Intersectionality was a term created by Kimberlé Crenshaw. “Intersectionality and the Changing Face of Ecofeminism”, by A.E. Kings, describes intersectionality as, “the interconnectedness of race, class, gender, disability, sexuality, caste, religion, age and the effects which these can have on the discrimination, oppression, and identity of women and the natural environment” ( 64). It’s original intention was to shed light on the lives of black woman. They were known to not only be discriminated against for their complexion, but also for their gender. Women’s rights, back in the day, meant rights for only white woman.
There are three approaches to intersectionality: anticategorical, intercategorical, and intracategorical. Anticategorical focuses on, “deconstructing categories used to describe social groups. Intercategorical uses pre-existing categories solely to document inequality. Intracategorical uses categories while examining changes in equality” (Kings 67). Ecofeminists mostly use the intracategorical approach.
Intersectionality is compared mostly to a, “web of entanglement, than a traffic junction or road” (King 64). A web is dainty and simple. A thin, silky, clear, thread-like material. Yet, if one looks closely, it is intricate. When one looks at it, one can see it’s beauty, the time, the effort,and the uniqueness. Most importantly? The strength. Ecofeminism and intersectionality go hand in hand with this metaphor. Woman are intertwined. No matter their gender, sexuality, race, religion, etc., they deal with the same oppression under the one similarity; being a woman. Just like the web, woman are looked at as dainty. Woman are also seen as simply woman; only. Their emotions are thought to be as thin as thread. Yet, woman are more than that. Woman are intricate beings, with many layers. Beautiful. Each unique. And most importantly? Strong. Just like the web intersectionality, a woman is strong. The web, as delicate as it is, braces climates/weather, and captures even the heaviest of insects. The woman’s intersectionality web is made up of what society casts as “weak”; woman. But, while many woman focus on their differences amongst eachother, they miss that they have more similarities than they realize and deal with many of the same oppressions. A web works strongest when all pieces are held together. Woman would be stronger as a whole if they stood together to fight oppression.
“Undersea”, by Rachel Carson- “Against this cosmic background the life span of a particular plant or animal appears, not as a drama complete in itself, but only as a brief interlude in a panorama of endless change” (67). What can be taken away from this quote? That change is important. No matter our physical environment, we should plant ourselves, and blossom. But not STAY planted. Evolve, move, and form new dynamics. We are allowed to change. Living things, like intersectionality, should be constantly changing in order to flourish. How can this be? “Integrating one’s past, present, and future into a cohesive sense of self is a complex task that begins in adolescence and continues for a lifetime” (Tatum 10). We are products of our biology, our environment, and life experiences.
What can we do to end the cycle? For once, focus on the big picture. We are all under the same umbrella. We are all woman. We need to stop counting the rain drops and analyzing what angle they are coming from. Our biggest thing is realizing that we are ALL getting rained on. We must all stop praying on the downfall of others, so we in turn feel better about ourselves. “The horror of class stratification, racism, and prejudice is that some people begin to believe that the security of their families and communities depends on the oppression of others, that for some to have good lives there must be others whose lives are truncated and brutal” (Allison).
From the comfort of my throne,
Princess Joelle
I also thought it was essential to bring up Kimberlé Crenshaw in my blog post this week as well! One of the cases that Crenshaw cites for the value of the intersectional ‘web’, is the General Motors case, where women of color were being laid off disproportionally, but because there were men of color, and white women, working, there was no case for sexism or racism. The intersectional ecofeminist web can be applied to this example as well, from a couple of angles, first, the women of color being laid off, and the wealthy company exploiting racial injustice laws. We can then apply ecofeminism to this by looking at the context that this case happened. General Motors sells car parts, and cars are a leading source for carbon emissions. This immediately makes this an ecofeminist issue as well. General Motors exploits both it’s workers, and the planet, yet they still won this court case. Ecofeminism is essential to intersectional conversation, because our use of the land effects everything we do, yet we disrespect it so willingly.
Hey Joelle, I really love the title of your blog this week. It instantly grabbed my attention so I felt inclined to comment on your post. While Crenshaw indeed coined the term ‘intersectionality’ as a way to include black women into the conversation, “it is an insufficiently acknowledged fact that ecofeminists have been ‘doing intersectionality’ for many years before Crenshaw first explicitly defined it in 1989” (Kings, A.E. “Intersectionality and the Changing Face of Ecofeminism”). I found this to be particularly interesting because I never questioned whether intersectionality was involved in ecofeminism, I didn’t even think it was going to be a conversation because I thought it to be quite obvious. Of course this depends on the type of educational background one has. I am curious as to why it wasn’t until Crenshaw came along that this concept was given a name and from there discussed among many different groups of people for a variety of reasons. Your paragraph about the ‘web’ of intersectionality is beautifully written, I loved when you said “Woman are intricate beings, with many layers. Beautiful. Each unique. And most importantly? Strong.” I got really wrapped up in your thoughts here, because you are so right. I started to think, why is it that we are so intricate and complicated and men just seem to be as they appear? Intersectionality is very much related to this question. Men seem to have been excluded from the intersectionality conversation. I think this is because if they were to be included it would expose their weaknesses and emotions, which society has deemed men shouldn’t have. I’d be curious to see how the intersectionality conversation would change if men were to include themselves. Your concluding thoughts really brings everything together. I think women tend to turn on each other more often than we help each other, which is just sad. This steams from a lot of things, jealousy, hatred and pretty much every excuse in the book. If we can understand intersectionality within our own identity, we can do so with others and from there we could be unstoppable. Great thoughts this week! I look forward to reading more!
I like how you first defined intersectionality. I also did this, and I feel as if it helps those who might not understand the term or in the way we were discussing it. I also like that you included the original intentions behind intersectionality. With intersectionality comes connections to race and class and how it results in the oppression of the different women. However, according to an article written by Cacildia Cain, “there is no movement that truly addresses the intersectional oppression black women face from sexism and environmental racism” (Cain 2). Cain goes on to address that ecofeminism is more focused on the oppression of white women and lack those points and views of black women. Without including black women into the web and looking at the connections between nature and them that leads to oppression, the web isn’t complete. Women need to look out for all women, no matter their race and I think that’s something we need to work on to be the best ecofeminists we can be. Back to the race issue, I absolutely love when you said that “Women are intertwined, they experience the same oppression under being a woman.” I have never agreed more, and this expands my point on what Cain was mentioning. No matter their race, sexuality, etc, they are oppressed because they are women. And everyone should have their standpoint put out to connect this web so we can understand the connections and why being a woman is so unfair today. I love that you incorporated all of the readings into your blog. The quotes you used from different readings to connect your points was great and helped expand your points beyond what was just written. I especially like the paragraph on the Rachel Carson reading. It was such a great read and I look forward to your next post.