Intersectionality = the interconnected nature of social categories such as race, class, and gender applied to a given individual or group, which creates overlapping effects of privilege, discrimination, or disadvantage.
Intersectionality
As mentioned, it is common to have multiple identities. Historically and presently, some groups (especially racial, national and gender categories) have benefited from more resources and power than others, which can put them at a disadvantage or cause them to face discrimination. If a person has more than one of these identities, the negative impact of one can be tied to and have a compounding effect on the others.
For example, a person may be of a low socioeconomic status and face challenges due to this. However, a socioeconomically disadvantaged man will likely have certain privileges related to their gender compared to a socioeconomically disadvantaged woman. As a result of intersectionality, they have different experiences and face additional challenges and/or types of discrimination. You may already notice this in your own life and community, and may also observe this in other cultural contexts.
Reflection 4: What overlapping identities affect you? What are the positive effects and the negative ones?