Heaven Silas

Dr. Parker
English 113
9/10/16
In Why Our Feminism Must Be Intersectional Jarune Uwujaren and Jamie Utt
provides information about intersectionality when it comes to feminism. Specifically
Uwujaren and Utt explain why identity privilege is a reason for oppression in feminism.
As the author themselves put it Privilege conceals itself from those who have it, and
its a lot easier to focus on the ways that we are marginalized or oppressed. Although
some people dont consider there to be a white or black feminism, Uwujaren and Utt
insist that intersectionality is the entire reason behind the idea that feminism is
separated by race. In sum, then their view is that being oppressed racially should not go
in hand with also being oppressed because of your gender.
I agree. In my view women of color and transexual women are already
oppressed enough, if not because of their race, or lifestyle then because they are in fact
women. For instance a white women or white feminist will talk about issues being that
she is oppressed as a woman, not as a white women. A transexual woman will talk
about issues that her oppression comes from her being transexual; and a black woman
will either talk about her oppression of being black, being a woman, or being both. This
is where intersectionality comes in for feminism. In addition the authors also state that
One misconception about intersectionality is that it encourages division and exclusion in
the feminist movement. In which they argue that isnt the case.
In many ways we see intersectionality often in feminism, because of previous
examples of race and lifestyle choices, women are often looked at as stereotypical
when they choose to join the feminist movement, not depending on their race. By the
authors definition, White feminism is a set of beliefs that allows for the exclusion of
issues that specifically affect women of color. It is one size-fits all feminism, where
middle class White women are the mold that others must fit. It is a method of practicing
feminism, not an indictment of every individual White feminist, everywhere, always.
Basically to say that this form of intersectional feminism only benefits and looks at the
views and issues of white women, not women of color or transexual women. Because
intersectional feminism includes race, class, sexuality, and other ways to identify
people, some people believe that intersectional feminism is breaking a unity between
feminist and the entire feminist movement. Feminism is the idea that all women deal
with sexism, but intersectional feminism deals with women who are not only dealing with
sexism, but also racism, homosexual discrimination, and also discrimination between
economic classes. Now we are no longer dealing with only feminism because some
peoples feminism does not end with just not being equal to men, but they are also not
equal to one another.