Often when thinking about marginalization in any sense, we think about the discrimination and issues that different groups face as almost entirely separate from one another, but that’s not the case. Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term intersectionality in 1989 as “the idea that when it comes to thinking about how inequalities persist, categories like gender, race and class are best understood as overlapping and mutually constitutive rather than isolated and distinct.” Though a relatively unheard of term 30 years ago, the idea has gained significant traction within activist circles in the last few decades. Although Crenshaw was not the first to discuss the intersections of different marginalized identities, she made the term palatable and easy to digest for the general public. A testament to Crenshaw’s legacy is that the term she coined is now in the Merriam Webster dictionary. 

The term intersectionality has been met with a lot of backlash by those who believe that their worldview becomes challenged by the idea of it. Often the backlash comes from a seemingly purposeful misunderstanding of the idea being presented. Those who most loudly oppose the concept seem to think that promoting intersectional activism means wanting to “create a new world order” wherein black women replace white men at the top of the social hierarchy. In reality, the entire idea aims to dismantle the systems of hierarchy that place any one group at the “top.” There is a common theme in political and sociological discourse where the more conservative side of any discussion is arguing against points that were never made because of a lack of understanding of the most important terms being used in the discussion. It’s for that reason that we seek to give somewhat succinct explanations of these ideas for those who might not understand. 

The reason that intersectionality is so important in modern activism is that for so long each group struggling for their liberation has been seen as separate. The gay rights movement was distinct from the black liberation movement which was different from the feminist liberation movement which was separate from class struggle. The truth of the matter is that all of those movements are inextricably intertwined. There are gay black people, black women and poor gay black women, and in a society that seeks to make many distinct groups in order to uphold a hierarchy that places white, straight, cis-gendered men at that top, there are going to be people who fall into a myriad of marginalized identities. 

In bell hooks’ essay “Understanding Patriarchy” she describes the social and political systems that are the foundation of our nation’s politics as the “imperialist white-supremacist capitalist patriarchy.” This definition shows intersectionality from the side of the oppressor and it can help to understand how one might experience oppression and privilege because conditions of the two are not mutually exclusive. 

For example, both the writers of this article are white women and as such benefit from white privilege while also being berated by societal misogyny. And while both authors fit into those two categories, we also have many other identities that are different from each other and that shape our existence. No one label can accurately describe anyone’s experience of life which is why the idea of intersectionality is so fundamentally important in discussions of identity. 

Many people who critique intersectional dialogue do so because they believe that it plays too much into “identity politics.” That critique, however, is rooted in that same imperialist white-supremacist capitalist patriarchy that bell hooks defines because to have your politics not be informed by your identity just shows that your identity is not being questioned in politics. If you’re involved in politics in any way and don’t see your identity being discussed, it’s much easier to not see a link between your life experiences and your political opinions. 

It’s so important to critically examine your own biases and experiences when talking about politics because regardless of whether you can easily see the link, it exists. Politics and identity will forever be intertwined as long as we live under the system of imperialist white-supremacist capitalist patriarchy. Actively engaging in conversations about this system is the first step to dismantling it. That engagement can even be as small as telling your friends and family members about the idea of intersectional activism.