The struggle against patriarchy and racism must be substantively robust and inextricably intertwined.
Kimberle Williams CrenshawRead
Intersectionality draws attention to invisibilities that exist in feminism, in anti-racism, in class politics, so, obviously, it takes a lot of work to consistently challenge ourselves to be attentive to aspects of power that we don't ourselves experience.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Intersectionality highlights the importance of acknowledging various forms of discrimination and power dynamics that may not affect every individual equally.
Kimberle Williams Crenshaw's quote emphasizes the concept of intersectionality, which urges us to recognize the overlapping social identities and related systems of oppression that affect individuals differently. It asserts that in movements like feminism and anti-racism, there are often invisible struggles that must be acknowledged, requiring conscious effort and self-reflection to challenge one's own biases and understand the complexities of power.
Themes
IntersectionalityFeminismRacismPowerSocial JusticeAwareness
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion on social justice at a community forum.
More from Kimberle Williams Crenshaw
All quotes →I have a wonderful, diverse, and young staff at the AAPF who pretty much work around the clock trying to figure out how we promote the idea that social justice requires us to be intersectional in our thinking and in our scope of vision.
Kimberle Williams CrenshawRead
If you don't have a lens that's been trained to look at how various forms of discrimination come together, you're unlikely to develop a set of policies that will be as inclusive as they need to be.
Kimberle Williams CrenshawRead
We have to move back to the idea that education isn't about teaching people to bow to rigid rules. That's not what democracy is about.
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Having a monolithic view of feminism is suffocating.
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We must begin to tell black women's stories because, without them, we cannot tell the story of black men, white men, white women, or anyone else in this country. The story of black women is critical because those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it.
Kimberle Williams CrenshawRead
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