violations” Emory Law Journal 2003, Vol. 52 71-186.
- Wikipedia Page
See also
- Gender Equality
- Black History Month
- Intersectionality